"The cantonal police of Aargau found out today that a meeting of the Union of European-Turkish Democrats (UETD) in connection with the constitutional referendum in Turkey was scheduled to take place at a site in [the town of] Spreitenbach on Friday evening… [The police] has come to the conclusion that there are considerable security risks… [and that] holding the event is not justifiable," the police said in a press release.
According to the law enforcement, the decision was made after a consultation with Cantonal Councilor in charge of the Department for the Economy and Internal Affairs Urs Hofmann and the organizers of the meeting had been notified.
This cancellation comes on the heels of several others across Europe as Dutch and German authorities called off a few campaign meetings of Turkish Family and Social Affairs Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya.
According to the Daily Sabah newspaper, Kaya’s meetings in the Dutch towns of Hengelo, Enschede and Wehl as well as the German city of Cologne were canceled due to "security reasons."
Ankara has been seeking support from Turkish expats for a constitutional change that would increase the president's powers. Cancellation of pre-voting events in Germany prompted Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to compare Berlin with Nazi authorities.
The Turkish referendum on the constitutional amendment is scheduled for April 16.
