Balfour Beatty pull out. To learn more about this great piece of news click here. It is a major triumph, but it does not mean that the campaign is over by any means. If you have not already read this article, please do so.
For those who do not know very much about the Ilisu Dam, let me explain. The Turkish government are planning to build a huge dam on the Tigris river, a mere 65km from the Syrian, Iraqui border. This damn will drown a large amount of land currently on which Kurdish people are now living, devastate the historic city of Hasankeyf and cost (including financing costs) over $2billion.
WHY BUILDING THIS DAM IS WRONG
It is Socially Wrong!
Thousands of people, most of these ethnic Kurds, will be forced out of their homes. These people have had no say in the building of this dam and it is very unlikely that they will be properly compensated. In total 78,000 people may be affected by this proposed dam. Many of the Kurdish people in Turkey have already suffered human rights abuses and discrimination at the hands of the Turkish government.
This plan, which effects Kurdish people far worse than any other group, is seen by many as part of an "ethnic cleansing" scheme by the Turkish Government. Since 1984, there has been an armed conflict in the area where the Ilisu Dam is to be built involving the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the Turkish State. The results of this have been the displacement of approx 3 million people, 3,000 villages either partially or totally destroyed and 30,000 people killed.
Despite the years of planning for this dam, no resettlement scheme has yet been drawn up. One of the conditions for export credit laid down by Steven Byers, the UK Secretary for State of Trade and Industry, was that a resettlement plan ‘which reflects internationally accepted practice and includes international monitoring’ be set up. They also clearly stated that any resettlement plan should involve consultation with local people at the earliest opportunity. Neither of these things has happened.
After a great deal of international pressure, Turkey appointed Semor, to work on a resettlement plan. This company has little if any experience in resettlement, its main business focus being tourism and seminar organisation. Since nobody has taken the trouble to find out how many people live in the area or how much they earn, it is very difficult to see how adequate compensation can be given anyway.
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