More than 20 thousand people living in 6 neighbourhoods had to migrate following the curfew declared in the historical Sur district of Diyarbakır in 2015. Residents of Ali Paşa and Lalebey neighbourhoods were forced to move out after the launch of “urban transformation” since they were not affected by the conflicts during the military siege on the area. Many families whose houses were expropriated at low prices had to move to different neighbourhoods and districts.

The Demir and Sansarkan families are among those who were forced to leave their homes in Ali Paşa neighbourhood and moved to Yenişehir district, and they have been struggling to survive under difficult conditions for a long time.

DIFFICULT LIVING CONDITIONS

Hanım Demir (60) lives in a container with her daughter and 7 grandchildren. “There was constant bombing. People were dying. Then the government forced us to move out. We stayed near Seyrantepe for 2 years. Later, we came to this place where we are residing now. First, we were in a tent, then someone bought us this container,” she said. Demir lost her husband years ago and his two sons are in prison. She now has to take care of her family alone.

“No one in the family has a job. 5 of my grandchildren go to school, two of them are very young. My older daughter looks after them. I am old and cannot work. There is no heating or anything else in our house. Water drips from the ceiling in the winter. No stove, cupboard, washing machine, nothing. We are devastated. I cook meals on a fire that I light myself outside. We wash the laundry by hand. The toilet and bathroom are in the same place. There is no hot water either. We boil up the water on fire. We cannot afford to buy detergent and soap because of the high cost of living. They have condemned us to such miserable conditions. The rulers live in a palace, and we live in these one-room places. We receive no help from the government,” Demir said.

WE LIVE ON 600 TURKISH LIRAS PER MONTH

Dindar Sansarkan lives in a one-room house with her 5 children and her family lives on sick pay. “They burned down and destroyed our house and forced us to move. Someone helped and we settled in this house. But the house is not ours. We've been living here for 3 years. I have epilepsy, so I can't work. The government gives me 600 Turkish lira per month for my illness, but this is not enough because of skyrocketing prices. I can't afford sugar or oil with this sick pay. No kitchen, no bathroom. My neighbours sometimes bring food for us. Sometimes I cook my meals outside, and sometimes we don't even have dinner in the evenings,” she said.

“The rulers live in the palace, and we live in these small houses. This is not fair. Some are affluent, some are hungry. If the government had not demolished our houses back then, we would not be in this situation now. We live in this state because the government forces burned and destroyed our neighbourhoods,” she added.