Call to International Alliance of Inhabitants (IAI) to organize a Zero-Eviction Campaign in Istanbul 

We, as NGOs, neighbourhood associations, grassroots, urban movements and platforms plus academicians, activists, architects, planners, legal consultants, documentarists, artists, labourers… persons from differing backgrounds and occupations,

We, as signatories to the text below, would like to make a call for a Zero-Eviction Campaign to be organized by IAI here in İstanbul in Fall 2012 in order to pursue an organized resistance against urban renewal, gentrification and transformation projects, aiming to turn Istanbul into a global city catering to international capital and property markets but not to the needs of its citizens.
Namely,
Against the urban transformation and renewal projects, foremost the 3rd Bridge and the Crazy Canale Project, which aim for profit and rent rather than the common public good,
Projects which endanger the natural resources and cultural and historical wealth of our city,
Projects which, by demolishing our neighbourhoods, not only ruin our living spaces but also our lives and habitats and the solidarity bonds and social networks we have built through years,
Projects which introduce no alternative to urban transformation populations other than relocation to Mass-Housing (TOKI) Blocks/ Silos of TOKI!, giving rise to a myriad of economic, social and cultural violations of human rights and psychological traumas;
Projects which also violate the housing rights of the most vulnerable groups of the transformation areas, namely tenant populations by leaving them to streets.
We also would like to make a call against the privatization projects which shut the gates of this city against low income groups through the expropriation of schools, hospitals, and public spaces;
Together with renewal projects demolishing our neighbourhoods, these projects are thus responsible for excluding us from the city.
Projects which seize our public spaces, our spaces of common memory, our shores, green fields and even our cinemas…
Projects, which, by dividing our city as the rich and the poor and thus by breeding socio-economic inequalities, are on the way of constructing a ‘Split-City, unsafe and insecure .
In short, in order to get organized and mobilized against the current developments which violate our Right to the City,
that is, our right to construct and transform our cities according to our own needs and desires, and also to get united with the international solidarity of the urban movements all over the world,
we would like to invite International Alliance of Inhabitants (IAI) to Istanbul between January 28th -29th 2012 to start the planning of a Zero Eviction Campaign (ZEC).
In Solidarity;

ORGANIZATIONS:

Atakoy Part1 Neighbourhood Association
Ataşehir Neighbourhood Association
Ayaspasa Neighbourhood Association
Ayazma Tenant Families
Basibuyuk Neighbourhood Association
Bedreddin Neighbourhood Association
Beyoglu icin Mucadele-Struggle for Beyoglu
CIFTDER Ciftehavuzlar-Esenler Neighbourhod Association
Dayanışmacı Atölye -Solidarity Studio
Doğal ve Kültürel Çevre için Yaşam Girişimi-Life Initiative for Natural and Cultural Environment
FEBAYDER- Fener-Balat-Ayvansaray Neighbourhood Association
Gencler Meydana-Youth on the Squares
GULDAM-Gülsuyu-Gülensu Neighbourhood Association
IMECE-People’s Urban Movement
Istanbul SOS
Kamusal Sanat Laboratuarı: Public Arts Lab.
Kocatas Neighbourhood
Konut Hakkı Koordinasyonu- Housing Right Coordination
Maden Neighbourhood
Sarıyer Neighbourhood Associations Platform
Sarıyer Halkevleri: Sarıyer People’s Houses
Seyrantepe Neighbourhood
Sulukule Platform
Sosyal Haklar Derneği -Social Rights Association
Tarlabaşı Toplumu Dayanisma Dernegi-Association for Support of Tarlabasi Society
Toz-Der-Tozkoparan Neighbourhood Association
Yenisehir Neighbourhood Association

INDIVIDUALS:

Adem Kaya –Local Deputy of Maltepe Municipal Assembly
Ahmet Tuncay Karaçorlu- Life Initiative for Natural and Cultural Environment
Aslı Sarıoğlu-Activist
Associate Prof.Asuman Türkün-Yıldız Teknik University / City and Regional Planning Dept.
Aydın İleri- Publisher
Aysun Koca/ City Planner
Bahar Sakızlıoğlu- Ph.D Student, University of Utrecht, Netherlands
E. Belit Sağ-Video-maker
Bilge Güler-Activist
Burak Köse- Ph.D Student, York University
Can Atalay-Lawyer
Cihan Uzunçarşılı Baysal- Researcher/ Activist
Assistant Prof. Çiğdem Şahin-Istanbul University , Faculty of Economics
Derya Nüket Özer- Art Historian-Sulukule Platform
Erdoğan Yıldız-GÜLDAM
Esra Kaya Erdoğan-Sociologist
Evrim Yılmaz- City Planner MA-Sulukule Platform
Funda Oral, Activist, Sulukule Platform
Füsun Karaman- Documentarist, GFFA Scholar
Gülnaz Bingöl- Documentarist, GFFA Scholar
Hacer Foggo-Roma Rights Activist
Hande Akarca-Architect MA
Hilal Küey- Lawyer
İbrahim Bilgili-Activist
İkbal Polat-Labourer
İmre Balanlı- Director, Documentarist
Associate Prof. Jean François Perouse –IFEA Institut Français d’Études Anatoliennes; Galatasaray University Department of Sociology
Julia Strutz- Ph.D candidate, Social and Economic Geography, KU Leuven, Belgium
Korhan Gümüs: Architect
Mehmet Kartal-General Secretary of City Council of Nilüfer, Bursa.
Prof. Dr. Mehmet Tunçer -Abant Izzet Baysal University. Head of the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture
Melis Göker – Architect- MA scholar at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
Meltem Görgün-Editör-Translater, Interpreter
Merve Gözüküçük- Documentarist, GFFA Scholar
Associate Prof. Murat Cemal Yalçıntan-Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University/ City and Regional Planning Department
Mustafa Cevdet Aslan- Archaeologist
Mücella Yapıcı –Engineer- Architect, MA.
Najla Osseiran-Academician, Bogazici University
Assistant Prof. Nazan Azeri- Artist, Beykent University
Nezihe Başak Ergin- Research Assistant at Middle East Technical University-Sociology Department
Nevay Samer –City Planner
Özcan Yurdalan – Photo Artist
Özgür Sevgi Göral –Ph. D Scholar at EHESS
Özlem Çelik- Ph. D Scholar at University of Sheffield/ City and Regional Planning
Özlem Soysal-Psychologist, Roma Mediator
Özlem Şekercioğlu Lesport- Writer & Illustrator of Children’s Books /Enkidu Publishers
Özlem Ünsal- Ph.D Scholar, City University London
Seval Altan- Activist
Sevgi Ortaç- Artist, Instructor.
Şadi Yön-Activist
Assistant Prof. Dr Teoman Teköklüoğlu- Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University/ City and Regional Planning Department
Tolga İslam (Ph.D) – Yıldız Teknik University City and Regional Planning Department
Assistant Prof Tuna Kuyucu- Boğaziçi Universiy- Department of Sociology
Vedat Ateş-Activist
Viki Çiprut- Journalist/Sulukule Platform
Yaşar Adanalı-Stuttgart University / International Urbanism Department / Development Planner
Yücel Tunca – Photography Artist, Academician
Prof.Dr.Zerrin Bayrakdar-Yıldız teknik University, Faculty of Engineering