We Must Shake Off and Stand Up!

6 February Maras-epicentre earthquakes turned into the biggest human/social catastrophe in the history of Turkey. This catastrophe will be recorded in history in many ways, research will be done, and books will be written about it. No doubt, profound economic, social, and political consequences of the earthquake are yet to show up. However, it is unthinkable that such a major disaster, which wrecked cities and devastated millions, would not leave permanent scars on society, especially on the people who experienced the earthquake. First of all, it is necessary to emphasize that the fight against the devastating consequences of the earthquake is a social issue and it has to be made one of the most important points of the struggle of the working class in Turkey!

Talking about the past and today always means talking about tomorrow and the future! We are not able to change the past, but we can build a different tomorrow. Yes, two earthquakes in a row led to one of the greatest disasters in history. So, should we blame the earthquake, which is a natural phenomenon? Countless events and changes occur in nature every day; nature does not ask us and does not take us into account. Nature also does not know such a thing as “disaster”, since disaster is related to humans and society. Likewise, we cannot proclaim “fate” as responsible. Since what is called “fate” tells about the inevitable, for example, the inevitability of an earthquake. Yet we can prevent natural events such as earthquakes from turning into catastrophes. Humanity has suffered greatly in its long march from past to present, but in time, it has achieved the knowledge of nature. Today, we have the science and technology to build structures resistant to major earthquakes and to establish cities. So why do concrete structures turn into huge piles of rubble and become graves for tens of thousands of people?

What causes great suffering to humanity is the way of thinking and acting of the capitalist class. While an earthquake is a natural event, a disaster meaning “great damage, sorrow, scourge, calamity” is capitalism-made. Capitalism as an economic order is founded on the exploitation of workers and plunder of nature. In this order, priority is not the benefit of people, society, or nature. It is profit, capital accumulation, and propensity to become richer that determine the mental world of capitalists and those who run the state. For this very reason, while disaster means suffering and destruction for the workers, it means great construction business, unearned income/profit, and getting rich for them! As a matter of fact, while thousands of our people are still under the rubble and comprehensive planning is required for the rebuilding of cities, does not it mean a lot when Erdogan comes out and talks about big construction projects? Does not the fact that construction companies compete for the tender show that this order rises on the life and blood of the workers?

The greatest scourge/disaster for humanity today is the capitalist greed. But capitalist greed, which corrupts and scatters everything that is human, has been unleashed by combining with Turkey’s historical background. This capitalist greed coupled with the one-man regime, overthrew all the obstacles in front of it, and has become the architect of today’s disaster. Erdogan was saying on March 15, 2015: “Do you know what’s my point? Turkey should be managed the same way a joint stock company is managed.” Erdogan wanted to stay in power at all costs, to remove all obstacles to profit policies, to make government-connected companies flourish, and to distribute state resources as he wished. As a result, the one-man regime was paved by frightening the society with chaos policies, democratic rights were destroyed, and all state powers were gathered in one hand.

The whole priority of a capitalist company is to make more profit, to increase its capital. Whereas it is not expected that government agencies make a profit, but to provide public service to society. The fact that Kızılay (The Turkish Red Crescent), which has been turned into a holding company, did not come to the aid of the people and sold tents at extreme prices, is a result of managing it like a company. With the establishment of the one-man regime and the abolition of all kinds of braking mechanisms, government agencies have been emptied in the sense of both the liquidation of the able cadres and the unqualified public service. The fact that the cadres filled into government agencies do not have the capacity to cope with their duties, that is, lack of scientific/technical, historical, and cultural knowledge, has led to fatal consequences. This mindset which is entirely focused on getting rich, plundering and rent has created a terrible indifference and callousness.

There is a government in power that is ambitious/aggressive but lacks the capacity, ready to sacrifice society for its own interests. It is rotten to the core, and produces evil. Even the fact that mainstream media reporters are so unscrupulous that they mute the earthquake victims or push them away from microphones/cameras comes out of this. In that specific case victims were crying out bitterly and sorrowfully, saying “the state is nowhere to be seen” when their relatives and loved ones were still under the rubble. It is highly symbolic that the AKP contractor Yunus Kaya, who built the buildings which became the graves of 300 people in Antep Nurdağı celebrate his birthday with a cake decorated with dollar bills. It is a striking expression of how all these looters have an itching palm and have no other value. These are who built luxury residences with the marketing slogan “A corner from paradise”, apart from hotels, hospitals, government buildings, and airports that collapsed in the earthquake. The resources of the state have been transferred to this greedy herd, and they have become richer, while the people have died under the rubble! Is this the “destiny’s plan”?

Turkey is a country where there are fault lines all along, and great earthquakes have occurred throughout history. However, the country and the way its government act are diametrically opposite. The construction-centred enrichment strategy and the greed for power have overtaken geological realities, and the scientific facts were underestimated. After the 1999 Gölcük earthquake, battered buildings had to be demolished and safe and healthier living quarters had to be built. However, so-called “urban transformation” immediately became a “profit/rent transformation”, luxury houses were built in the confiscated neighbourhoods of the workers who were exiled to the urban peripheries. With enormous money, exceeding $39 billion, collected over the last 23 years under the name of “earthquake tax,” (also known as special communications tax) hundreds of thousands of houses could be made earthquake-resistant, and many cities could be rebuilt. But this money was transferred to the bosses’ pockets as part of large construction projects. In 2018, more than 7 million buildings were registered and 26 billion Turkish liras were collected within the scope of “the zoning amnesty law”.  Some of these buildings, 290 thousand of which is in the earthquake zone on February 6, became public graves in reality.

It was known that Maraş-epicenter earthquakes were approaching with all their possible consequences. But just as they did not transform cities and raise public awareness, they did not make the necessary preparations to respond immediately and extensively to the earthquake. For this reason, millions who woke up to a terrible nightmare also woke up to the collapse of the one-man regime in the earthquake zone. The “Big Turkey”, which the government has been touting for years, was glorified, we were asked to worship and was said to be almighty, was not there! Even after a few weeks, even the tent and toilet problem of the victims has not been solved. The government, that sanctifies the state, wants us not to ask for an account of the lack of preparation and incompetence that has led to the deaths of tens of thousands of our people. We ask: Is there another state apart from the one-man regime that has been carrying out a horrendous plunder? Above all, why should the state that is said to serve society be sacred?

In the nature of the capitalist class, there is no shame or feeling of remorse for the sins and crimes committed. It is the organized struggle of the working class that will bring the capitalist class into line and holds those who run the state accountable. In societies that have become responsive to the problems they face, the capitalist class fears the working people. For example, in European countries, the working class has fought long and hard struggles and has got both economic and democratic rights as a result of these struggles. Social awareness is much higher in countries where unions, socialist organizations, and parties are strong, and the organized power of the working class is felt. In other words, the reason why some officials resign after any disaster is because of their fear of social outrage. Casting votes in the elections alone is not a solution. Without being organized and without social awareness, there cannot be holding the rulers accountable. One should know that there can be no individual struggle against the devastating consequences of the earthquake, and when we do not hold them accountable for the recent disasters, new and greater disasters will knock on our doors. In order to hold them accountable for the tens of thousands of people who died under the rubble, make them take precautions against devastating consequences of earthquakes, we must shake off and stand up for a better tomorrow!