* Photograph: Mine Ayşe Adıgüzel / Twitter

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"The Great Water and Conscience Meeting" was held today (August 5) in protest against the ongoing mining activities in the village of Kirazlı in Turkey's northwestern province of Çanakkale.

After large swaths of forest land have been destroyed in Ida Mountains due to the mining activities of the Canada-based Alamos Gold company, the local people of the region and environmental activists have been keeping a "Water and Conscience Watch" since July 26.

Accordingly, everyone who wanted to protest the destruction of trees in Ida Mountains for the gold mine participated in the "Great Water and Conscience Meeting" held as part of the watch.

After the statement for the press was read out, the group started marching towards the construction site where the trees have been cut down.

Despite the prevention of the gendarmerie forces, the crowd managed to enter the mining site at around 1.30 p.m. After staying in the mining site for around three hours, the group symbolically planted saplings there. Afterwards, they left the site, applauding in protest.

March towards the mining site

Source: Cumhuriyet

After the statement for the press, the group started to march towards the mining site where thousands of trees have been cut down.

Starting to march at around 12.30, the group entered the construction site at around 1.30 p.m. despite the prevention of the gendarmerie.

Artists made statements as well

Among the ones who attended the "great meeting" were also artists. After the "Oath of Ida Mountains" was chanted, Sadık Gürbüz addressed the crowd. Poet/writer Ataol Behramoğlu also read a poem. After the statement for the press, Çanakkale Mayor Ülkü Gökhan also made a speech.

CLICK - 'Only the Judiciary can Stop the Miners in Ida Mountains'

'Oath of Ida Mountains' chanted

"The oath of Ida Mountains" penned by environmental activists have been chanted shortly after the meeting started at 11 a.m.:

"Trees have no feet to run...
No hands to fight...
No mouths to swear...
So...
We and only we will defend our Ida Mountains...
If my heart stops in these mountains...
Bury me where I fall...
My heart belongs to mountain flowers..."

Busses heading for the watch controlled by police

Source: Esra Çanlı / Çanakkalegundem.net

The police controlled the ones who were on their ways to Kirazlı from across Turkey. Police officers stopped the busses that set out for the watch as of 8 a.m. today by the Çanakkale Municipality and controlled the drivers and licence plates of the busses as well as their passenger capacities.

Participants

Thousands of people have influxed the area for the meeting that started at 11. a.m. In addition to the MPs of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), representatives from ecology associations, non-governmental organizations, national and international news outlets as well as environmental activists, famous figures and citizens have attended the meeting.

The great meeting has been attended by CHP Vice Chairs Muharrem Erkek, Gülizer Biçer Karaca, Veli Ağbaba, Orhan Sarıbal and CHP Group Deputy Chair Engin Altay as well as CHP MPs Özgür Ceylan, İlhami Özcan, Ensar Aytekin Ataş, Mustafa Adıgüzel, Fikret Şahin, Aysu Bankoğlu, Ahmet Vehbi, Gamze Taşçıer, Murat Emir, Jale Nur Süllü, Murat Bakan, Tahsin Tarhan, Erkan Aydın and Emine Gülizar Emecan.

Lawyers from the Çanakkale Bar Association, which initiated the judicial process against the mine 10 years ago and has been following up the process closely since then, and lawyers from the İstanbul, Ankara, İzmir, Antalya, Tekirdağ, Kırklareli, Aydın, Edirne, Balıkesir, Yalova and Kocaeli Bar Associations will also support the statement for the press.

Moğollar and Fazıl Say will give a concert

The Moğollar music group will also give a concert at Çanakkale city center today to protest the destruction of the nature.

World-renowned pianist Fazıl Say will also give a concert at the mining site on August 18 to call for an end to the destruction of the natıre in Ida Mountains and to raise public awareness.

What happened?

In early 2000s, the General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA) and the Ministry of Energy explored and mapped the mineral deposits in the region. The Law on Mines was amended after 2002 and mine exploration licenses were granted to companies.

When the calendars hit 2010s, the mine exploration licenses were converted to operating licenses. Enterprises started to be established after 2017. People raised their concerns over the destruction of trees in that period as well and organized protest demonstrations.

Having started its operations in the region within this context, the Canada-based Alamos Gold company and its subcontractor Doğu Biga Mining has been cutting trees in Kirazlı since 2017.

While the Environmental Impact Assessment foresaw the cutting of 45 thousand trees, the company cut down 195 thousand trees. After the images and videos of the deforestation have circulated on social media, people from all parts of society have influxed to Çanakkale.

Led by Çanakkale Municipality, the local community and environmental activists have been keeping a "Water and Conscience" watch in an area near the mining site since July 26. (HA/SD)