ISTANBUL - Stating that the people were mobilized for the earthquake victims from the first day, HDP Istanbul Provincial Co-Chair Ferhat Encu said: “We understood from the anger and reaction of the people that the state and the government were buried under the rubble. You cannot save your reputation under the rubble with populist, mise-en-scene games.”

 

The whole country mobilized to heal the wounds of the earthquake victims in Maraş earthquake, which is epicenter of earthquake, on February 6 and in which more than 40 thousand people lost their lives. The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Istanbul Provincial Organization also established the Marmara Region Crisis Coordination Center from the first day and took action. The coordination center, which sent 50 trucks of basic necessities such as food, clothing, medicine and hygiene products to the earthquake zone within the scope of the works, together with 250 volunteers, met the shelter needs of 150 families who migrated to Istanbul. The coordination also established a tent production workshop.

 

HDp Istanbul Provincial Co-Chair Ferhat Encu made evaluations about the earthquake, what happened after it and the solidarity displayed.

 

SOLIDARITY AND ORGANIZATION

 

Stating that from the first moment of the earthquake, Encü said: "HDP Headquarters transformed the election organization commissions that it had previously formed into earthquake crisis coordinations. We took action immediately with this coordination. We organized a great solidarity with the works carried out against the earthquake, which we see as one of the greatest disasters in the history of the country."

 

Pointing to the government as responsible for the picture that emerged, Encu said the following about the post-earthquake attitude of the government: “Unfortunately, the mind of the state and the political power was to declare someone as an enemy and to create an infrastructure based on this perception of the enemy. The absence of earthquake areas, the absence of any preparation and infrastructure in this regard, and the lack of first interventions increased the loss of life even more. We understood from the anger and reaction of the people during the earthquake that the state and the government were buried under the rubble.”

 

50 TRAILER  TRUCKS FROM ISTANBUL

 

Providing information on the work of crisis coordination, Encu said: “We prepared the basic needs list on the first day. We created a list of things that will keep people alive, such as tents, food, water, blankets, coats, shoes, and stoves. Later, we shared these lists with the public, and our people brought whatever they had on the subject to HDP district buildings. Despite all the obstacles, as the Marmara Region, we sent 50 trucks and nearly 250 volunteers to Gaziantep, Adıyaman, Hatay and Maraş. We created a great coordination in Istanbul and started a mobilization to meet the needs of our people."

 

SUPPORT TO 150 FAMILY

 

We visited 150 families of earthquake victims who came to Istanbul. In addition to the basic needs of shelter, we listened to their concerns and tried to respond. We would like to express that there are concerns that the issue of where the children of families who lost their lives in the earthquake are taken to turn into the issue of 'Missing Children of Dersim', which is the massacre of state in Tunceli, on social media and on the phone calls we receive. Our help and solidarity will continue."

 

TENT PRODUCTION WORKSHOP

 

Noting that they established a production workshop to find a solution to the problem of tents that neither the state nor the government authorities sent, Encu said: “We established a short-term workshop to meet the shelter needs of the people in the earthquake area and we are currently producing tents in that workshop. A large number of orders have been placed for this and these orders have started to flow gradually.”

 

GOVERNMENT AND ITS INSTITUTIONS

 

Stating that the state and all its institutions failed in the earthquake, Encu said. “We could have faced a bigger disaster without civil institutions and solidarity. The institutions of the state went to some areas 5 days after the earthquake, and some areas have not been visited yet; therefore, in order to eliminate this incoordination and to eliminate victimization, the people organized a great solidarity, shared the pain and fought to meet the needs.”

 

SOLIDARITY MUST BE GROWN

 

Inviting everyone to increase solidarity, Encu said: “We want to make the following call from Istanbul; We would like to express here that the aid should be continued to meet the needs.”

 

MA / Esra Solin Dal