Erdogan faces crescendo of criticism over quake response
Aftermath of the deadly earthquake in Kahramanmaras
Wed, February 8, 2023
By Birsen Altayli, Daren Butler and Orhan Coskun
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Criticism of Turkey's earthquake response mounted on Wednesday, with the political opposition and people in the disaster zone accusing the government of a tardy and inadequate relief effort.
The anger grew louder as President Tayyip Erdogan, facing a tight election in three months time, visited the afflicted area for the first time and acknowledged some problems with the initial response.
Monday's quakes have killed more than 11,000 people across southern Turkey and northwest Syria. They cracked infrastructure and flattened thousands of buildings, causing hardship for millions and leaving many homeless in bitterly cold weather.
"Where is the state? Where have they been for two days? We are begging them. Let us do it, we can get them out," said Sabiha Alinak, near a snow covered collapsed building where her young relatives were trapped in the city of Malatya.
From the outset, Turks have complained of a lack of equipment and support as they waited helplessly next to rubble, lacking the necessary expertise or tools to rescue those trapped - sometimes even as they could hear cries for help.
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition party, had earlier in the week said the disaster was a time for unity, not criticism. But on Wednesday he accused the government of failing to cooperate with local authorities and weakening non-governmental organisations that could help.
"I refuse to look at what is happening as above politics and align with the ruling party. This collapse is exactly the result of systematic profiteering politics," he said.
"If there is anyone responsible for this process, it is Erdogan. It is this ruling party that has not prepared the country for an earthquake for 20 years."
Rescue workers have struggled to reach some of the worst-hit areas, held back by destroyed roads, poor weather and lack of resources and heavy equipment, while some areas are without fuel or electricity.
MILITARY RESPONSE
Nasuh Mahruki, founder of a search and rescue group active in response to the 1999 earthquake that killed 17,000, said the army did not act soon enough because Erdogan's government annulled a protocol enabling it to respond without instruction.
"When this was cancelled (their) duties and responsibilities in combating disasters were taken away," he told Reuters.
"In the first seconds (after the 1999 quake), the Turkish Armed Forces started to work and were on the scene with the people within hours," he said, contrasting this with the current situation where the military had to wait for instructions.
"Now it seems the responsibility is with AFAD (Disaster and Emergency Management Authority), but it is not prepared for such a colossal problem," Mahruki added.
Speaking in Kahramanmaras, near the epicentre of the earthquake, Erdogan said: "We had some problems in airports and roads but we are better today".
"I would like to ask you not to give a chance to provocateurs, other than the statements especially from AFAD... Because today is the time for unity," he said.
He did not appear to have had a direct confrontaton with any local people.
A government official, who requested anonymity, said the efforts were hampered by damaged roads, bad weather and being unable to use airports due to damage.
"It seems that we should have been more prepared," the person said.
In the southern city of Antakya, one of the hardest hit, Melek, 64, said she had not seen rescue teams as of late Tuesday. "We haven't seen any food distribution here unlike previous disasters in our country. We survived the earthquake, but we will die here due to hunger or cold."
Selim Temurci, spokesman for the opposition Future Party, said AFAD's efforts were insufficient due to personnel shortages and the vast expanse of destruction.
"They did not have the capacity to conduct search and rescue at all the buildings at once but they only got to certain places in 30 hours," he said, adding those rescued still lacked food and water.
(Additional reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen; Editing by Jonathan Spicer)
Aftermath of the deadly earthquake in Kahramanmaras
Wed, February 8, 2023
By Birsen Altayli, Daren Butler and Orhan Coskun
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Criticism of Turkey's earthquake response mounted on Wednesday, with the political opposition and people in the disaster zone accusing the government of a tardy and inadequate relief effort.
The anger grew louder as President Tayyip Erdogan, facing a tight election in three months time, visited the afflicted area for the first time and acknowledged some problems with the initial response.
Monday's quakes have killed more than 11,000 people across southern Turkey and northwest Syria. They cracked infrastructure and flattened thousands of buildings, causing hardship for millions and leaving many homeless in bitterly cold weather.
"Where is the state? Where have they been for two days? We are begging them. Let us do it, we can get them out," said Sabiha Alinak, near a snow covered collapsed building where her young relatives were trapped in the city of Malatya.
From the outset, Turks have complained of a lack of equipment and support as they waited helplessly next to rubble, lacking the necessary expertise or tools to rescue those trapped - sometimes even as they could hear cries for help.
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition party, had earlier in the week said the disaster was a time for unity, not criticism. But on Wednesday he accused the government of failing to cooperate with local authorities and weakening non-governmental organisations that could help.
"I refuse to look at what is happening as above politics and align with the ruling party. This collapse is exactly the result of systematic profiteering politics," he said.
"If there is anyone responsible for this process, it is Erdogan. It is this ruling party that has not prepared the country for an earthquake for 20 years."
Rescue workers have struggled to reach some of the worst-hit areas, held back by destroyed roads, poor weather and lack of resources and heavy equipment, while some areas are without fuel or electricity.
MILITARY RESPONSE
Nasuh Mahruki, founder of a search and rescue group active in response to the 1999 earthquake that killed 17,000, said the army did not act soon enough because Erdogan's government annulled a protocol enabling it to respond without instruction.
"When this was cancelled (their) duties and responsibilities in combating disasters were taken away," he told Reuters.
