Thursday, May 11, 2017

Regarding the arrest of photographer and the imminent removal of the Zeynel Bey Tomb

+++ Hasankeyf Matters +++ Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive +++ 
Mesopotamian Ecology Movement +++

Statement on Arrest of National Geographic Photographer Mathias Depardon and the Imminent Move of the Zeynel Bey Tomb
The Zeynel Bey Tomb, Hasankeyf, May 2012

11 May 2017
Yesterday local sources reported that the Zeynel Bey Tomb in Hasankeyf, which has been encased in a concrete foundation, has now been lifted from its original foundation. According to local reports, the tomb will be moved tomorrow (Friday) without advance notification to the press. At the time of writing, the DSI (the State Hydraulic Works), which is responsible for the Ilisu Dam Project, has not announced the move on its web site.

While the government claims that it is transmitting Hasankeyf’s cultural heritage to the future and transforming the town into an important tourism center for the region, they have shrouded their work in secrecy. During the decades of planning and preparation for the Ilisu project, the government has denied the local people a say in shaping the future of their town. Now the government is raising new barriers to the journalistic documentation of the changes underway in Hasankeyf.

On Monday (May 8), Istanbul-based National Geographic photographer Mathias Depardon was detained while taking pictures in the new settlement area of Hasankeyf. According to news reports, after police reviewed Depardon’s social media accounts and discovered photographs shared three years ago, they arrested Depardon on suspicion of propaganda for a terrorist organization. Depardon now faces deportation, pending review of the matter by a court in Gaziantep. Depardon has visited Hasankeyf regularly for at least four years and has been working recently on a larger project for National Geographic.

This incident sends a chilling message to any journalists or citizen observers seeking to document the historic changes taking place in Hasankeyf, which is set for flooding by the waters of the Ilisu Dam within two years. Security personnel in Hasankeyf have intermittently interfered with photographers who visited the new settlement area in Hasankeyf, and more recently, access to the Zeynel Bey Tomb has been restricted.

The DSI has touted the relocation of the Zeynel Bey Tomb as the first time a whole building has been moved to a new location in Turkey and they predict that this will attract worldwide attention. Considering the claim to transform Hasankeyf into an important tourism center for the region, the interference with the work of professional journalists to document this work and the failure to publicize the date for the actual relocation of the tomb show that Turkish authorities know that the these projects cannot withstand careful scrutiny.

Indeed, the limited press coverage over the past four years shows that the project is fraught with problems. Experts considered different locations for the tomb – 1 km, 1.5 km and now 2 km from the original location – all without seeking the views of the town’s residents. For at least four years authorities have said the tomb would be moved along rails, but within recent months the plan suddenly changed and it was disclosed that the tomb would be moved on a trailer of some 150 wheels along a specially built road. Finally, authorities failed to disclose to the public the problems encountered when a test run using the new system was conducted two weeks ago.

The public deserves to know and we demand that the DSI disclose why the method of relocation was changed at such a late date. We also seek full disclosure of the details of the revised plan and evidence that the revised plan has been approved in the proper way.

The fact is that this project is fraught with problems – not just within the context of the controversial Ilisu Dam, which threatens the entire natural ecosystem of the Upper Tigris Basin with destruction, but also the project to relocate the Zeynel Bey Tomb. The sketchy and unstable plan threatens to destroy this invaluable manifestation of cultural heritage. The relocation of the Zeynel Bey Tomb to the new settlement area is an unforgivable and wanton act of cultural heritage destruction. This project and the whole Ilisu Project must be halted immediately. We need a new approach to building broad consensus around the socio-cultural development of Hasankeyf and the Tigris Valley.

We request also the immediate release of Mathias Depardon and the liberty for each journalist and human to move in and around Hasankeyf!

John Crofoot, Hasankeyf Matters
Ercan Ayboga, Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive

More information:
www.hasankeyfmatters.com – hasankeyfmatters@gmail.com
www.hasankeyfgirisimi.net – hasankeyfgirisimi@gmail.com

Thursday, May 4, 2017

Failed test run shows impossibility of relocation of Zeynel Bey Tomb

+++ Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive +++ Hasankeyf Matters +++ Mesopotamian Ecology Movement +++ Save the Tigris and Iraqi Marshes Campaign +++ Humat Dijla, Baghdad +++

Failed test run shows impossibility of relocation of Zeynel Bey Tomb in Hasankeyf!
Stop the relocation project!


