Worldwide known names have written an open letter calling upon to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to think again on the planned World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul set to take place on 23 and 24 May 2016.

The letter underlined that Turkey, at the present time, was the least suitable one of all locations where such an international event could be held, calling attention to the conflict that has been unfolding in Turkey’s southeast over the past few months that needs to be urgently resolved.

“It is precisely because the Turkish government has turned to an unwinnable military solution to the Kurdish conflict that a humanitarian disaster is now looming in many parts of the southeast. This ongoing conflict makes the location of the forthcoming UN Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul wholly inappropriate.”

The open letter remarked that the government headed by President Erdogan has consciously exacerbated a conflict with its Kurdish minority population since the result of last year’s first national election which saw the pro-Kurdish HDP achieve a dramatic breakthrough that denied the AKP its majority.

“People are currently being slaughtered as a result of a malign state policy that is fanning sectarian conflicts and deepening social tensions. Peace-making has been taken off the agenda in Turkey and the whole country is suffering the consequences. It is therefore very hard to see how the government in Ankara deserves to be rewarded by the honour of hosting such an important international initiative. At a time when the Turkish state is waging a war against its own people in the Kurdish southeast under the pretext of fighting the PKK, the summit definitely should not be held in Istanbul.”

In view of the worsening situation inside Turkey today, signatories urged the UN to reconsider its decision to select Istanbul as the venue for this important event, saying; “Your valuable initiative will be seriously undermined and tainted by association with a regime that routinely abuses its powers; a divisive government that poses a threat to democracy, free speech and civil rights; an authoritarian government that has been accused of pursing a sectarian foreign policy, and one that has even been alleged to be an active supporter of Islamic State terrorism in Syria.”

The letter also called attention to the allegations that Ankara has been assisting ISIS with the supply of weapons; that it has facilitated illegal trading by ISIS; that it is turning a blind eye to ISIS fund raising, permitting the transport and delivery of lethal military equipment across Turkish territory and likewise permitting volunteers to travel through Turkey to join the ranks of ISIS.

In the event that the summit is held in Istanbul as planned - said the open letter - it will only be used by Erdoğan as fuel for his own well-oiled propaganda machine. It will be interpreted by Turkey’s tethered media as a ringing endorsement of Erdoğan, the AKP and the increasingly divisive policies it pursues at home and abroad.

“In particular, it will help to prolong the conflict with the Kurds when this historic conflict demands impartial mediation to achieve a lasting peace and which seemed to be a real possibility less than two years ago when the peace process was starting to get under way. To hold a humanitarian summit in Turkey will be an affront to the Kurds and all those who are now suffering under the oppressive measures pursued by the government of Erdoğan, who is seeking to acquire more and more presidential powers.”

In order to maximise the potential success of this humanitarian summit and to command universal support, the signatories urged UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to think again and to relocate the summit to a more suitable location.

The signatories are;

Noam Chomsky;

Dr Thomas Jeffrey Miley Lecturer of Political Sociology, Cambridge University, UK;

Dr Derek Wall Writer and International Coordinator of the Green Party, UK;

Mark Thomas political satirist, author and journalist, UK;

Michael Rubin, American Enterprise Institute, US;

David Romano, Missouri State University, US;

Dr. Zaradachet Hajo, Former President of the Kurdish PEN Centre;

Roger Mckenzie, Assistant General Secretary UNISON, UK;

Dimitri Roussopoulos Co-founder of the Transnational Institute of Social Ecology, Quebec, Canada;

Janet Biehl, writer, translator, artist, US; Federico Venturini School of Geography, University of Leeds, UK;

Eirik Eiglad, writer, translator, New Compass Press, Norway;

Michael Gunter, professor of political science at Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville, US;

Debbie Bookchin, journalist, US;

Tove Skutnabb-Kangas, UNESCO Linguapax laureate 2003, Denmark;

Robert Phillipson, Copenhagen Business School, UNESCO Linguapax laureate 2010, Denmark;

Liz Saville-Roberts MP, House of Commons,UK;

Dr. Johanna Riha, Policy Director of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Global Health, UK;

Dr. Manali Desai, Lecturer of Sociology, Department of Sociology at Cambridge, UK;

Prof. Sarah Franklin, Professor of Sociology, Department of Sociology at Cambridge, UK; Prof. Lawrence P. King, Professor of Sociology, UK;

Dr. Monica Moreno, Lecturer in Sociology, Department of Sociology at Cambridge, UK;

Margaret Owen OBE, barrister and Widows for Peace Through Democracy, UK; Dr Carol Mann,

Women in War, Paris, France; Board of Trustees, National Alliance of Women’s Organisations (NAWO), UK;

Peter Tatchell, Peter Tatchell Foundation, UK; Ara Sarafian Director, Gomidas Institute, UK;

Stephen Smellie Deputy Convenor UNISON, Scotland;

Bert Schouwenburg, International Officer GMB, UK;

Steve Hedley, Senior Assistant General Secretary, RMT, UK;

Roger McKenzie, Assistant General Secretary of Unison - Black Lives Matter‬‬, UK;

Nick Hildyard Policy adviser, UK;

Stefano Squarcina, Puntorosso Association, Italy;

Kariane Westrheim, Professor and EUTCC Chairperson, Norway;

Cynthia Cockburn, researcher and writer, UK;

Zaher Baher, Rojava Solidarity Group, UK;

Trevor Rawnsley Lecturer Public Service Management – City and Islington College, UK;

Jonathan Bloch, writer, UK;

Bronwen Jones, barrister, UK;

Sarah Parker, Haringey UNITY, UK;

Steve Sweeney, Branch Secretary, Unite National Publishing and Media Branch, UK;

Paul Bullock, Managing Director, European Business Management School, UK;

Lisa Marie-Taylor, Feminist Activist, UK.