Buğra Gökce: We were preparing a large-scale plan for Istanbul that would be constitutional, all my friends in the team are under arrest.

Buğra Gökce , the chairman of the Istanbul Planning Agency, a subsidiary of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, who is imprisoned in Silivri Prison, said, "We had begun work on a 1/100,000 scale macro plan, a larger-scale plan that also serves as a constitution for Istanbul. All my colleagues on this plan's team are in custody. We have a lot of work to do when we're released! I think that's why we're in prison!"

In an interview with Cumhuriyet newspaper, Gökce answered the question, "What is the first step you would like to take regarding Istanbul as an administrator if your detention ends?"

Gokce said:

We will continue to produce for both Istanbul and Turkey where we left off. Even in prison, we continue to write and produce and develop ideas about the future of our city and country. We will continue to do so. We will continue to share sound scientific data and reports with the public. We will consider how we can move the country forward, what urbanization, environmental, disaster, and local government policies will bring our country to the level of "contemporary civilization" and democracy in the new century.

We had begun work on a 1/100,000 scale macro plan, a larger-scale plan that also serves as a constitution for Istanbul. All my colleagues and I, who were part of this plan's team, are under arrest. (Gürkan Akgün, Ramazan Gülten) Preparing this plan against the structure that has been "pillaging" the city for 30 years without proper planning and controlling the real estate market through zoning profits, is a major task.

When we said, "It's either the canal or Istanbul," we were referring to this lack of planning and the intervention in a massive structure fueled by zoning profits. This larger-scale plan also holds a unique place in terms of designing the city's future. I would also like to thank all our colleagues who embraced and implemented this plan, which was managed through a participatory process involving numerous professors and the academic and related community, while we were incarcerated. We have a lot to do when we get out! I guess that's why we're incarcerated!