Government's 'urban transformation' regulation leads to property rights violation

The Law Proposal on the Transformation of Areas Under Disaster Risk, which the AKP began preparing following the earthquake and submitted to the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) yesterday, could strip low-income and indebted citizens of their property rights.

According to a report by Hüseyin Şimşek from Birgün, the proposal stipulates that if citizens with liens on their property titles cannot pay off their debts, they will only have a 'right of residence' in the structure provided to them as a result of the transformation. Those who have another place to live may be evicted from their homes.

'ACCESS TO RISKY STRUCTURES'

The proposal, drafted by ruling party lawmakers, includes a provision that could take away the homes of financially struggling citizens undergoing transformation. According to the proposal, rights and annotations such as mortgages, liens, and usufruct rights present in the title deed of the right-holder's property prior to transformation will continue to be applied only to the right-holder's share in the new housing units provided to those considered poor or low-income. If the right-holder does not own another residential property where they can reside, a 'right of residence' in this unit will be granted to the right-holder, or to the right-holder and their spouse if they are married.

With the government's new legislative proposal, access to places deemed risky structures will also be permitted without the consent of homeowners or tenants. The proposal allows for risky structures to be opened by a locksmith with written permission from the local administrative authority if the identification of such structures is obstructed by the right-holders.

SIMPLE MAJORITY WILL SUFFICE

The practice of requiring the approval of two-thirds of the right-holders to begin operations during the transformation of risky structures will also come to an end if the proposal is enacted in its current form. Accordingly, the two-thirds majority requirement for construction operations in the transformation process of risky structures will be changed to a 'simple majority,' and if more than half approve, the consent of other right-holders will not be sought. Furthermore, in cases where the approval of all right-holders is currently required, the approval of more than half will be sought instead.

SELLING THE HOME TO A NEIGHBOR

In transactions determined by a simple majority, the shares of those who do not approve of the operations may be sold to other right-holders at a determined market value. In cases where they cannot be sold to other right-holders, they will be purchased by TOKİ.