"In the first seconds (after the 1999 quake), the Turkish Armed Forces started to work and were on the scene with the people within hours," he said, contrasting this with the current situation where the military had to wait for instructions.
"Now it seems the responsibility is with AFAD (Disaster and Emergency Management Authority), but it is not prepared for such a colossal problem," Mahruki added.
Speaking in Kahramanmaras, near the epicentre of the earthquake, Erdogan said: "We had some problems in airports and roads but we are better today".
"I would like to ask you not to give a chance to provocateurs, other than the statements especially from AFAD... Because today is the time for unity," he said.
He did not appear to have had a direct confrontaton with any local people.
A government official, who requested anonymity, said the efforts were hampered by damaged roads, bad weather and being unable to use airports due to damage.
"It seems that we should have been more prepared," the person said.
In the southern city of Antakya, one of the hardest hit, Melek, 64, said she had not seen rescue teams as of late Tuesday. "We haven't seen any food distribution here unlike previous disasters in our country. We survived the earthquake, but we will die here due to hunger or cold."
Selim Temurci, spokesman for the opposition Future Party, said AFAD's efforts were insufficient due to personnel shortages and the vast expanse of destruction.
"They did not have the capacity to conduct search and rescue at all the buildings at once but they only got to certain places in 30 hours," he said, adding those rescued still lacked food and water.
(Additional reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen; Editing by Jonathan Spicer)
Almost 12,000 people have died in Turkey and Syria since the quakes struck on Monday.
Umit Bektas / reuters
Kris Holt
·Contributing Reporter
Wed, February 8, 2023
Turkey may be blocking access to Twitter, two days after a pair of catastrophic earthquakes struck the area. Thousands of people are still trapped in buildings in Turkey and Syria, where the death toll is approaching 12,000.
According to Bloomberg, people in Turkey started having trouble accessing Twitter on Wednesday afternoon. Some have resorted to VPNs to use the service. Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of Turkey's main opposition party, has accused the government of blocking Twitter.
It's not clear why the Turkish government might want to prevent access to Twitter amid such devastation. The social media service is still a valuable disaster response tool and users have also been sharing images of the destruction caused by the earthquakes.
Twitter does not have a communications team that can be reached for comment, but on Wenesday afternoon Elon Musk did note through a tweet that Twitter access in Turkey should be "reenabled shortly."
This would not be the first time that Turkey has stopped residents from accessing social media services. It has also done so during cross-border military operations and terror attacks. In 2014, Turkey temporarily banned Twitter. Users were sharing voice recordings and documents that purportedly showed corruption within then-prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's sphere of influence. Erdoğan became Turkey's president later that year and he remains in power. His government has faced criticism for its response to this week's disaster.
Anger over Turkey's temporary Twitter block during quake rescue
Aftermath of the deadly earthquake in Kahramanmaras
Daren Butler and Orhan Coskun
Thu, February 9, 2023
By Daren Butler and Orhan Coskun
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey's decision to block access to Twitter for about 12 hours from Wednesday afternoon to early Thursday as people scrambled to find loved ones after devastating earthquakes has compounded public frustration at the pace of relief efforts.
Opposition leaders and social media users criticised the throttling of the platform, which has helped people share information on arriving aid and the location of those still trapped in rubble after the initial tremor on Monday.
President Tayyip Erdogan's government has blocked social media in the past and focused in recent months on fighting what it calls "disinformation", which it said prompted the block on Wednesday.
It restored full access to Twitter early on Thursday as the quake's death toll in Turkey and neighbouring Syria shot past 17,000.
President Tayyip Erdogan's government "lost its mind and... the result is cries for help being heard less. We know everything you're trying to hide," main opposition CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu said after the block was imposed on Wednesday afternoon.
A government official who requested anonymity said the move had temporarily interrupted real calls for help, but that action was taken quickly and the service returned to normal.
"This had to be done because in some accounts there were untrue claims, slander, insults and posts with fraudulent purposes," the official told Reuters, citing efforts to steal money under the pretense of collecting aid.
Turkish officials held talks with Twitter on Wednesday and said they expected cooperation in fighting disinformation during relief work, Deputy Transport Minister Omer Fatih Sayan said.
Erdogan's communications director, Fahrettin Altun, said Twitter cooperated in the meeting and pledged to support Turkey's efforts, and officials look forward to working with it "over the next few days and weeks".
"Disinformation is humanity's common enemy and a grave threat to democracy, social peace, and national security," he said on Twitter on Thursday.
Last October, Turkey's parliament adopted a law under which journalists and social media users could be jailed for up to three years for spreading "disinformation", raising concerns among rights groups and European countries about free speech.
Erdogan's ruling party had said a law was needed to tackle false accusations on social media, and it would not silence opposition. The issue is of growing significance with elections scheduled to be held by the middle of this year.
A Reuters investigation last summer showed how the mainstream media has become a tight chain of command of government-approved headlines, while the smaller independent and opposition media face the brunt of regulatory penalties.
The Twitter block also drew an angry response from opposition DEVA party leader Ali Babacan, a former economy minister and Erdogan ally.
"How can Twitter be blocked on a day when communication is saving lives? What sort of ignorance this," Babacan said late on Wednesday.
The pro-Kurdish HDP party said Twitter had played a crucial role in organizing aid for those affected by the quakes and that blocking social media would only cause more death.
(Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Jonathan Spicer, Alexandra Hudson)
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