Located near the city center of Sêrt, Newala Qesaba has once again become a target for construction following zoning revision plans. After the March 31, 2024 elections, the newly elected municipal council annulled the previous trustee-backed decision to open Newala Qesaba for development on June 7, 2024. 

 

However, with the reappointment of the trustee to Sêrt Municipality, the area, known as a mass grave site in the collective memories of Kurds and Armenians, has been reopened for profit-driven development. In the April municipal meeting, the trustee administration amended the zoning plan to allow 5- to 8-story buildings in Newala Qesaba.

 

Newala Qesaba holds significant historical and social importance as the burial site of many Armenians massacred during the 1915 Armenian Genocide, as well as PKK members and victims of unsolved murders from the post-1980 conflict period. Excavations in the creek area first uncovered eight skeletons on April 22, 1989, but were halted by governor’s orders on the same day and have not resumed since.

 

A SYMBOL OF SOCIAL MEMORY

 

On June 26, the Regional Coordination Boards of TMMOB issued a statement opposing the zoning changes in Newala Qesaba. Şimşek emphasized that the area should be preserved as a social memory site. “There are songs, poems, and books written about this place. It is clearly a space that keeps social memory alive. To avoid repeating past mistakes, we must keep this memory vibrant,” he said.

 

Şimşek criticized the development during a time aimed at building social peace, stating, “If we are to build a millennium-long peace, its foundation must be solid. Everything wrong must be addressed. Wrongdoings should not be covered up or buried under concrete.”

 

‘HOSPITAL BUILT ON UNSAFE GROUND’

 

Highlighting the geological risks, Şimşek pointed out that a 400-bed state hospital is currently under construction in Newala Qesaba despite unsafe ground conditions. Based on ground survey reports, the area contains dissolution cavities, slip layers, and highly cracked clay-limestone strata, rendering it structurally risky. Rather than relocating the hospital, the Ministry of Health opted for ground improvement measures, investing nearly 400 million Turkish Lira underground and installing 1,169 piles. “The hospital should have been relocated. It’s clear the Ministry does not prioritize the public good,” Şimşek said.

 

Expressing firm opposition to pouring concrete over Newala Qesaba, Şimşek added, “We filed an objection petition to the Sêrt Municipality regarding the zoning revision. We also applied to suspend execution through TMMOB in Diyarbakır. Our objections were rejected, but the process is ongoing. The municipality is currently under trusteeship, and the council is not in a position to make decisions.”

 

MA / Ozan Bayindir