Tradesmen lost 50 million liras in Turkey’s east: study

DİYARBAKIR – Doğan News Agency

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Tradesmen lost approximately 50 million Turkish Liras in the Sur district of the southeastern province of Diyarbakır, a study conducted by the Diyarbakır Chamber of Commerce and Industry and presented to Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and Development Minister Cevdet Yılmaz revealed on April 5. 

The loss of 50 million liras was the result of businesses which were kept closed during curfews in the district, while the normalization of business activity after they were reopened will take time and the losses will continue for a while, the report read.  

The study aimed to measure the economic effects of clashes between Turkish security forces and outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants amid curfews imposed in six Sur neighborhoods.

The Diyarbakır Chamber of Commerce and Industry conducted the survey between March 4 and 22 with responses from 395 businesses and tradesmen in the area.

According to the report, 66 percent of the tradesmen couldn’t open their businesses for three or four months, while 80 percent were tenants and 77 percent had between one and five employees. After the curfews were imposed, the number of employees fell by 30 percent, the report said. 

The survey’s respondents were worried about the loss of revenues as a result of the closure of their businesses, the extraordinary situation in the district’s center and the security perception of the region becoming continuous, the survey said. 

Investments were negatively affected by the situation and businesses were faced with problems in certain areas, including financing, marketing and sales, the report read. Additionally, the ones who applied for credit said they experienced problems with banks. Some 14 percent of the tradesmen said their existing credit was called back by banks. 

According to the report, tradesmen, who are hopeful and expect that their losses will be repaired, added their businesses were struggling to survive with their present savings.

The Diyarbakır Chamber of Commerce and Industry also listed the demands of the tradesmen, which include making Sur a disaster area, repairing the losses which occurred during the curfews, enabling a long-term interest-free credit and grant, reconfiguring the existing debts to the banks and postponing them without interest while facilitating the obtainment of new loans.