Protesters from Doğa Derneği (BirdLife in Turkey) unfurled a banner over the Turkcell Billboard in Istanbul on 25 November to highlight the construction of the Ilisu Dam. Showing panoramic views of Hasankeyf - a site marked for destruction as part of the dam construction -demonstrators, wearing the flags of Austria, Germany and Switzerland hung from the 20 metre high structure displaying their message: Hasankeyf today, tomorrow, forever.

“It is time for a positive decision”, said Erkut Erturk, Campaign Coordinator for Doğa Derneği. “Prime Minister Erdogan should honour his commitment to our heritage and save Hasankeyf forever by registering this culturally and biologically diverse region on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list”.

In less than two weeks, the governments of Germany, Austria and Switzerland will decide whether to give the go-ahead to the financing of the Ilisu Dam Project or choose to save Hasankeyf and the Tigris Valley from total and irreversible destruction. Germany, Switzerland and Austria all have vested interests in the construction of the dam, but also have the power to stop the destruction of thousands of years of history.

"Prime Minister Erdogan should honour his commitment to our heritage and save Hasankeyf forever" —Erkut Erturk, Campaign Coordinator at Doğa Derneği (BirdLife in Turkey)

The controversial Ilisu Dam project threatens to flood a region that was once part of ancient Mesopotamia and that includes more than 83 archaeological sites. It is also home to many species of birds, such as Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus (Endangered) and Great Bustard Otis tarda (Vulnerable), as well as many mammals and other wildlife.

Doğa Derneği (BirdLife in Turkey) is urging the Turkish Government to abandon the Ilisu Dam project and to save Hasankeyf from destruction.
“The Ilisu Dam will only cause the destruction of our heritage and our legacy. For the sake of present and future generations, Turkey must stop this project. Germany, Austria and Switzerland must apply the same standards and controls to Turkey that they use in their own countries. No one should contribute to the disappearance of the unique wildlife and history of Hasankeyf”, concluded Erturk.

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Credits: Doğa Derneği (BirdLife in Turkey)

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