US embassy cable - 05ISTANBUL2076

C O N F I D E N T I A L ISTANBUL 002076 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, TU, Istanbul 
SUBJECT: ISTANBUL ASSEMBLY:  CHP MARGINALIZED 
 
REF: ISTANBUL 1916 
 
Classified By: Consul General Deborah K. Jones for reasons 1.4 (b) and 
(d). 
 
1.  (C)  Summary and Comment: According to CHP's leader in 
the Istanbul Municipal Assembly, Deputy Mayor of Besiktas 
Kemal Akar, the Assembly, as an institution, is marginalized 
in all aspects of city decision-making.  Akar complained 
about the lack of transparency in AK Party real estate 
development and urban renewal planning, but praised Mayor 
Kadir Topbas for squelching an unpopular plan for a third 
Bosphorus bridge.  It is most likely Akar's CHP that is 
marginalized, as AK Party Assembly leader Idris Gulluce 
(septel) appears to wield great power from his seat there. 
This is another reflection of the hold AKP has on Turkey's 
cities.  End Summary. 
 
2. (C)  The CHP's Kemal Akar told us November 22 that the 
Assembly, as an institution, is marginalized in all aspects 
of city decision-making.  He showed us data he plans to 
release to the media indicating that only four or five of the 
nineteen Assembly commissions had met in the past year.  He 
also complained that amendments Parliament made last year to 
local administration laws had eroded his party's already 
limited ability to impact municipal decision-making by 
decreasing its representation through re-districting.  After 
the 2004 local elections, CHP held 59 out of 207 seats in 
Istanbul's Municipal Assembly, but with redistricting, that 
ratio fell to 71 of 348 seats.  (Comment:  Redistricting is 
not an uncommon tool of parties in power.  End comment.) 
Moreover, the changes resulting from redistricting were not 
proportional to population, he said, claiming that Besiktas, 
with a population of some 250,000, has seven representatives 
in the assembly, whereas Silivri, with a population of 
20,000, has five. 
 
3.  (C) Specific complaints:  Akar cited the recent Dubai 
Towers deal (reftel) as an illustration of what he called the 
municipality's routine lack of transparency and tendency to 
bypass the Assembly.  He claimed that no documents related to 
the deal had ever been presented to the Assembly, and scoffed 
that the Mayor wasn't even familiar with the details of what 
he had signed.  Akar also criticized an AK Party urban 
renewal project in Sulukule, an important Istanbul center of 
Roma history, music and culture.  Press have reported that 
this project would relocate some 570 families to Tasoluk, 
some 50 kilometers away, where the people reportedly do not 
want the influx of new neighbors. 
 
4.  (SBU)  Sometimes on the same page:  Akar said he is 
willing to give credit where credit is due, and applauded the 
Mayor's nomination of Mesut Pektas as the new Secretary 
General of the municipality, calling him a "moderate and 
reasonable" choice.  He also publicly praised the Mayor for 
abandoning an unpopular plan to build a third bridge on the 
Bosphorus.  Akar also seemed to be thinking along the same 
lines as Mayor Topbas about improving the traffic problems 
that paralyze Istanbul, including promoting a "culture of 
public transportation." 
 
5.  (C)  Mayor on Dubai Towers, urban renewal:  Separately, 
the Mayor told us November 21 that he was aware of criticism 
about Dubai Towers, but stressed the project was following 
the letter of the law.  Mayor Topbas spoke of his 
administration's commitment to continue competing for foreign 
investment, and mentioned the transportation sector as one 
area of particular interest.  He also touched on the need for 
urban renewal, confirming municipality plans to renovate 
historical buildings, particular in the Sulimaniye area, and 
tear down ones "that are not in line with the identity of the 
neighborhood." 
JONES