LOCALS in Fethiye marched on June 29 to protest at the privatization of two public beaches in Ölüdeniz – but there are fears that the practice could be rolled out across the country.
The beaches of Kumburnu and Belceğiz have recently been sold by the administration of Muğla province to a private company, who will now be entitled to determine the rental prices of sunbeds and parasols to tourists.
The practice, which has become common in many summer towns along Turkey’s coasts, has infuriated nongovernmental organizations and tourism agencies in Fethiye who have demanded the beaches be given back to the locals.
“We have been struggling for years to take back the beaches from companies who seek to make a profit. There are many associations in Fethiye that can run the beaches, but they did not get any results after their talks with Fethiye’s district governorship and the Muğla Governor’s Office,” said Mümtaz Köken, who heads a cooperative of tourism professionals (Turizm Geliştirme Kooperatifi) in Ölüdeniz.
The sites were previously owned by a small-scale and non-profit public company called MELSA. The company, which was previously run by the governorship administration, was transferred to the municipality after most provincial administrations were closed as part of a recent institutional reform.
Many locals claim the sale of the beaches came after MELSA was transferred to a municipality that was won by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) during the March 30 local elections.
Fethiye’s Mayor Behçet Saatçi assured the municipality will take legal action to prevent the beaches from being run by private companies.
The Ministry of Environment and Urban Planning has recently made a controversial move by drafting a plan that could pave the way for the mass construction of villas in the protected areas of Datça’s peninsula.
But, the Zaman states, even Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputies have expressed anger at a recent wave of beach privatizations that they say violate regulations.
World-renowned beaches in Turkey’s south, such as İztuzu and Ölüdeniz, have been leased to private companies in tenders announced in the middle of the night with little or no publicity.
AK Party Muğla deputy Yüksel Özden tweeted, “The tenders for the operation of the beaches are full of mistakes and negligence. I have contacted the relevant authorities to express my objections and anger.”
Turkey previously had agencies to oversee regional privatization schemes such as leasing land, including beaches. After the March 30 local elections of this year, these agencies were shut down in 29 metropolitan cities. However, the aftermath of the agencies’ closure has been scandalous.
Property owned by these institutions was transferred to the municipality in areas where the mayor is from the AK Party, but transferred to the Governor’s Office in areas governed by non-AK Party municipalities.
In a related development, it emerged that the concession for the İncekum Beach in the Marmaris district of Muğla had been awarded to a private company. Republican People’s Party (CHP) Muğla Deputy Nurettin Demir said the AK Party was trying to punish the locals for not voting for it. “They leased it to a company for 10 years. Now people with lower incomes will not be able to use the beach.”