Survivors marked the exact moment when a devastating earthquake struck in 2023. They expressed anguish at the loss of some 53,000 compatriots, but also anger at greedy investors and unscrupulous politicians.
Thousands of Turks gathered for a candlelight vigil in the city of Antakya on Thursday morning, marking the exact moment when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck in 2023, killing 53,000 people.
The early morning disaster leveled nearly 40,000 buildings and severely damaged another 200,000. It also hit northern Syria, where 6,000 people were killed.
Sorrow was not, however, the only emotion on display. Anger was also palpable, with those gathered chanting, “Can anybody hear me?” That cry was heard from those trapped in the rubble in freezing temperatures, sometimes waiting for days and weeks to be rescued.
Others carried banners demanding government accountability.
Turks decry greedy builders and officials, calling event ‘a massacre’
“This was not an earthquake, it was a massacre,” some shouted.
The massive damage registered in the region — one of the most earthquake-prone in the world — is seen by many as a product of the greed of builders; and local, regional and national leaders who eagerly approved shoddy construction on unsuitable building sites.
At the time, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the geological event, which left nearly two million Turks homeless, the “disaster of the century.” Of those who were displaced, nearly 670,000 are still living in containers.
Erdogan, who will attend a memorial ceremony in Adiyaman later in the day, said in a statement, “we will continue our rebuilding and restoration efforts with hard work, sweat, patience and iron will until our cities are back on their feet.”
Erdogan not delivering on reconstruction, praises own record nevertheless
Despite Erdogan’s Monday claim that, “We are fortunate to have delivered 201,431 independent units to their rightful owners less than two years after the quake,” recovery efforts lag far behind what was promised.
The government in Ankara vowed to build some 650,000 homes in total and 319,000 within the first year after the tragedy.
Opposition CHP leader Ozgur Ozel called out Erdogan and his AKP party, saying: “Only three out of ten who believed Erdogan now have homes, while the other seven are living in containers (….) How can they look those people forced to live in containers for two years in the eye and say ‘We’ve kept our promise, thank god?'”
Accountability and lessons learned from Turkish earthquake?
To date, 189 people have been arrested and jailed in connection with the tragedy, most for negligence. Currently, 1,850 are on trial in 1,342 cases.
Ongoing tremors in the Aegean Sea, near the Greek island of Santorini, have raised fears of another earthquake in Turkey.
This week, Minister of Environment and Urbanization Murat Kurum sounded the alarm, declaring that Istanbul may soon be in for destruction, warning of a “big one” hitting the metropolis of 15.6 million, which lies just 15 kilometers (9 miles) away from the North Anatolian Faultline.
“Istanbul does not have the strength to withstand another earthquake — 600,000 houses could collapse,” said Kurum.
In 1999, more than 1,000 Istanbul residents were killed by a quake that hit nearby. In all, some 17,000 perished in the event.
