Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality Co-Mayor Serra Bucak met residents resisting the planned solar power plant in Kervanpınar (Arzoxlî) neighbourhood in Sur district. The solidarity visit was attended by DBB council members, representatives of ecology groups and civil society organisations, as well as a large number of women, young people and children from the neighbourhood.

Residents March Against the Solar Power Plant Project

Women, young people and children gathered under the leadership of the Kervanpınar Village Protection Platform and marched en masse from Sarılar Street to the proposed plant site. Co-Mayor Bucak joined hundreds of participants in the march, where a banner reading “Do Not Sacrifice the Ancient City of Ğırap and Our Village to Capital” was carried in protest against the project and the destruction of nature.

Women: ‘Our Future and Our Land Are at Stake’

Speaking after the march, local women said:

“We do not want this project here. It harms our living environment, our animals and our land. We do not want this company operating here. We will overcome this together. Our future and our land are at stake; if we struggle together, we can save our future.”

Co-Mayor Bucak Highlights the Legal Proceedings

Co-Mayor Serra Bucak drew attention to the legal proceedings, which have been ongoing for months, and the disputes surrounding the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports. Criticising companies for entering the site before the judicial process had concluded, she said:

“Women, young people, children and the entire community in Arzoxlî village have been resisting for days, even months. Unfortunately, in this country, construction companies arrive here with their vehicles and equipment before legal proceedings, EIA reports and expert assessments have been completed. And they do not come alone; they come accompanied by the gendarmerie and other law enforcement officers.”

Emphasising that villagers did not want to give up their pastureland, Co-Mayor Bucak continued:

“Expert reports state that certain aspects of the land in Kervanpınar village have yet to be fully assessed. The area where the solar panels are to be installed is very close to residential areas and includes pastureland where local people graze their animals. The villagers depend on this land for their livelihoods. Despite the reports submitted by ecology councils and bar associations, and while proceedings before the administrative court are still ongoing, companies are trying to force their way onto the site through pressure and intimidation. They are effectively trying to plunder the land before anyone can stop them. This is everyone’s land, water and common property.”

Warning of a Second Wave of Displacement

Drawing attention to migration from the region since the 1990s, Co-Mayor Bucak said the project could force local people from their homes once again. She noted that people who had previously been compelled to leave their villages and abandon livestock farming now faced the prospect of a second displacement, this time driven by ecological destruction.

“Across our region, companies are confronting local people with EIA reports of questionable validity. We do not recognise these copy-and-paste EIA reports. Those signing them in Ankara do not see the hardship endured by villagers here,” she said.

Co-Mayor Bucak stressed that local authorities and the wider urban community would oppose any project that ran counter to science and nature.

Call for an Investigation into the Archaeological Site

Addressing the historical heritage in the project area, Co-Mayor Bucak noted that expert reports had raised concerns about an archaeological site. She said:

“It is stated that there is an archaeological site behind the hill where the solar power plant is planned. If the archaeological site is being overlooked here today through cursory surveys, the history and culture of these people are also being disregarded. Why are archaeologists, university scientific committees or the Cultural Heritage Preservation Board not coming here to investigate? Together with our people, we will continue to oppose this project and sustain our resistance and solidarity.”

Residents Call for the Protection of Historical Heritage

Residents who inspected the site also expressed concern, stating that the company had been carrying out excavation work with bulldozers as part of the solar power plant project, damaging the area's historical fabric.

Calling on the relevant ministries to take urgent action, residents described the destruction of the site by heavy machinery as an unacceptable act of destruction against their historical heritage.