Cyprus-Forum.com

by **Oracle** » Wed Aug 27, 2008 4:20 pm

Turkey's prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, known to prize his reputation for plain speaking, yesterday lambasted environmentalists as "idle", saying they "prance around" while doing nothing to protect nature.

The diatribe was triggered by a spate of protests against government plans for more than 40 hydroelectric dams, the decision to build nuclear power stations, and fish farms which are said to be polluting beaches on Turkey's Aegean coast.

On a visit to Rize, a city on the Black Sea, Erdogan made little attempt to win over hearts and minds, instead asking campaigners: "Where were you until now? Why were you silent? The government is trying to do something now. Why didn't you do anything when the fish farms were first built? There is this tendency to hit at the government and Tayyip Erdogan no matter what. You don't have the right."

The "finest environmentalists", he continued, were himself and his government - not the "idle environmentalists" of campaign groups who failed to recognise his achievement in committing Turkey to the Kyoto treaty. "Just ask those who prance around saying 'I am an environmentalist': what have they done for the world or the environment?" he said. "They are just people who try to do something with their spare time. We have signed the Kyoto protocol. Did they even stop to say thank you?"

Erdogan's attack coincided with the arrest at the weekend of 33 campaigners - many foreign nationals - at a camp in the town of Sinop, where they were protesting against plans to build a nuclear plant.

While the prime minister may have calculated that his approach would appeal to voters concerned about energy needs and economic development, it has provoked outrage within the green movement and warnings from political commentators.

Umit Sahin, a spokesman for Turkey's Green party, said Erdogan favoured "using force against the green opposition".

Robert Tait in Istanbul The Guardian, Wednesday August 27 2008

by **Oracle** » Thu Aug 28, 2008 4:30 pm

I wonder why Erdogan was over-reacting so much? He sounds pretty stressed. Maybe it's the "job-share" with the Turkish generals that is not suiting him .....

Here is a snippet on the arrests of the protesters ....

Activists in Turkey arrested during protest over nuclear power plant
24/08/2008

ANKARA, Turkey -- More than 30 activists were arrested on Saturday (August 23rd) during a protest against government plans to build a nuclear power plant in the Black Sea port city of Sinop. All but one of them were foreign nationals, including citizens of the US, Germany and France. Authorities arrested them for "non-sanctioned" organisation of a protest. The government plans to build a nuclear power plant in Sinop, after the first such plant in the country is built near the Mediterranean port of Mersin. (AP, Biamag - 23/08/08 )