ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Former residents of the ancient town of Hasankeyf in southeast Turkey have visited the area to bid a painful final farewell as it is submerged underwater.
The Turkish government approved the building of Ilisu Dam in the town in 1997, aiming at generating electricity for the region, creating jobs and boosting the local economy. However, the decision will uproot some 80,000 people from nearly 200 villages in the affected area as it sinks by 15cm per day.
The history of the predominantly Kurdish city, located in Mardin province, dates back nearly 12,000 years. However, it will be completely submerged to provide water for other nearby provinces like Batman, Mardin, Diyarbakır, Siirt and Sirnak.
The dam forms part of the huge Southeastern Anatolian Project (GAP), the largest and costliest project in Turkey’s history which aims to boost revenue in the poverty-stricken area, but has driven locals away from their livelihoods.
The Turkish government has built a new town on a nearby hill to accommodate for displaced residents and memories of the city’s past. A number of historical structures, including a tomb and mosque, have now been moved to Yeni Hasankeyf (New Hasankeyf). The government has also built houses for residents of the historic city.
Mehdi Cigci was a resident of the ancient town, and now lives in Yeni Hasankeyf.
His family is among the 120 families whose villages are submerged.
The Turkish government allows them to live rent-free in newly-built houses in Yeni Hasankeyf for five years, before then paying rent to the government. Once approximately $23,000 has been paid the houses will then be theirs, according to Cigci.
However, only 700 houses have been built so far, he complained. Many are waiting to be allocated a house- leaving Cigci to pay $70 a month to another landlord.
“Everyone is a victim”
Cetin Yildirim made ends meet as a tourist guide in the ancient town, now impossible as tourist numbers plummet. He told Rudaw English that most people visit the city to take their last photographs as it disappears underwater.
Regarding the government’s promise to turn the city into a tourism spot, Yildirim said he is “disappointed” with the government's slow steps in this regard.
He currently works odd jobs to afford the house rent and feed his family, awaiting the completion of the project to see if the government will give him any jobs.
Asked if he sees himself as a “victim,” Yildirim said that “everyone is a victim.”
“If you do not have a history, you do not have anything,” he concluded.
