Fifteen members of the Freedom and Democracy Party (ÖDP) were taken into custody in Mersin on Thursday as a result of police attack on the group staging a protest against the recent amendments on university fees.

The ÖDP group, including party chair Oktap Canpolat, was attacked when they wanted to stage a protest march which the police claimed was illegal.

With the recent amendment on tuition fees, Turkish government has abolished university fees for daytime education. Nearly 1.5 million students will benefit from the new practice, government spokesman and Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arýnç said after a Cabinet meeting on August 27. However, students receiving distance and evening education will not benefit from the new practice, according to the new regulation, which has raised strong reactions from student groups. There are currently nearly 3.5 million university students in Turkey including private university students.

On the other hand, trials are still proceeding for university students, such as Ferhat Tüzer and Berna Yýlmaz, who have been tried or jailed for demanding free education.