DAILY NEWS

Company involved in the construction of a HES that was rebuffed three times by villagers near the city of Artvin returns with soldiers

A company involved in the planned construction of a hydroelectric power station that was rejected three times by residents from the villages has returned to continue construction, but with support from the gendarmerie this time.

Gençağa KARAFAZLI
Artvin

A company involved in the planned construction of a HES was forcibly ejected three times by village residents of Demirdöven, Yaylalar and Altıparmak in Artvin’s Yusufeli district, but has now returned with state security forces. The gendarmerie are preventing villagers from intervening against the construction.

When the Erarı Electromechanical Energy Industry and Commerce Limited company returned for the third time to continue construction of a HES in Yusufeli, it was once again prevented and forcibly ejected by residents from the nearby villages. The company attempted to carry out construction last month by telling residents it was “placing steel posts,” but when residents understood their actual aim was to continue construction of the HES, they organized a response. Workers at the HES construction site tried to pour concrete from mixers onto the residents. After their organized resistance, the company was forced to abandon the valley for the third time.

IT SNOWED, THE VILLAGE WAS EMPTY, THEY CAME WITH THE GENDARMERIE

The Erarı company, accompanied by two trucks of gendarmerie, began work around noon at the proposed site for the construction of the HES. Residents from the village of Yaylalar, along with the elected village chief Fethi Hevek, were prevented from intervening against the construction. The gendarmerie also prevented the village chief and residents from recording video or photographing. All roads that lead to the construction site were blocked by gendarmerie. Village residents who tried to reach the construction site were forcibly prevented by state security forces.

WHAT IS BEING DONE HERE IS INHUMANE”

Village chief Fethi Hevek, who explained over telephone how the gendarmerie had prevented village residents from entering the construction site, said the following:

What is being done here is inhumane. A massacre has begun, now. The gendarmerie have swarmed the area. They are restricting us from entering the area. Our land, our life’s setting is being toppled over by bulldozers before our eyes. It’s cruel, it’s shameful, hear our voices. To this very minute, they’ve destroyed tens of trees, the massacre continues. They’re destroying human lives, they’re cutting into our very life’s blood. Authorities, hear our pleas, don’t slaughter our livelihoods. They took advantage of our village being emptied. It snowed. Everyone left the village. There’s no one here to resist, I’m all by myself. The captain of the gendarmerie won’t allow me into the area, and he won’t allow us to record or photograph. These are lawless actions, repugnant to the law. This massacre must be stopped at once.

Resident Hafız Peker gave his own account of the events, “There are sixty gendarmerie here. At the moment, their captain is trying to persuade us. To this minute, tens of trees have been cut down. A massacre of nature has begun. It’s a shame what they’re doing to our home country. I’m at a loss for words, and nobody’s here, we’re all alone, our neighbors have all left, so they’ve found an opportunity and came with the gendarmerie. Our situation is not good.

THE VILLAGE CHIEF SAID “WE DON’T WANT A HES” TO THE MINISTER

The Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, Adil Karaismailoğlu, who in prior months arrived in Artvin’s Yusufeli district to carry out inspections, was instantly greeted by the village chief of Demirdöven, Hafız Aslan Peker, who voiced his objections to the planned construction of the HES.

Peker, who approached Minister Adil Karaismailoğlu, said the following, “Esteemed Minister, village residents do not want this Yamaç-type HES project within the bounds of Demirdöven and Yaylalar villages. The worksite placed in this region by this company has ruined the local environment. Despite having no permits, how does it happen that the Erarı company remains here? This pasturage has been allocated to the HES company unlawfully. Both our district president and MP know about these issues. We, as village residents, don’t want a HES here. We demand that this project be cancelled.

The Erarı company, which sought for years to construct a HES on the pasturage lands shared by Yaylalar and Demirdöven villages in Artvin’s Yusufeli district, but was unable to because of the organized resistance of village residents, is now attempting to force through its planned construction during the Coronovirus pandemic.

Whereas village residents opposed the continued construction of a worksite on the creek, it was later learned that court cases relating to the construction of the HES had yet to be resolved.

VILLAGE RESIDENTS PREVAILED AGAINST THE HES IN 2015

Village residents from Demirdöven, Yaylalar and Altıparmak have been struggling for years against the planned construction of the Damla HES project within the bounds of the village of Demirdöven.

The Erarı company, which arrived in the region in 2014 and attempted to establish a worksite for the construction of the HES in January of 2015, was greeted by the resistance of the village residents.

500 village residents had gathered in the area designated for the worksite and prevented the construction of buildings.

While village chiefs had initiated legal proceedings to prevent the company from renting the pasturage, residents from the village of Yaylalar resisted by throwing stones at the company’s trucks.

After the determined resistance of village residents, the company withdrew its equipment, and materials and left the region.

After the legal case initiated by the village of Yaylalar against the HES project was rejected by a district court, the decision was appealed and elevated to the Council of State where it remains active.

(Translated by Çağatay ÖNCÜ)


The Latest