12th February 2023

 In 1990, I was doing some filing in my top-floor office, when the drawer started to shake alarmingly. A minor earthquake, probably caused by old underground mines. But this week’s devastation in Turkey and Syria is another story. Mr Erdogan says “it’s part of destiny’s plan”, but is it? For 80 years Turkish law has required all buildings to have high quality concrete, reinforced with steel bars, but no-one checks. Experts say that if all regulations had been followed, many lives would have been saved.  For 24 years Turkish citizens have had to pay an earthquake tax, bringing in £4billion, but no-one knows where this money has gone. Government changes have meant that the country’s armed forces were prevented from responding this week. Devastated roads hindered international rescue efforts whilst thousands lay dying. We can’t stop earthquakes but we can improve our preparation and reaction. In such zones, all buildings must be made quake-proof, built on stilts if necessary. But there’s nothing like natural disasters to show the utter futility of most man-made wars. It’s at times like this that politics must be forgotten so that all men can help one another in times of need. Our hearts go out to everyone caught up in this terrible tragedy.