Hi.
I've been considering a tour of Eastern Turkey sometime in the future. I recently read about the Ilisu Damn Project on the Tigris and it's threat to the village Hasankeyf, the nearby caves, and surrounding region. I was wondering if anyone had any recent information on this project's status, or degree of completion, and if or when it will no longer be possible to visit Hasankeyf.
Thanks,
Scott
Re: Eastern Turkey - Ilisu Dam
Hi Scott,
Thanks for your post. The Ilisu Dam project has been changed and it is not a threat to Hasankeyf any more. We will be able to visit Hasankeyf on our tours on the way to Mardin from the 2004 season onward.
I hope this helps!
Re: Eastern Turkey - Ilisu Dam
Thanks Kelly. That does help quite a bit. i knew some of the financial backing for the project had been withdrawn, but I was having a hard time getting information on it's area of impact.
Thanks again,
Scott
Re: Eastern Turkey - Ilisu Dam
Dear all,
The Ilisu dam is indeed stalled indefinitely following the withdrawal of the project's main international financial backers. However, the Turkish Government is still keen to press on with the project - it may return as an issue of concern in future.
The Ilisu dam was but one part of the Turkish Government's ambitious Southeast Anatolia Project (GAP), the largest development project ever undertaken in Turkey and one of the largest of its kind in the world. Several other parts of the scheme are still in development and of concern to human rights and environmental groups, as they raise identical or similar concerns to the Ilisu dam (e.g. Munzur dam in the Tunceli area).
However, Hasankeyf is a beautiful place to visit and I very much hope you are able to go.
Kind regards,
Rochelle
Kurdish Human Rights Project
[url=http://www.khrp.org]www.khrp.org[/url]