Tuzla (district)

Tuzla is a small town, a suburb of Istanbul, Turkey on the Asian side of the city beyond Kartal and Pendik. Tuzla is on a headland on the coast of the Marmara Sea, at the eastern limit of the city.

History

The Greek name for the headland was Akritas. In Ottoman times the inhabitants of this fishing and farming village were mainly Greek, and these people were swapped for Turkish residents of Thessalonica, Kavala and Drama in the population exchange following the foundation of the Turkish Republic in the early 1920s.

Tuzla today

There are still fishing boats but by the end of the 1980s fishing had been overtaken by industry, particularly ship-building; the shipyards of Tuzla are still active today. There is still some farming going on inland from the town of Tuzla, although there is also industrial development.

Tuzla is a small town famous for its sea front and its many fish restaurants. It is also a popular location for wealthy Istanbul residents or the retired to buy homes as it is far from the city, less crowded and still retains a 'small town feel' to it; travelling to the city by public transport is a slow and lengthy journey. The town centre of Tuzla is a maze of narrow streets. Today, town has lost some of its cultural values such as vernacular architectural texture.

There is a wetland behind the coast, important for birdlife, but this has deteriorated badly as the town of Tuzla has grown and some factories are emptying their wastes to the lagoon. Today, the most important problems of Tuzla are air pollution and ecology in general.

Recently, Tuzla is also well-known with the several deaths of the shipyard workers. Government is being criticised for not controlling the illegal employment and not forcing the companies to maintain better working conditions. Companies claim that they contribute great amounts to the Turkish economy and low-paid workers are their advantage. In February and March 2008, thousands of workers went to strike for better wages and conditions. The police intervened the demonstrations and 86 workers were taken into police custody, 15 of them injured.

Tuzla is also a name of a small town in the Northeast of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Places of importance

Istanbul's Formula One racetrack, The Turkish Naval Academy, The Koc School and Sabanci University are in Tuzla.

Politics

The mayor of Tuzla throughout the 1990s was Idris Gulluce, a leading figure in the Islamic-leaning [AKP] .

Links

* [http://www.cagdastuzla.org/ Local Newspaper: Modern Tuzla (Çağdaş Tuzla) www.cagdastuzla.org]

* [http://www.bianet.org/bianet/kategori/english/104881/shipbuilding-success-based-on-human-sacrifice/ "Shipbuilding 'Success' Based on Human Sacrifice" by Bianet]

* [http://www.bianet.org/bianet/kategori/english/105020/yet-more-deaths-at-tuzla-shipyards/ "Yet More Deaths at Tuzla Shipyards!" by Bianet]