4 May 2017

Open letter to:

Mr. Taco Bresser
Bresser Eurasia BV.
Viltweg 1p, P.O. Box 5231
3295 ZJ ’s-Gravendeel
The Netherlands
info@bresser.nu
t.bresser@bresser.nu

Mr. Ercan Tunç
Mr. Burhan Çetin
Er-Bu İnşaat
Yıldızevler Mah. 730. Sok. No:10/6
Çankaya, Ankara
Turkey
Fax: +90 312 441 82 06
info@erbuinsaat.com
rem_elektrik@hotmail.com.tr

Dear Mr. Taco Bresser
Dear Mr. Ercan Tunç
Dear Mr. Burhan Çetin

The test conducted at the end of April 2017 for the planned relocation of the Zeynel Bey Tomb in Hasankeyf has failed. This failure demonstrates the severe threats with which the cultural heritage of Hasankeyf is faced due to the ongoing construction of the Ilısu Dam and Hydroelectric Power Plant Project.

We demand in the strongest possible terms that you cease work immediately and withdraw from the project to relocate the Zeynel Bey Tomb. We cite again the ongoing case in the European Court of Human Rights, where Turkey's plan for cultural heritage conservation in Hasankeyf is disputed.

It is unacceptable that adequate measures were not taken to ensure that the test would be successful in the first attempt. This situation is especially disturbing after repeated assertions (both public and private) that there is no risk in this project.

Numerous inconsistencies and contradictions point to the fact that the planning for this project is flawed and that the risks of damage are higher than you have acknowledged:
  • For years authorities have told the public that the tomb would be moved on rails, but within the last months the plan has changed and the tomb is to be moved by means of a trailer moving along a specially constructed road.

  • The timing of the move has been rushed, raising the likelihood of mistakes. The move was announced for 18 April, but asphalting did not begin until the following week.

  • The 2 km distance over which the tomb is to be moved is extraordinarily long, with a significant incline, and the goal to move the structure within a single day is highly risky.

  • Over the past two years, there have been conflicting statements about the new location of the tomb.

  • The encasement of the structure in concrete is a fundamentally destructive approach, as it changes the building significantly even while it stands on its original foundation.

  • The total weight moved during the test is 750 tons, but the weight of the tomb is estimated to be approximately 900 tons.

  • Rather than seeking to build trust with the public by sharing information and seeking the views and opinions of the local people, this project is shrouded in secrecy. There is not even a statement of work displayed at the site. The lack of transparency raises the risks of the project, as it precludes adequate vetting of the technical plans to ensure that all flaws and vulnerabilities have been addressed.

Individuals and civil society organizations all over the world express regularly their opposition to the planned flooding of Hasankeyf and the surrounding Tigris Valley. In order to raise the awareness about the risks of the planned relocation of the Zeynel Bey Tomb, Humat Dijla/Tigris Keepers Association in Baghdad has started a campaign in Iraq, which is also severely threatened by the Ilısu Project.

The relocation of the Zeynel Bey Tomb would be an unforgivable act of cultural heritage destruction and a violation of the human rights of the local people. We hold your firms accountable for your part in the violation of Turkish law and the common international standards governing historic preservation and sustainable development.

We demand the cancellation of the project to relocate the Zeynel Bey Tomb, the immediate stop of the Ilısu Project and a broad discussion among all stakeholders to establish a consensus for socio-cultural development in the region.

Ercan Ayboğa
Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive, Hasankeyf/Batman and Mesopotamian Ecology Movement, Diyarbakır

John Crofoot
Hasankeyf Matters, Istanbul/Hasankeyf

Ali Alkharki
Humat Dijla, Baghdad

Toon Bijnens
Iraqi Civil Society Solidarity Initiative, Sulaymaniyah

Ali Al-Kharki
Humat Dijla/Tigris Keepers Association, Baghdad

Ismaeel Dawood
Un Ponte Per . . ., Pisa

Contact
www.hasankeyfgirisimi.net
email: hasankeyfgirisimi@gmail.com