Earthquake survivors in Hatay protest housing crisis: 'The state is a company, the public is a customer'

Despite 545 days having passed since the February 6 earthquakes, the fundamental rights of earthquake survivors—such as housing, education, healthcare, and security—still face various challenges. After approximately 18 months since the earthquake, the most urgent issue remains housing.

While the government's promises of permanent housing remain unfulfilled, reserve area laws continue to victimize earthquake survivors. With rental assistance being cut off, survivors facing housing problems are demanding the permanent homes they were promised, free of charge.

In Hatay, a rally organized by the Right to Housing Platform, established by the Hatay Earthquake Survivors Association and the Earthquake Solidarity Association, saw a march from in front of the Doğuş Schools in Antakya to the Sevsen Nevzat Şahin Secondary School.

During the rally, slogans were chanted such as, "We will never see our lost loved ones again, but from now on, we will not sacrifice a single one of our lives to your unhinged, rent-seeking politics."

'THE STATE IS A COMPANY, THE PUBLIC IS A CUSTOMER'

Platform member Ece Doğru delivered the press statement at the rally. Doğru stated, "We are at this point as a result of the privatization of public institutions, the plundering of the public's natural assets, and the spending of public resources—such as earthquake taxes—on rent-seeking throughout the AKP's 22-year rule. The state has been completely transformed into a company, and the public into a customer." She noted that most earthquake survivors are still living in tents and containers and are experiencing hygiene problems.

Responding to the statement by Minister of Environment and Urbanization Mehmet Özhaseki, who said, "Repair your lightly damaged buildings and live in them. Why should the state take on the burden of demolishing them?", Doğru stated that "lightly and moderately damaged buildings that were granted licenses are also being targeted for demolition," adding, "We demand guarantees by law; we are not abandoning our buildings and our neighborhoods!"

Emphasizing that rental and furniture assistance is not being provided, Doğru stated that TOKİ projects are also full of problems and have not undergone independent audits, expressing her reaction by asking, "Are we to be killed once again with our own money?"

News Source: 12punto