A Luxury and Unhappy District: Sulukule, Who Would Be Blamed?

Urban regeneration projects are the most popular projects of İstanbul especially after the expectations that showed up during the European Capital of Culture 2010 Event. Most of the areas which are defined as squatter settlements by the municipality in Historical Peninsula have been decided to be included by an urban regeneration projects. Sulukule is a district of Historical Peninsula which had a special life style because of the routines of locals. Sulukule locals have been able to settle a different culture in Istanbul for many years thanks to their routines: Romani culture. They created a living environment including their houses, jobs and social activities. However, Sulukule has been taken as squatter area to the records and Sulukule Urban Regeneration Project is prepared in 2005 by Fatih Municipality. A new design which is completely different from the structure of the area, aims creating a ‗better environment‘ for visitors without concerning about the locals and their needs by changing the physical and social structure of the area. After the declaration of the project, the process of losing a culture and right to live of locals has begun. This paper is about the Sulukule Urban Regeneration project‘s life span and evaluates the lost culture in terms of human rights