MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

 

Amed (Diyarbakır)- Turkish soldiers keep starting wildfires and cutting down trees in many Kurdish cities. The wildfire that broke out in Amed’s Lice district yesterday lasted for a day. The fire caused tens of hectares of land near Gom, Entax and Bamitnî villages to burn to ashes. While the reason for the fire is still unknown, the villagers say the fire spread because the firefighters arrived late.

Third wildfire in the same area

Since the firefighters arrived late, the wildfire was extinguished by villagers. Two houses in the burned down forest have become unusable. The villagers told us that three wildfires have broken out in the same area this summer. Saying that they escaped from the fire by chance, the villagers criticize the late intervention.

‘The firefighters arrived late’

Özlem Yaylık, a resident of the Gom (Turkish: Küme Evleri) village, told us that the fire reached the houses and that they were in fear the whole day. “This is the third fire that broke out in this forest. Yesterday, we watered around the house to protect our house; however, it was very hot so it dried up immediately. We and our children were in fear the whole day. My husband left the house in the morning to extinguish the fire and he returned home at night. No helicopter came to extinguish the fire and only a fire truck was brought to extinguish the fire. There was a wildfire but only a fire truck was sent. The villagers extinguished the fire with their own efforts.”

Reacting to the silence against the wildfire in the region, Özlem Yaylık said, “Many trees have burned to ashes and many animals have been killed due to the fire. I feel so sad.”

‘The wildfires are a continuation of the policy aiming to depopulate the region’

NuJINHA also spoke to environmental activist Gülistan Baran, who came to the village to monitor and analyze the consequences of the wildfire. Highlighting that three wildfires broke out in the same area in a month, Gülistan Baran said, “Yesterday, the fire broke out in the morning at 10 and lasted until 8 pm. I was told that only a fire truck had been sent to the area to extinguish the fire so the villagers had extinguished it. The wildfires are a continuation of the policy aiming to depopulate the region.”

‘Organized struggle is a must’

Gülistan Baran thinks an organized struggle is a must against the policy carried out in the region. “We will always struggle against such a mindset. Forests are our future so we have to struggle to protect them.”