Sunday, 10 February 2008

gypsies face boot in istanbul



gypsies face the boot in Istanbul

Another example of eviction via redevelopment. Istanbul wants to

spruce up for its 2010 debutante outing as "European Capital of

Culture" by flattening the ancient and historic (and, admittedly, run

down) area called Sulukule, which is occupied principally by the Roma.

The plan calls for removing the historic homes on the land abutting

the 1600-year-old Theodosian Walls and building $77,000 townhouses.

"We are buying the houses from the present owners and they can move

into brand-new lodgings as soon as they are finished, and pay off the

difference over 15 years," the local Mayor crows.

But Sukru Punduk, a Sulukule resident who opposes the plan, thinks the

municipality's aim is to clear the area of its current Roma

inhabitants. "Look at the models they've made of the new houses,

little model people carrying laptops, middle-class people, not people

like us," he says. It's a logical suspicion, considering that half the

residents of Sulukule earn less than 500 lira ($427) a month.

Oh, wait, perhaps Countrywide Financial and Citibank can come in and

give these good Turkish citizens some no documentation subprime

mortgage love, then foreclose on them and ....

What's even more suspicious is that the government is also seeking to

destroy nearby Gulsuyu, a former gecekondu (squatter) neighborhood

that was legalized two decades ago. Why push Gulsuyu residents out?

Because that neighborhood occupies a potentially prime piece of real

estate high on a hill overlooking the Marmara Sea.


No comments:

eXTReMe Tracker