Türkiye: There is no transparency in the investigation into earthquake deaths

(Istanbul) – The Turkish Ministry of Interior and local authorities must immediately reveal the number of public officials and elected municipal authorities who are being investigated for the collapse of buildings in the devastating earthquakes that struck Turkey in 2023. The Citizens Council said today. This comes after the Ankara Administrative Court's decision on September 26, 2024 to reject the Interior Ministry's request to withhold information.

Under Turkish law, prosecutors must obtain permission from the government before they can investigate public officials and elected municipal authorities. Many private contractors are under investigation for misconduct in connection with the earthquakes, which killed more than 53,000 people, but very few public officials are under investigation.

Hugh Williamson, from Europe and Central Asia, said: “People in Turkey have a right to know how many government officials are under investigation and prosecution for failing to enforce building standards that led to the collapse of buildings and the deaths of thousands of people.” Director at Human Rights Watch. “Withholding information about the extent of efforts to hold municipalities and politicians accountable is tantamount to admitting that they enjoy impunity for their crimes.”

The three groups have written to the Home Secretary demanding the immediate release of the information, and the Citizens' Council has also submitted a Right to Information request asking officials to release the numbers.

In January 2024, the Citizens' Assembly, a Turkish NGO, collaborated with Human Rights Watch to conduct research on the accountability of public officials in earthquake-related cases and submitted information requests to the Ministry of the Interior and the 11 provincial governorates in southeastern Turkey. Which was destroyed by the earthquake. earthquakes, and 46 directorates in those governorates.

The organizations requested details on the number of public officials and politicians in municipalities and other local authorities who have been granted investigation permission by prosecutors in connection with the ongoing criminal investigation into the collapsed buildings. But only six agencies responded, while the others rejected the request or did not respond.

The General Directorate of the Governorate Sector of the Ministry of Interior declined to disclose the number of investigation permits, under the pretext of the confidentiality of the investigation.

The Ministry of Justice's Right to Information Council overturned the directorate's decision following an appeal by the Citizens' Council on March 27. But the Ministry of Interior submitted a request to the Ankara Court to annul the council’s decision.

On September 26, the Eighth Administrative Court in Ankara rejected the ministry’s request to stay the execution of the death sentence and removed any obstacle to disclosing the requested information about the potential criminal liability of elected officials, such as mayors, municipal council members, and other relevant decision-makers. Buildings collapse during an earthquake.

On November 28, the Ministry of Interior appealed the court's decision. The result is waiting for you.

Through its own research, Families for Justice was able to identify that permission had been granted to investigate 39 public officials, but was unable to discover the full number. The investigations relate to seven collapsed buildings in Osmaniye, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, Adıyaman and Adana, where a total of 395 people died.

The organizations said that ensuring that those responsible in these cases are held accountable can only be achieved through effective and comprehensive investigations capable of leading to the prosecution of all individuals and institutions responsible for buildings that did not meet constructive standards. This includes elected municipal authorities and public officials who have planning, inspection and decision-making power.

In Turkey, an earthquake-prone country, preventing future damage and deaths requires the government to ensure an end to the widespread impunity that followed the earthquake in Turkey's western Marmara region.

In one case relating to the 1999 earthquake in which 195 people died under the rubble of two buildings, the European Court of Human Rights found that Turkey had violated the right to life by failing to conduct effective investigations and timely prosecutions that would have led to the conviction of these people. responsible.

Zubair Boztemir, a member of the committee, said: “Nothing will bring back the families we lost in the February 6 earthquake, but we demand a transparent, independent and impartial judicial and administrative investigation, and the prosecution of public officials and responsible authorities alongside private parties.” A platform for families to seek justice. “The Home Office must disclose the number of government officials under investigation, and the number of people on trial, as a long-overdue first step.”

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