Thousands protest in Istanbul against ban on outdoor seats

About 2,000 bar and restaurant owners and staffers demonstrated in Turkey's Istanbul on Sunday, protesting against the municipality's ban on outdoor seats. Carrying tables and chairs, the protesters marched in Beyoglu district, which is known by its vibrant night life, demanding the removal of the two-year-old ban and the compensation to their economic loss. Led by the Association of Beyoglu Bars and Entertainment places (BEYDER), the demonstration was also participated by other groups, such as the Peace and Democracy Party. "Shop owners are the victims of the ban for two years," reads one banner. "After five months of the ban, there was a decrease of 80 percent of our income; and it is now about 40 percent and we still don't have any tables," Burcak Unver, member of the board of BEYDER and owner of a cafe in upscale Cihangir neighborhood, told Xinhua. In response to a law banning indoor smoking in 2009, bars and restaurants in Beyoglu district add outdoor seats to accommodate smoker customers. But in 2011, the Istanbul municipality removed such outdoor seats, citing that they blocked passersby in the narrow alleys.