Iraq : 1st Mesopotamian Water Forum was held in April

Text from Ercan Ayboga / Mesopotamia Ecology Movement + Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive

The 1st Mesopotamian Water Forum was held on April 6-8, 2019 in Sulaimani (Sulaymaniyah) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. More than 150 water activists from the Mesopotamia region and other countries gathered for the 3-day forum at Sulaimani University.

Several civil society organizations from all over Mesopotamia – in particular members of the Save the Tigris Campaign (STC) – organized this water forum, which consisted of several plenary sessions and nine workshops. It was an open space to give voice to civil society of the region, too often excluded from decisions on water. The forum was accompanied by a photo exhibition on the upper Tigris River.

The activists denounced the grave impacts of dams and other water infrastructures on social structures, river ecosystems, cultural heritage, and local economies. The lack of any democratic, decision-making mechanisms was highlighted as well. Another important aspect that was critiqued is the use of dams as weapon for hegemony of upstream states and powers against downstream communities. Against these negative developments, very strong alternative approaches have been proposed.

In vibrant discussions after the approval of the final declaration, it was decided to organize the 2nd Mesopotamian Water Forum in Diyarbakir (Amed).

The forum can be summarized with the sentence: Water for Life and Water for Peace!

You can find here the final declaration in English.

For more information: https://www.savethetigris.org/international-mesopotamian-water-forum/