COP 31 | Defend everyone's life

At the demonstration on the sidelines of the COP31 climate conference in Antalya Photo: AFP/OZAN KOSE "What do we want - climate justice" and "Capital fuck off, this country belongs to us" echoed across the streets of Aydın Kanza Park in Antalya on Saturday afternoon. Here, in light rain, the demonstration to “defend life,” as the call says, begins. Among the participants are left-wing political parties, local environmental groups, NGOs, but also activists from all over the world who have come here from the UN World Climate Conference, COP31. The flags and banners couldn't be more colorful, and a band is playing songs at the front of the demonstration.

One of the groups present is the Turkish “Pollen Ecology Collective”. The activists are here to demonstrate against COP31. They demand real climate solutions that can be found on the street, one of the group tells »nd«. The agenda of the demonstration is clear: debt-free climate financing for the Global South, reparation for climate damage, food sovereignty and protection of the rights of indigenous peoples.

Backpacks and bags are searched. A camera films each person individually.

This demonstration is also important for the people of Antalya. One person at the forefront tells us that she strongly criticizes the decision to have COP31 take place in her city. There are over 300 mines in the Taurus Mountains, which tower over the landscape within sight of the demonstration route. The forests there are being destroyed. This is a problem for the city and the whole world, that's why she's here.

The protests also bring together various environmental struggles from Turkey. There are people from Soma, where many miners died and activists fought for justice for them and were therefore arrested. All of them are now free again, except for the lawyers who represented them. There are also people from Akbelen in southwest Turkey, where there is a strong movement against deforestation.

The People’s March this Saturday is particularly significant. Since the Gezi protests in 2013, no major international protest has taken place in Turkey. It's been a long time since we've seen so many people from different parts of the world come together to demonstrate. In recent years, protests have been so suppressed by the state that many people are afraid to take to the streets. From Turkey it is mainly the older generation who are there because they still remember the times when it was normal to take to the streets. The fact that things remain relatively quiet today is probably because the eyes of the international public are on Antalya. But the security forces are still visible everywhere.

Access to the demonstration is sealed off. Anyone who wants to demonstrate has to pass through people's gates. Each person is checked twice. All banners must be rolled out for review. Backpacks and bags are searched. Then a camera follows, which films everyone individually. An approach that – as intended by the security forces – has a deterrent effect. The demonstration route is cordoned off with fences, and police everywhere are watching the crowd go by, some in uniform, some in civilian clothes. At strategic points there are also squads with signs and even individual officers with machine guns at the ready, as well as the military. Nevertheless, it is a very cautious approach by local standards. There have been no arrests so far. The police speak of 10,000 participants.

One person tells us that they came from Samoa to show solidarity with indigenous people, workers, women, queers, young people and children. They want to show the world through their presence that they are not sinking into the sea, but are fighting. Samoa is one of the 39 island nations in the Pacific most affected by extreme weather events caused by climate change.

Other activists and organizations from the Global South are also represented. In Uganda, according to an activist there, they are resisting the construction of oil pipelines and other forms of extractivism. He is there to protest against the destruction that has long burdened his communities. Rukiya Khamis, 350.org's program coordinator for East Africa, then criticized that any further delay in phasing out fossil fuels would be unacceptable.

A lot of things come together thematically. The slogans and banners on the street show that it is not just about environmental issues and demands on international politics, but actually about everything. Palestine Solidarity, the Workers' Party of Türkiye and occasionally even pride flags can be seen. All demands are united by the desire for a future worth living.

As the demonstration reaches the site of the final rally, the sun comes out from behind the clouds. With a view of the sea and the harbor of Antalya, the demonstration now turns into a concert where many people celebrate. Their demonstration is a strong sign of climate justice, for which too little is being done a few kilometers away at COP31, but also of the freedom to demonstrate in Turkey, which was at least able to be fought for today.

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