Repression of the Kurdish language, irregular appointments, and the allocation of tenders to associates have marred the governance of Batman (Êlih) in southeast Turkey, a Kurdish-majority city under state-appointed trusteeship, leading to widespread criticism and concerns over mismanagement and cultural insensitivity.
There have been widespread accusations of resource misallocation to cronies in several formerly Kurdish-led municipalities since the appointment of trustees by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government in 2016 and 2019, according to a report by Fethi Balaman of Mezopotamya Agency (MA) on Sunday. The situation in Batman Municipality, which has been under the control of trustees since 2016, epitomises these concerns. Batman’s second trustee Hulusi Şahin, appointed on 23 March 2020, is reported to have depleted the city’s resources, leading to significant financial strain on the municipality.
One of Şahin’s first actions as trustee was the removal of the Kurdish language option from the municipal website on 29 March 2020, signalling a broader hostility towards Kurdish cultural representation. This antagonism extended to the removal of pedestrian signs in Kurdish and the dismantling of a bust of the revered Kurdish poet Cegerxwîn in 2022. Additionally, the trustee has been implicated in preventing various cultural events such as Kurdish music performances.
The tenure of the trustees has also been marked by irregular appointments, with positions being filled by individuals closely associated with the AKP, often disregarding merit and fairness. Notable examples include the hiring of İbrahim Hamit Bedük, an AKP youth branch chairman, and the employment of relatives of deputy trustees in municipal roles without due process.
The process of tenders under the trusteeship has raised eyebrows, with a significant number of tenders awarded through negotiated procedures rather than open competition, leading to allegations of favouritism and corruption. Several projects, including extravagant expenditure on non-essential items and services, have been criticised for their lack of transparency and questionable utility.
Moreover, the current trustee Ekrem Canalp has listed 11 municipal properties for sale, including essential social facilities such as kindergartens and libraries, initially intended for public benefit. The most contentious sale involved the Batman Park Shopping Mall, which was sold for a fraction of its appraised value to a company affiliated with the AKP, although the sale was later annulled in response to the ensuing public outcry.
Budget allocations of the trustees have also been contentious, with municipal funds being directed towards projects outside the municipality’s remit, such as landscaping for various governmental and security institutions, further depleting Batman’s municipal resources.
Recent zoning decisions, particularly the development of an Organised Industrial Zone near vital natural resources, have sparked environmental concerns, highlighting the disregard of the trustee for sustainable urban planning and community welfare. Tragic flooding in the neighbourhood of Seyitler, which resulted in the loss of lives due to inadequate infrastructure, underscores the negligence and mismanagement characterising the trustee administration in Batman.
