- Katılım
- Ocak 16, 2025
- Mesajlar
- 309,432
- Tepkime puanı
- 0
Eyüp Muhçu - Former President of TMMOB Chamber of Architects
In our country, authoritarianism and urbanisation processes based on rent-seeking, as well as the exploitation of nature and culture, are carried out simultaneously. With this approach, while the powers of local governments, planning decisions, tenders, and other fundamental urbanisation processes are centralised through unlawful laws, decrees, and presidential orders, public interest, safe and healthy urbanisation, and the recovery of earthquake-stricken cities remain unfulfilled.
The earthquakes of 6 February directly affected more than 4 million people in 11 provinces. According to official data, 53,725 citizens lost their lives, more than 100,000 citizens were injured and more than 700,000 buildings were either destroyed or damaged.
Today, on the second anniversary of the great disaster, we are sadly witnessing that the wounds remain unhealed. The tragedy of the destroyed cities and our citizens left homeless still continues, and the slow reconstruction process fuels despair. Investigations revealed that reasons poor construction quality and the failure to take necessary precautions were key factors in this massive destruction. Yet, those responsible for opening agricultural lands and weak-soil areas for construction, failing to enforce public oversight and legalising illegal construction and earthquake destruction with zoning amnesties remain exempt from prosecution. The people expect those responsible to be held accountable and necessary steps to be taken to prevent similar tragedies from happening again.
Although Erdoğan promised to complete and deliver 319 thousand houses in one year, it has been announced that only 201 thousand 580 houses have been delivered in two years. In addition to the inadequacies in housing production, concerns over the quality of newly built homes, inadequate architectural and engineering standards, and infrastructure issues persist. Rather than creating healthy and safe living environments, a process in which other concerns come to the fore continues to be experienced.
Citizens' housing rights are being violated through designation of risky areas and reserve building areas. Public tenders are distributed to friends, relatives and cronies. Building inspection processes do not function properly. It is claimed that 75 billion dollars of investment has been made in the region. Under conditions where there is no real public supervision, the accuracy and priority of the investments and the extent to which the said amount is reflected in the investments are questionable. Furthermore, there is little transparency regarding how much of the aid and donations collected have actually reached citizens in need.
The exploitation of people’s fears and struggles for survival in the affected regions has reached shameful levels. The ‘Earthquake Cities’ build with public resources raise serious concerns for the future. Authoritarianisation processes and the processes of creating earthquake cities are carried out in parallel. Cities are shaped by decisions taken from a single centre. While the destroyed cities should be revived with a modern and scientific understanding; ‘earthquake cities’ are being built with many repetitive building groups that ignore the socio-cultural structure and historical texture, disconnected from people and the environment. Moreover, it is not possible to claim that these building groups are robust, safe and resistant to earthquakes.
‘Urban transformation’ policies and practices based on rent and exploitation of nature are the harbingers of new disasters. With these policies; measures are not taken to make cities safe against disasters, and in the absence of a real plan and building supervision, it is impossible to guarantee the resilience of newly constructed buildings. More than a quarter century after the 1999 earthquake, there has been no preparation against disasters. Official statements indicate that over 50% of the country’s existing building stock is not earthquake-resistant, demonstrating that sufficient lessons have not been learned from past disasters.
While 78 citizens recently burnt to death in a hotel in Bolu, a new zoning amnesty proposal is on the agenda of the Turkish Grand National Assembly. If passed, the proposal could legalise unsafe buildings and pave the way for similar disasters in the future. This proposal must be withdrawn. It has been proven that zoning amnesties should be avoided in order to build a safer future. We should not forget that combating disasters is only possible with a conscious society and a determined administration.
In conditions where public administration has become authoritarian, decayed and rotten in all respects, the true safeguard against disasters lies in strengthening social organisations and community resilience.
On the anniversary of the disaster, as we commemorate the citizens we lost, it must be emphasised that we must fulfil our responsibilities to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Note: This text has been translated from Otoriterleşme sürecinde deprem kentleri! Article published in BirGün newspaper on 6 February, 2025.
