In the latest episode of a legal battle between the central government and the opposition-led Istanbul municipality, a Turkish appeals court on June 4 temporarily blocked the transfer of the historic Basilica Cistern, a major tourist attraction of Istanbul, from the municipality to the Directorate General of Foundations.
The Istanbul Regional Administrative Court suspended the execution of the transfer until a final ruling. The administrative control of the ancient site will remain with the municipality for now.
The decision marks the latest development in a long legal battle between the government and the Istanbul municipality. Government officials have long sought to take control of the prominent tourist attraction. On June 2, court rulings culminated in the forced evacuation and handover of the site to the directorate.
Municipal officials view the move as a politically motivated attack on local governance. Ekrem İmamoğlu, the jailed mayor of Istanbul, heavily criticized the state takeover from his office account.
'Shame on them!' İmamoğlu said in a statement. 'They have set their sights on and seized the Basilica Cistern, which has belonged to the municipality for centuries and belongs to 16 million people.'
The Basilica Cistern is not the first cultural landmark caught in this legal dispute. In recent years, the government has used Foundations Law to seize several high-profile municipal properties. Past transfers include Gezi Park, Galata Tower, and the Selimiye Barracks.
The municipality's heritage section recently completed an extensive restoration of the 5th-century underground water reservoir, making it one of the most visited locations in the city. Critics argue that transferring these cultural assets leads to commercialization and strips elected local leaders of authority.
Municipal Council Member Barış Antik said that the legal framework used for the transfers poses a wider threat to public spaces. 'There is no end to these steps,' Antik said. 'University campuses, historic high schools, and even the Istanbul Governor’s office could be seized under this law. The intense commercialization of these areas is the fundamental problem.'
