The Turkish government has imposed an "earthquake tax" since 1999 under the name of earthquake disaster prevention and emergency unit development.

The picture shows the situation in Gaziantep, the hardest-hit area.

(AFP)

[Instant News/Comprehensive Report] Turkey was hit hard by the 7.8 strong earthquake on the 6th, and the families of the people in the disaster area were destroyed; the Turkish government began to levy an "earthquake tax" in 1999 under the name of earthquake disaster prevention and emergency unit development. The Turkish people were angry and questioned where the money from the "earthquake tax" was actually used?

On August 17, 1999, Izmit, the capital of Kocaeli Province in northwestern Turkey, experienced a magnitude 7.6 earthquake. The earthquake occurred at 3 o'clock in the morning and killed more than 17,000 people in 37 seconds. People were homeless; according to foreign media reports, after the earthquake, the Turkish government began to levy an earthquake tax on the people, claiming that the tax was used for the construction and development of disaster prevention and emergency response units.

Please read on...

The earthquake tax has been levied for more than 20 years. During this time, as long as there is a strong earthquake, the Turkish people will ask the government, "Where did the tax go?"

The century-old earthquake on the 6th of this month once again shocked the anger of the Turkish people; 12 hours after the earthquake, no search and rescue team arrived in Gaziantep, the hardest-hit area. Local residents revealed to foreign media that the search and rescue team was in I only arrived on the evening of the 6th, and as a result, "I only worked for a few hours before I started to rest."

Seeing that family members, relatives and friends are still trapped, local residents protested angrily on the morning of the 7th, and the police had to intervene; 61-year-old resident Celal Deniz (Celal Deniz) said in an interview that his siblings and nephews are still trapped. He wanted to know, "Where have all the (earthquake) taxes we've paid since 1999 gone?"

The Turkish government has imposed an "earthquake tax" so far, and the estimated total amount has reached 88 billion Turkish liras (approximately NT$140.5 billion). The specific purpose of this tax has never been publicly explained to the public.