Gülistan Azak 

 

DERSİM - Drawing attention to the fact that forest fires are a part of special war policies, HDP Dersim central district co-chair Özlem Toprak said: “Our sacreds are burned. Living creatures in the forest are being slaughtered. The people of Dersim will never bow down to these pressures of the system.”

 

After the military operation launched in Amutka, Dereköy and Koçeri regions of Dersim's Hozat district on May 9, the fire in the forest continues. While no action has been taken by the authorities to put out the fire, the reactions are growing day by day.

 

Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Dersim central district co-chair Özlem Toprak made evaluations about forest fires.

 

‘Part of special war policies’

 

Stating that the forest fires broke out after the military operation, Özlem pointed out that the authorities did not intervene in the forest fires, and also prevented them. Underlining that this attitude of the authorities towards forest fires is not independent from "special war policies", Özlem said: “They are hostile to the Kurds, the region where the Kurds live, and the nature. Today they continue their "depopulate", which they aimed by evacuating and burning villages in the 90s, with forest fires. Forest fires are also part of the special war policies imposed.”

 

‘Our sacreds are burned’

 

Reminding that nature is sacred for Dersimers, Özlem emphasized that forest fires are also an attack on belief. Özlem said: “Our saints are burned. Living creatures in the forest are being slaughtered. Journalists who go to the region after each forest fire prove these massacres by photographing. Mountain goats, bears, foxes, plants are slaughtered. Our anger over this is great. They continue their massacres under the name of hunting with forest fires. We are against the killing of mountain goats and other animals under the name of hunting, we do not accept it.”

 

‘They will not be able to intimidate us with forest fires’

 

Finally, Özlem said: “They burned our villages and homes, they destroyed them, they could not intimidate us. They will not be able to intimidate us by burning our forests. Our young people were killed innocently in those forests. State officials think that by burning forests, we will leave our lands. The system has been killing the people and nature of Dersim for years, trying to destroy the places of belief. But no matter what they do, they will not be able to intimidate us. The people of Dersim never bow down to these pressures of the system, they will not.”