Türkiye Stonewalls Earthquake Victims

In Türkiye, survivors of last year’s deadly earthquakes as well as family members of those who were killed are still looking for answers – and justice.

On February 6, 2023, two earthquakes hit southeastern Türkiye, killing more than 53,000 people and leaving hundreds of thousands more injured and displaced.

The earthquakes caused more than 1,600 buildings to collapse, which resulted in most of the deaths and injuries. Many of these buildings were authorized and approved by officials despite evidence they were defective.

Lack of Justice

Since the tragedy, criminal proceedings against officials who signed off on deadly structures have all but stalled.

Human Rights Watch researchers and Citizens Assembly, a nongovernmental organization from Türkiye, have reviewed reports and visited some of the most affected areas.

We even reviewed expert reports, commissioned by public prosecutors in regions hardest hit by the earthquakes, that identify municipal officials, alongside private contractors and builders, responsible for defects in buildings that collapsed. 

As of Wednesday, Citizens Assembly has learned that permission to investigate just three public officials has been granted. Generally, authorities are refusing to provide answers.

What does this mean?

In February, Turkish media reported that 883 private developers, builders, and technical personnel are now on trial in connection with these deaths. But their defense teams are saying the authorities who authorized the work are responsible.

The lack of investigation into public officials is hampering how these cases proceed. It also helps hide how builders could flout applicable building regulations to secure permits, evade thorough inspection, and sell to the public buildings that were known to be unsafe.

One more example

HRW looked at 14 reports concerning collapsed apartment buildings, which left most of their residents dead, in one of the hardest-hit provinces. Of these reports, commissioned by provincial government authorities, only one describes serious failures by builders to adhere to applicable safety standards.

Yet municipal officials apparently turned a blind eye by issuing building permits for flawed projects, later signing off on inadequate and unsafe finished construction.

Turkish authorities should permit criminal investigations leading to prosecution of all officials responsible for earthquake deaths and those who failed to mitigate deadly risks.  

Read More

Also in this week's newsletter:

• Six steps to overcome Haiti's crisis

• Thailand poised to make history on marriage equality

• Take our quiz

Read the rest of this week's newsletter and sign up to have it delivered to your Inbox each week here.