AKP-run municipality initiates enforcement proceedings for compensation against earthquake survivor

A new legal process has begun in the compensation lawsuit filed regarding Block B of the Güvenkent 1 Site, which was damaged in the February 6 earthquakes in Gaziantep. Following the appellate court's decision to overturn the initial ruling, the Şahinbey Municipality has initiated enforcement proceedings to recover the 204 thousand 639 lira payment it made to earthquake survivor H.Y., along with legal interest.

H.Y. had filed a lawsuit against the Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality, the Şahinbey Municipality, the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, and AFAD after their residence in Gaziantep's Şahinbey district was determined to be moderately damaged in the Kahramanmaraş-centered earthquakes. The lawsuit sought compensation for the property value, loss of value, and both material and moral damages.

In the expert report prepared for the Gaziantep 3rd Administrative Court, the Şahinbey Municipality was found to be 15 percent at fault for the damage, the Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality 5 percent, the Ministry 3 percent, and AFAD 2 percent. The court calculated the amount based on the property value, applying depreciation and inevitability deductions; it also ruled for moral compensation.

According to the ruling, the Şahinbey Municipality was required to pay 112 thousand 194 lira, the Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality 37 thousand 398 lira, the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change 22 thousand 438 lira, and AFAD 14 thousand 959 lira in compensation, plus legal interest accruing from the date of application.

Appellate court overturns decision, file sent back

Reviewing the file upon the appeal of the defendant administrations, the 9th Administrative Litigation Chamber of the Gaziantep Regional Administrative Court found the expert report insufficient. The Chamber overturned the initial court's decision on the grounds that the fault ratios were not sufficiently justified and that the property ownership relationship and the condition of the structures had not been investigated, sending the file back to the court for a new decision.

Following this decision, the Şahinbey Municipality demanded the return of the 204 thousand 639 lira and 61 kuruş it had previously paid. The municipality initiated non-judgmental enforcement proceedings against the earthquake survivor H.Y. to collect the amount with an annual legal interest rate of 31 percent and varying rates.

H.Y.'s lawyers objected to the enforcement proceedings and did not accept the repayment. Thereupon, the Şahinbey Municipality filed an "objection cancellation" lawsuit at the Gaziantep 9th Civil Court of First Instance. In its petition, the municipality argued that the "unsupported payment must be recovered to prevent public loss."

The earthquake survivor's lawyers stated that the appellate court's decision was not a final ruling rejecting the case on its merits, but merely a reversal decision intended to complete missing investigations. Therefore, they argued that there was no finalized, due, and enforceable repayment claim in favor of the municipality.

The Şahinbey Municipality's initiation of enforcement proceedings against a citizen who has already suffered greatly due to the earthquake is contrary to conscience and the law.

The lawyers also noted that other municipalities acting as defendants in similar cases in Gaziantep have not adopted such a stance, arguing that the Şahinbey Municipality misinterpreted the appellate decision and that earthquake survivors cannot be forced to abandon their lawsuits.