Turkey commemorates the earthquake of February 6, 2023, which left more than 53,000 dead in the southeast of the country. But the reconstruction work is not progressing at the promised pace.
It is a trauma that is still alive for millions of Turks. A year after the earthquake which devastated the south-east of the country and left more than 53,000 dead, many victims are still in shock from this 7.8 magnitude earthquake.
In Kahramara, the devastated town where the commemorations took place, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan welcomed the reconstruction efforts after what he described as “catastrophe of the century” : “In addition to remembering our losses during the earthquake, we will remember February 6 as a date when we proved our national solidarity in the face of disasters and strengthened it day by day.”
In the midst of mourning, anger at the slow reaction of the authorities is very strong. So far, only half of the 650,000 new homes have been built.
Some 6,000 people have also been killed in neighboring Syria. NGOs claim that the situation there is catastrophic for survivors, and that reconstruction work is progressing very slowly.
