'Environmental massacre': Turkey accused of using coup powers to crush mine protest, 4 February 2017

New powers granted under Turkey's state of emergency have pushed a decades-long environmental struggle into its most polarising period…The first drilling in the area took place in 1992. In response to an increase in animal deaths allegedly as a result of pollution caused by drilling, locals formed the Green Artvin Association in 1995, which has been at the forefront of opposition to drilling. Over many years, the organisation has managed to block a number of attempts to drill the hill. In 2009, with help from the Artvin Bar, they took INMET mining, a Canadian company that had been handed the license to mine the area, to court and succeeded in having its license canceled. Now their main adversary is Cengiz Holding, in partnership with Ozaltin Holding, which acquired the license for drilling in 2012…Police have become increasingly heavy-handed with the activists, deploying tear gas and firing plastic bullets against the crowds [and have used powers given to them by the state of emergency law imposed following the failed 15 July coup attempt to suppress protests and arrest activists]…In January, 48 people stood trial for violating a ban on demonstrations and “resisting police officers” during last February's protests. More than 200 overall are facing trial for their involvement in anti-mining activism.