The Peoples’ Democratic Congress (HDK) Ecology Council issued a written statement to mark World Environment Day. The HDK called on everyone to “act and organise in order to build a new and more ecological life.”
The statement emphasized that the coronavirus pandemic once again has revealed the reality of the civilization and ecological crisis.
The statement said: “It is estimated that 11 million people die every year due to starvation or malnutrition. 800 million people, including 300 million children, are exposed to starvation.”
Recalling that the coronavirus has forced most activities to stop for the past three months, the statement noted that “carbon emission has indeed been reduced during these past three months, but it is clear that the crisis we are facing cannot be prevented by temporary, external factors.”
The statement stressed that “since it came to power, the AKP government has proved to be an enemy to environmental policy. Turkey’s nature is being destroyed and so are the cultural and historical sites that should be granted total protection. This government has given the use of national parks to mining and construction companies.”
The statement also recalled “the official opening of the Ilisu Dam, which will go down in history as another massacre of nature and culture, with the destruction of 2,000-year-old Hasankeyf and millions of years of history in the Tigris Valley.”
The HDK called on everyone to “act and organise in order to build a new and more ecological life.”