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Scales of Exception: Water Infrastructure, Place, and ‘Half-island’ in Cyprus

2023; Routledge; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/00141844.2023.2240536

1469-588X

Ezgican Özdemir,

Peacebuilding and International Security

ABSTRACTThis article studies how communities in northern Cyprus constitute their collective identities through their changing understandings of where northern Cyprus is – through the collective idiom of ‘half-island’. Looking at the Turkish state-funded water pipeline from Turkey to north Cyprus as a megaproject, I show how the pipeline and its connection of the two spaces steer communities of northern Cyprus into reflections about their location in relation to their geographical surroundings through situated idioms and metaphors of connectivity and scale. I argue that the megaproject is a site where Turkish Cypriot political actors reflect on their locality, region, and geography of a ‘half-island’ vis-à-vis a multiplicity of hegemonic powers and the many states of exception. As they collectively contest a Turkish imposed privatisation of water infrastructure and its management, Turkish Cypriots widen their scalar thinking and situate the ‘half-island’ in ways that defy historically established (dis)connections in and around their island.KEYWORDS: Scale-makingexceptionalitywater infrastructureplacenorthern Cyprus Disclosure StatementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.Notes1 I use pseudonyms for my interlocutors throughout the article to ensure their anonymity.2 All ethical requirements and clearance for this field research was provided by the Ethics Committee at the Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology, Central European University.3 The Turkish armed forces military operation in 1974 is officially recognised by the Turkish state as a ‘peace operation’. However, this term is a politically controversial one. I approach such terminology critically and choose to call it a military occupation, invasion, or intervention throughout the article.4 The EU acquis, for short, is the body of common rights and obligations that is binding on all the EU member states. See: https://neighbourhood-enlargement.ec.europa.eu/enlargement-policy/glossary/acquis_en5 https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/turkey-will-not-turn-back-the-clock-for-daylight-saving-time/news6 The occupation of the northern territories is politically contentious in the proposed EU accession of Turkey. Unless Turkish armed forces leave northern Cyprus and the TRNC regime dismantled, the EU will not proceed with the accession of Turkey.7 This observation comes from a discourse analysis of Erdoğan’s inauguration speeches about the water pipeline. Full transcripts of the speeches can be found here: https://www.tccb.gov.tr/konusmalar/353/35720/turkiyeden-kktcye-su-temini-projesi-gecitkoy-baraji-acilis-toreninde-yaptiklari-konusma8 https://www.mustafaakinci.com/akinci-benim-kulak-verecegim-ses-kibris-turk-halkinin-sesidir/ Translated by author9 Peace and Democracy Party was a Kurdish left-wing party, which was shut down in 2014.10 https://t24.com.tr/haber/bdpli-onderden-kibris-icin-kalin-bagirsak-benzetmesi,190064 Translated by author11 For a detailed analysis on casinos and gambling in northern Cyprus, see (J. Scott & Asikoglu Citation2001). For a thorough analysis on uneven development and tourism in northern Cyprus, see (Özdemir Citation2020).12 Especially in contexts of colonial forms of capital accumulation. For example, see (Bassett Citation1994).13 For a detailed analysis of policy processes and water privatisation, see (Özdemir Citation2019).14 For a detailed analysis on the case of Cochabamba, see (Assies Citation2003).15 Party politics in northern Cyprus revolves mostly around this topic and it is discussed across the political spectrum. For a detailed study on party politics and patronage in northern Cyprus, see (Sonan Citation2014).16 https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/kktcye-su-goturmek-icin-4-koy-bosaltilacak-2116991617 https://www.yeniduzen.com/asrin-projesinde-kirlilik-eylemi-109291h.htm18 For a detailed analysis on the GAP and the Kurdish conflict in southeast Turkey, see Harris (Citation2008, Citation2012).19 The EEA claims that the water demand for the half-island could have been fulfilled with much less investment if two extra desalination plants were built in Omorphou/Güzelyurt and Kyrenia/Girne, amplifying the capacity of the already functioning desalination plants in Trikomo/İskele and Famagusta/Mağusa (Çevre Mühendisleri Odası Citation2016: 2).20 https://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/water-urbanwaste/index_en.html21 This excludes the Republic of Cyprus state, since both the TRNC and the Turkish state do not recognise the RoC.