There is a direct relationship between tourism in Turkey, the Erdoğan regime and the arms trade.

Turkish holding companies that own travel companies and hotels also own arms companies. The directors of these companies are friends with the Erdoğan family. The same holding companies fund the building of huge dams in Kurdistan, displacing tens of thousands and causing irreversible ecological destruction.

Still, the number of foreigners visiting Turkey increased almost 22% from 2017 to 2018. The Turkish economy is growing increasingly reliant on tourism.

According to figures released by the Turkish Statistical Institute, in 2018 alone, tourism accounted for an income of $29.5 billion USD and the same year Turkey’s military budget was raised by 24% to $19 billion USD.

To put it bluntly: the more tourists enjoy Turkey’s beaches, the more Kurds will die.

In 2019, AKP mouthpiece Daily Sabah claimed that the number of British people booking package trips to Turkey had increased by 27% that year. We need to stop this increase by convincing people internationally that Turkey is not an ethical travel destination.

Turkey’s largest airline, Turkish Airlines (THY), is partly owned by the Turkish state. THY’s directors are all closely connected to Erdoğan. Pegasus, Turkey’s other major airline, is linked to the arms trade and the Turkish state’s socially and ecologically destructive dam building programme.

Resources

Call from KCDK-E for a boycott of Turkish goods and holidays in Turkey

Profile of Pegasus Airlines, the Sabancı family, and their links to the arms trade and the funding of the Ilısu dam.

Profile of Turkish Airlines and it’s connections to the Erdoğan family and the arms trade

Profile of TUI and it’s connections to the Turkish state

Profile of Thomas Cook and it’s connections to the Turkish State

Profile of Divan Turizm and it’s connections to the arms trade

Campaign information

Sample boycott tourism flyer