Erdogan Owes Turkey’s Quake Victims an Explanation
The government should provide an honest accounting of its response to the disaster.
The buck stops here.
Photographer: Adem Altan/AFP/Getty Images
One month since twin earthquakes devastated southeastern Turkey and parts of neighboring Syria, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has pledged the country will hold elections, as scheduled, on May 14. The announcement allays fears Erdogan might use the disaster as a pretext to postpone or cancel the vote. It doesn’t absolve him from providing an honest accounting of the government’s response.
In Turkey, the quake and its aftermath have left close to 50,000 dead. On top of the terrible human toll, the disaster will impose enormous costs on a country already enervated by high inflation and a weakened currency. The World Bank estimates the quake caused $34.2 billion in physical damage, equivalent to 4% of Turkey’s gross domestic product, with rebuilding costs likely to run even higher.