Ecologists have denounced President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan over his remarks referring to life defenders as "vandals in the disguise of environmentalists."

 

In the ceremony marking the opening of a lithium carbonate production plant in Central Anatolian Eskişehir province on December 26, Erdoğan said: 

 

We did not and will not let the shared notions of humanity such as nature, environment and green be turned into the operation apparatus of several dark marginals. We will not let our energy projects that will be to the benefit of Turkey and 83 million people be prevented by the vandals in the disguise of environmentalists.

 

Releasing a statement in response to these remarks, the Ecology Union (Ekoloji Birliği) has underlined that the struggle for ecology is both righteous and legitimate. The union has briefly stated the following:

 

"The struggle for ecology, together with the struggle for labor [rights] and democracy is also a struggle for laying claim to the future together.

 

"Our natural resources are under heavy attack by the capital [owners]. The biggest supporter of the capital is the government, with which it cooperates. Our forests, underground sources, water bodies, in short, our nature is seen as a commodity and exploited by the capitalist system.

 

"However, our people see the truth and lay claim to their air, water and soil in villages and their living spaces. The government and companies have started to panic in the face of the rising struggle for ecology.

 

"The government and companies are trying to smear the ones struggling for ecology, they are trying to discredit them in people's eyes. But they will fail to do it, because the ones laying claim to their soil and water are quite right. The struggle waged is righteous and legitimate.

 

"In no way do we accept the fact that AKP Chair and President Erdoğan referred to the people and ecology organizations using their right to resist the imperialist-capitalist attack as 'vandals in the disguise of environmentalists' and 'dark marginals.' A person sitting in the seat of Presidency must be on the side of his or her people and the ones who defend life.

 

"The President must first stop the ecologically destructive projects such as the thermal power plants, which accelerate the climate crisis by emitting carbon; he must close down the metal mining projects which have been using extreme amounts of water in such a period of increasing water shortage and drought, have no public good and directly damage the nature; and he must lend support to the Paris [Climate] Agreement so that it can pass the Parliament and all measures and precautions for reduced carbon emissions can be introduced urgently."