EUROPA NOSTRA URGES TURKISH PRIME MINISTER TO SAVE UNIQUE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE OF ALLIANOI

An open letter has been addressed to HE Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister of Turkey, and signed by Otto von der Gablentz, Europa Nostra’s Executive President, urging the Turkish Government to avert the imminent destruction of the Roman Baths at Allianoi. This appeal has been launched on the basis of mounting opposition both locally and internationally against the flooding of Allianoi.

On 13 October, the Regional Council for Preservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage, Izmir (Turkey) recalled that earlier this year Allianoi was declared as a first degree archaeological site and observed that flooding the site would thus constitute an illegal act. The Council has therefore called for the postponement of the flooding, pending a report by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism on adequate measures for the conservation of Allianoi.

“Allianoi bears witness to an important period of European history, and forms part of our common European heritage. We sincerely hope that the Turkish Government will find a way to safeguard Allianoi, thus confirming its determination to fully integrate the important objective of the conservation and enhancement of our common European heritage in its policies and priorities” stressed Otto von der Gablentz in his letter to the Prime Minister.

In September, Europa Nostra, together with ICOMOS and the European Association of Archaeologists, wrote to Mr Ali Babacan, Turkish Minister of State for EU Relations and members of the Turkish Government on this matter but to date has not yet received a reply explaining the position of the Turkish Government. At the same time Europa Nostra launched an on-line campaign (www.europanostra.org/save_allianoi.html) seeking wider citizens’ support for the Allianoi appeal. This campaign continues to gain momentum, with support signatures received from twenty five countries.

Europa Nostra also welcomes the interest that the European Union has shown in the international campaign to save Allianoi: Mr Olli Rehn , the European Commissioner for Enlargement has written to the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Mr Abdullah Gül. In addition, Mr Nikolaos Sifunakis, MEP, Chairman of the Committee on Culture and Education of the European Parliament has written to the Turkish Ambassador to the EU and raised the matter at the October Plenary Session of the European Parliament.

Allianoi, built in the 2nd century AD under Emperor Hadrian, owes its present day value to the fact that it is a rare example of a Roman Bath built outside an urban setting and also due to its good state of conservation with walls and colonnades standing up to the second floor level. It presents great historic and art historic interest which deserves much more profound field study than it has yet been able to receive.

There is widespread support in Turkey for the preservation of Allianoi, as shown by the continuous attention to the case in the Turkish media and the 30,000 signatures collected among Turkish visitors to Allianoi. Even though the site has not yet been fully excavated and its tourist infrastructure could be further developed, many travel organisations assert that even in its present state, it is already of very great interest to them. Creating further amenities and possibly developing the spa for present day use in a historic setting would ensure a sustainable development benefiting the region and one which would most probably outlive the projected lifespan of the irrigation dam.

For further information please contact:

Charlotte O’Connor, Communications Officer, co@europanostra.org, +31 70 302 40 55
Mark Snethlage, Policy and Campaigns Officer, imo@europanostra.org, +31 70 302 40 51

Click here to read the letter to HE Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister of Turkey.

Europa Nostra - the pan-European Federation for Heritage - is the representative platform of over 200 heritage NGOs active throughout Europe. It is the voice of organised civil society active in the field of heritage towards EU Institutions, the Council of Europe and UNESCO. Its objectives are, among others, to promote high standards of quality in the fields of heritage conservation, architecture, urban and rural planning and to advocate a balanced and sustainable development of urban and rural, built and natural environment. Europa Nostra also seeks to highlight the importance of the cultural and educational dimension of the ongoing European integration process. Moreover, it supports national and international campaigns for European heritage at risk. Last but not least, Europa Nostra is responsible for the running of the leading European cultural heritage awards scheme, the EU Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Awards. www.europanostra.org