In our country, authoritarianism and urbanisation processes based on rent-seeking, as well as the exploitation of nature and culture, are carried out simultaneously. With this approach, while the powers of local governments, planning decisions, tenders, and other fundamental urbanisation processes are centralised through unlawful laws, decrees, and presidential orders, public interest, safe and healthy urbanisation, and the recovery of earthquake-stricken cities remain unfulfilled.
The earthquakes of 6 February directly affected more than 4 million people in 11 provinces. According to official data, 53,725 citizens lost their lives, more than 100,000 citizens were injured and more than 700,000 buildings were either destroyed or damaged.
Today, on the second anniversary of the great disaster, we are sadly witnessing that the wounds remain unhealed. The tragedy of the destroyed cities and our citizens left homeless still continues, and the slow reconstruction process fuels despair. Investigations revealed that reasons poor construction quality and the failure to take necessary precautions were key factors in this massive destruction. Yet, those responsible for opening agricultural lands and weak-soil areas for construction, failing to enforce public oversight and legalising illegal construction and earthquake destruction with zoning amnesties remain exempt from prosecution. The people expect those responsible to be held accountable and necessary steps to be taken to prevent similar tragedies from happening again.
Although Erdoğan promised to complete and deliver 319 thousand houses in one year, it has been announced that only 201 thousand 580 houses have been delivered in two years. In addition to the inadequacies in housing production, concerns over the quality of newly built homes, inadequate architectural and engineering standards, and infrastructure issues persist. Rather than creating healthy and safe living environments, a process in which other concerns come to the fore continues to be experienced.
Citizens' housing rights are being violated through designation of risky areas and reserve building areas. Public tenders are distributed to friends, relatives and cronies. Building inspection processes do not function properly. It is claimed that 75 billion dollars of investment has been made in the region. Under conditions where there is no real public supervision, the accuracy and priority of the investments and the extent to which the said amount is reflected in the investments are questionable. Furthermore, there is little transparency regarding how much of the aid and donations collected have actually reached citizens in need.
The exploitation of people’s fears and struggles for survival in the affected regions has reached shameful levels. The ‘Earthquake Cities’ build with public resources raise serious concerns for the future. Authoritarianisation processes and the processes of creating earthquake cities are carried out in parallel. Cities are shaped by decisions taken from a single centre. While the destroyed cities should be revived with a modern and scientific understanding; ‘earthquake cities’ are being built with many repetitive building groups that ignore the socio-cultural structure and historical texture, disconnected from people and the environment. Moreover, it is not possible to claim that these building groups are robust, safe and resistant to earthquakes.
‘Urban transformation’ policies and practices based on rent and exploitation of nature are the harbingers of new disasters. With these policies; measures are not taken to make cities safe against disasters, and in the absence of a real plan and building supervision, it is impossible to guarantee the resilience of newly constructed buildings. More than a quarter century after the 1999 earthquake, there has been no preparation against disasters. Official statements indicate that over 50% of the country’s existing building stock is not earthquake-resistant, demonstrating that sufficient lessons have not been learned from past disasters.
While 78 citizens recently burnt to death in a hotel in Bolu, a new zoning amnesty proposal is on the agenda of the Turkish Grand National Assembly. If passed, the proposal could legalise unsafe buildings and pave the way for similar disasters in the future. This proposal must be withdrawn. It has been proven that zoning amnesties should be avoided in order to build a safer future. We should not forget that combating disasters is only possible with a conscious society and a determined administration.
In conditions where public administration has become authoritarian, decayed and rotten in all respects, the true safeguard against disasters lies in strengthening social organisations and community resilience.
On the anniversary of the disaster, as we commemorate the citizens we lost, it must be emphasised that we must fulfil our responsibilities to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Note: This text has been translated from Otoriterleşme sürecinde deprem kentleri! Article published in BirGün newspaper on 6 February, 2025.