The works of the national garden project in the Aydos Forest in Istanbul continue despite all the reactions of the citizens. The forest, which is the first degree protected area of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change and the AKP’s Sancaktepe Municipality, is being destroyed for the parking lot of 500 vehicles.
In the west of the forest, the roads where citizens have been walking for years have become paid. Pedestrians entering the forest from areas rented to a company for about 49 years 10 years ago pay 10 TL.
Enver Özböler, one of the residents and also the Aydos Defense Executive Board, “There are six gates that lead into the forest, and they put huts on all of them. They even get paid from the number of people in the vehicles.” said.
Özböler stated that they agreed not to take the pedestrian money by protesting when the first privatization was made and said:
“Recently they started taking money from pedestrians again. Companies have gradually destroyed Aydos, which should remain as a forest, and continue to do so. What’s an amusement park doing in a forest with endemic plants?”
(The entrances of Aydos Forest were given to private companies. 10 TL is charged for pedestrian entrances in the region that has been operating for 10 years.)