Demolition continues in the historic Alipaşa neighborhood of Amed's central Sur district. Alipaşa had been forcibly expropriated by the public housing authority TOKİ and was occupied. Demolition in the neighborhood has continued since May 25 and some 50 buildings are left standing to date. Neighborhood residents report that the 1st phase demolitions is almost completed and the 2nd phase will include the Lalebey neighborhood, home to churches and historic mansions.

As the demolition of previously evacuated buildings continuea in Alipaşa, people determined not to leave their homes keep waiting. Alipaşa resident Remzi Gül stated that he will not leave the neighborhood he was born and raised in, whatever the price may be, and added: “Some home owners say they would leave if they received a certain amount of money. Money is not everything. I grew up with a neighborhood culture here. We had cultural values like neighborly relationships and solidarity. Moral values are much more important for me than money. 90% of houses have been demolished here, there are very few left. I don’t want any money. I want to live and die with my family and my children in this neighborhood I was born and raised in.”

“OVER HALF OF SUR HAS BEEN DEMOLISHED”

The residents also commented on the “No Demolition in Sur” platform launched online and said it is a belated initiative. Neighborhood resident Cemal Ergin said: “Artists and celebrities formed a platform so Sur won’t be demolished. It is a nice effort. I thank them. But over half of Sur has already been demolished, I wish they launched such efforts before Alipaşa was gone. I do thank them for their good will.”

DEMOLITION MOVING OVER TO LALEBEY

The demolition of evacuated houses in the Alipaşa neighborhood continues daily with two diggers and four trucks. The remaining 50 buildings can’t be evacuated as the owners appealed to the Regional Administrative Court for a cease and desist order. The people have been left to their own devices and are trying to survive among debris and remains.

Meanwhile, as demolition continues in Alipaşa, another round of demolitions have been launched in the highrise buildings on the Touristic Avenue adjacent to the Lalebey neighborhood. The construction equipment have been airlifted onto the top floors via cranes and demolition efforts have thus been moved to the lower parts of the area.

“LET’S AT LEAST SAVE LALEBEY”

The Lalebey neighborhood is home to historic and religious buildings like the Mother Mary Church, the Protestant Church and the Cemil Paşa Mansion. Residents fear demolition efforts will move to the Lalebey neighborhood and it will be their turn to suffer.

M. Nezir Aslan who lives in Lalebey 17th Street said: “The neighborhood residents are worried. They say Alipaşa has been demolished and now it’s our turn.” Aslan added that they haven’t received evacuation notices yet, but that the neighborhood was in fact part of the expropriation. He concluded with: “We couldn’t save Alipaşa, let’s at least save Lalebey. They said unregistered buildings, shanty huts and buildings past their usable age would be demolished, but they were lying and they demolished Alipaşa almost completely. It will be our turn soon. So we should do whatever is necessary now and save this neighborhood synonimous with our history.”