UvA commemoration for Turkey earthquake victims: “The situation is still dire”

On Saturday, the UvA Central Diversity Office (CDO) team and the Solidarity Kitchen Foundation are organizing a memorial for all the victims. CDO project manager Meltem Halaceli, who himself lost family members in Turkey, is one of the organizers. 

Why this commemoration?

“In Turkey, we still see the long-lasting impact of the earthquake on the survivors and others a year later. But people in Europe have also been affected and have lost friends and family. Many people living here in the Netherlands, including me, are closely connected to the region. My mother now lives in the Netherlands but is originally from Antakya, Hatai, the hardest-hit area. My grandmother still lives there. We lost many family members in the earthquake.”

“That does no't only apply just to me. Many people at the UvA also have relatives there. I don't have exact numbers, but last year a group of exchange students from Turkey founded the UvA Earthquake Committee. I spoke to some of them at the time, and many had lost a relative or a friend. We will hold one minute silence for all the victims on Saturday. The figure of 51,000 victims is a conservative estimate. That is only the people who have been identified. There are still a lot of missing people. We suspect that the total number of dead could be as much as double if not triple that.” 

You went to the affected area yourself, shortly after the earthquake. What was that like?

“It was a huge shock, one that I will never forget. I know Antakya as a warm, friendly city with lots of cheerfulness, where my family lives, my uncles and aunts. I have been going there all my life, during summer vacations as a small child. After the earthquake, nothing was left of Antakya. There was the smell of dead bodies, which I had never smelled before. That was because people had been buried under the rubble for two weeks. There were no emergency services. The Red Crescent was setting up outside the city but no one was helping people get out from under the collapsed buildings. I still feel the anger at the utter lack of help and coordination. We will never forgive or forget that. Next week a commemoration will be held in Turkey itself, which will at the same time be a protest against the Turkish government’s lack of action.”

What is the situation like in Turkey one year later?

“Deplorable. People are still living in tents and containers. Some places still have no water supply, so people stand in line for hours for water. There are no sanitation facilities, people have no jobs, no transportation, and are stuck in container camps. Children cannot go to school and are taught in containers and army tents. The psychological effects of the earthquake will continue for generations to come. Turkey is not doing well, and they are still clearing rubble. They are building houses like crazy, but Antakya is still on a fault line. People are building without having researched whether it should be done at all. They are not listening to scientists or the local community. So many victims have not been identified but the politicians do not care.” 

“The good thing is that there are so many volunteers doing fantastic work on the ground. And we try to support the projects from the Netherlands because that's what the survivors depend on. Those projects are crucial.”

You are also going to raise money on Saturday. What are you going to do with the donations?

“We have noticed that the attention to the situation in Turkey is waning. That is why we are calling for donations. Saturday will be dedicated to building a school for children in Hatay, so they can attend classes and gather there again.”

The commemoration begins Saturday, February 3rd, at 2:00 p.m. in the Doelenzaal (UB, Singel 425).