An Essay by Ayşe Yavuz

Do you think Ilısu Dam should be built on Hasankeyf?

NO DAM

Hasankeyf is an ancient city which is perched on rock. This place has spectacular monuments and great nature such as caves, valeys, etc. Nowadays, there is a project about Hasankeyf. This project is a dam, called Ilısu, which will be on the river Tigris. This dam will ruin everything in this ancient city. Therefore, as far as I am concerned the dam should not be built due to several reasons.

Everybody knows that if the dam is built, some problems will occur. For instance; cultural heritage which belongs to multiple civilizations will disappear. 3000-year old history will be destroyed. It is very bad for all people. People, especially the government should endeavor to protect this beautiful historical place. People ought to consider that they can transport the dam plans to wherever suitable, but they can not carry nature and the archeological heritage from there. The other significant point is settlement; people who support to construct the dam want inhabitants to change their lives. They say that local people will have to move from the region, because their habitats will be flooded by the dam’s water. I think, it is not a good idea and it is really difficult for people who have lived there for years; we know that migration means changing life areas, and getting used to all these are impossible for them, particularly for children. Their psychologies are affected very badly owing to this situation. On the other hand, dam supporters say that this dam will be built because of unemployment. We know that a dam can be used for about 50 years. They will destroy the history of 3000 years only for the benefit of 50 years and also, the problems about unemployment will not be entirely solved, because few people will be able to find job, but not all of them. In brief, there are several problems about building this dam.

All in all, Ilısu dam is not a solution and it must not be built owing to important points such as settlement, destruction of cultural heritage etc. Hasankefy and its wonderful nature should be protected. Some alternative solutions should be found by the government.

written by Ayşe YAVUZ, C 16