“A silent, standing protest by performance artist Erdem Gunduz has been taken up by hundreds of anti-government demonstrators and spread to several Turkish cities. Mr Gunduz appeared in Istanbul's Taksim Square at around 18:00 (15:00 GMT) on Monday and remained there until 02:00 when police moved in.

His protest quickly captured the imagination of the protest movement. The hash tag “duranadam” (“standing man”) dominated Turkish-language Twitter on Tuesday morning. Hundreds of people in Istanbul and Ankara took up the protest on Tuesday”. – BBC News

In this photo taken Tuesday, June 18, 2013, a woman stands in a silent protest as others read at Kizilay Square in Ankara, Turkey. After weeks of sometimes-violent confrontation with police, Turkish protesters have found a new form of resistance: standing still and silent. (Photo by AP Photo)

Demonstrators stand in a silent protest in Kugulu Park in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. After weeks of sometimes-violent confrontation with police, Turkish protesters have found a new form of resistance: standing still and silent. The banner with an image of Turkey's founder Kemal Ataturk reads: “Which crazy person thinks they can put me in chains”. (Photo by Burhan Ozbilic/AP Photo)

People stand during a silent protest on Tunali Hilmi Street in Ankara, Turkey, late Tuesday, June 18, 2013. (Photo by Burhan Ozbilic/AP Photo)

Turks stand in a silent protest in Kugulu Park in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. (Photo by Burhan Ozbilic/AP Photo)

Turks, some of them wearing national flags with images of Turkey's founder Kemal Ataturk, stand in a silent protest in Kugulu Park in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. (Photo by Burhan Ozbilic/AP Photo)

A woman reads a newspaper with the headline reading “Standing men”, during a silent protest in Guven Park in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. After weeks of sometimes-violent confrontation with police, Turkish protesters have found a new form of resistance, standing still and silent. (Photo by Burhan Ozbilic/AP Photo)

Turks, some of them holding national flags with images of Turkey's founder Kemal Ataturk, stand in a silent protest in Kugulu Park in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. (Photo by Burhan Ozbilic/AP Photo)

Young people silhouetted against the sun practice yoga during a silent protest at Taksim Square in, Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. (Photo by Petr David Josek/AP Photo)