An event was held in Parliament to mark the second anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Türkiye, with several speakers in attendance. A film about the earthquake, directed by Erkan Gürsel, was screened, followed by a discussion on the impacts of the earthquake with the other speakers.

Gürsel’s film, No. 910 (2024, Türkiye), is a 48-minute documentary that explores the impacts of the 2023 earthquakes on the neighborhood of Affan in the city of Antakya, Türkiye. Gürsel, a lecturer and researcher in the UK, explained that his film was shot in October 2023. Despite several months having passed since the earthquake, the situation has not improved, and the majority of survivors are still living in metal containers.

Professor Joanna Faure Walker, an expert in Earthquake Geology and Disaster Risk Reduction, reminded the audience that it is not the earthquakes themselves, but the buildings, that are killing people.

– I cannot predict when but there will another earthquake in Türkiye

“What is so frustrating is that, even two years after the earthquakes, people are still living in containers,” said Walker.

“She warned that while they cannot predict when the next earthquake will occur, they are concerned that another similar earthquake will strike Türkiye.”

– “Operating in funding environments is not easy.”

On the other hand, Yörük İlhan Kurtaran, a Trustee Board Member of the Mozaik Foundation in Turkey, shared his personal experience regarding the challenges charity organizations face in Türkiye during natural disasters, such as earthquakes.

Kurtaran continued, “The funding environment is not easy to navigate. For example, as an English charity, it took us only about five minutes to post a fundraising call on our website and ask people to donate. However, in Turkey, for any charity to ask for donations, they need government permission. This is not a new issue under the AKP; it has been in place since for nearly 40 years. This means that the agility of civil society is often constrained by red tape, which limits the flexibility of organizations. While you may be able to act quickly in some areas, there is always a barrier—rules that restrict what you can do and how quickly you can do it.”

Finally, Kurtaran expressed that despite all the red tape and challenges, civil society remains active and agile. It often brings to the table what the government either cannot or does not want to provide.