Indonesia Sends Aid to Turkish Earthquake Victims in Memory of Today, February 11, 2023

Post-earthquake conditions in Hatay province, Turkiye. (Anadolu Agency/Arif Hudaverdi Yaman)

JAKARTA - Today's memory, three years ago, February 11, 2023, Indonesia officially sent humanitarian aid to the victims of the Turkish earthquake. The release of the aid was carried out by the Minister of Defense (Menhan), Prabowo Subianto. The aid sent included food to other equipment.

Previously, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter Scale (SR) hit southern Turkey. The disaster left tens of thousands of people dead. The destroyed buildings and economic activities in southern Turkey were almost paralyzed.

No one is able to predict when an earthquake disaster will occur. Even countries with good mitigation levels (reducing the impact of earthquakes) can be severely affected. This condition is because mitigation can be optimal when the earthquake has a not too large strength.

It is different if the earthquake strength reaches 7.8 SR as happened in southern Turkey on February 6, 2023. The earthquake caused great damage. The death toll reached tens of thousands of people.

The condition is because the earthquake occurred at 4:17. Or at dawn when people are still asleep. The earthquake then made many buildings destroyed and severely damaged in 11 provinces. The large damage can also be seen through roads to collapsed bridges.

The Minister of Defense, Prabowo, departed for the delivery of aid to Turkey at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base on February 11, 2023. (Kemhan.go.id/Prabowo Media Team)

This condition has made hundreds of thousands of people displaced. The Turkish government is in a state of emergency. They continue to try to evacuate the survivors. The rescue team also tirelessly searches for survivors under the rubble. However, this step is considered by many parties to be clumsy.

The government is seen as unable to work quickly. In fact, criticism is directed at President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Erdogan is considered incapable of handling problems quickly. News related to the Turkish earthquake then spread throughout the world.

World leaders began to express their condolences. Some of them immediately offered humanitarian assistance to disaster victims.

"Ahead of general elections that are likely to be held as early as May, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing increasing pressure to explain how so many buildings could collapse so easily and bury tens of thousands of people sleeping when the first quake struck at 4.17am."

"After the incident, attention turned to the provision of houses that broadly do not meet earthquake standards, with increasing calls to improve construction standards in Turkey and developing countries around the world," Martin Chulov wrote in his article on The Guardian titled Death Toll from Latest Earthquakes in Turkey Reaches Eight (2023).

Indonesia also did not want to lose. President Jokowi immediately conveyed condolences on behalf of the Indonesian people to the Turkish government. Jokowi also promised to send humanitarian aid to Turkey. Jokowi's wish was welcomed.

The Minister of Defense, Prabowo Subianto, will immediately lead the delivery of aid to Turkey on February 11, 2023. Aid in the form of food and other emergency supplies is sent by the TNI AU Hercules C130 and Boeing 737 aircraft from Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base.

The total load of assistance from the Ministry of Defense was 5,441 kg in the form of 4,000 sets of raincoats, 1,000 pairs of boots, and 3,500 blankets. The rest of the aid was in the form of food. Prabowo also emphasized that medical assistance would follow later.

The assistance was given because Indonesia and Turkey have maintained diplomatic relations for a long time. The closeness was then shown by the agenda of mutual assistance between the two countries.

"There is food, boots, raincoats, blankets, and we will continue to send. The medical will follow all with media teams from the TNI and from the Ministry of Health," said Prabowo as quoted by the kemhan.go.id page, February 11, 2023.