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Urban regeneration ZONE

Roma neighbourhood of Sulukule awaits demolition. Sulukule situated in Fatih along the Golden Horn is one of the largest and central districts of Istanbul, in the heart of the city. Since it constitutes the old quarter of the city conquered by Mehmed II the Conqueror, even today it is also called as the "real Istanbul" or the "first Istanbul".

Human Settlement Association is an NGO which is working as volunteer legal council for the people of the Sulukule in their case against the Fatih Municipality, in regards to the proposed urban renewal and gentrification of the gypsy settlement. They are also working to organize the Festival called 40 days and 40 nights, which will celebrate the rich cultural heritage of the Roma people of the Sulukule with music, arts and crafts, and festivities for the months of March and April.

Zaman Today 23 April concert

On the back of continuing scare mongering related to the fear of a pending earthquake in Istanbul, Sulukule renovation is used by Housing Development Administration of Turkey (TOKI) to qualify for demolition. It could be interpreted as pressure to complete the Urban Regeneration Project for Istanbul City of Culture 2010 or simply an excuse to open the way for speculators to make a hefty profit. This situation is seen by the decision makers in black and white; Sulukule should be left as it is OR raised to the ground What is missing from this blinkered view is participatory decision making; taking into account the views and ideas of the communities that are effected. Decisions that should be made sensitively and for the benefit of the people and city.

The video below is from Sulukule online

Another weekend of Turkish flags

The 19th May is the Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day, or simply Atatürk Commemoration (Atatürk'ü Anma) or Youth and Sports Day (Gençlik ve Spor Bayramı). It is an annual national holiday to memorialize the start of the Turkish War of Independence.
Huge flags adorn many of the buildings in Istanbul to celebrate this significant day.







AND...

The BBC reports that:

Tens of thousands of Turks have massed in the city of Samsun in the latest demonstration in support of secularism. The crowds waved national flags and chanted slogans opposing any change to Turkey's secular political model. The protest in Samsun, a port on the Black Sea, followed huge rallies in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.Samsun was the place where Ataturk launched the country's war of independence against ruling powers after the end of World War I. Police estimated that about 50,000 people attended the rally, Reuters news agency reported.

All eyes on Izmir

Hundreds of thousands of pro-secular Turks gathered in the third largest city of Turkey on Sunday to protest against the Islamist-rooted government that they fear is working to raise the influence of religion on society and pressure the secularist center-left parties unite ahead of parliamentary elections set for July 22.

Organizers of the pro-secular rally estimated the participating crowd at around two million. This was the first ever rally which was staged simultaneously both on land and sea as scores of small ferry boats and fisherman boats packed with demonstrators joined the rally from the sea.

FROM TURKISH DAILY NEWS

This follows on from the rally in Ankara on 14 April the Istanbul in 29 April 2007