- summary
- Following the February 6 magnitude 7.8 and 7.7 earthquakes killing more than 50,000 people across 11 provinces, Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) assumed centralized control of all humanitarian operations. CSOs that mobilized immediately encountered systematic bureaucratic obstacles: organizations required valid Ministry of Interior permits to access disaster zones; tent camp sites were declared restricted areas with AFAD-controlled entry; aid distribution was centralized through AFAD preventing independent CSO delivery; cooperation protocols required prior AFAD approval. Multiple CSOs documented being turned back at entry points despite carrying supplies. International CSOs faced additional bureaucratic layers. TUSEV qualitative research identified restricted access as the primary barrier to CSO earthquake response.
- country
- Turkey
- date text
- 06/02/2023
- entities
- AFAD; Ministry of Interior; local governorships
- entity type
- State; Emergency Management Agency
- id
- 1131
- name
- AFAD; Ministry of Interior; local governorships
- role
- actor
- Humanitarian and disaster-response CSOs; international NGOs operating in earthquake zone
- entity type
- CSO
- id
- 1132
- name
- Humanitarian and disaster-response CSOs; international NGOs operating in earthquake zone
- role
- target
- AFAD; Ministry of Interior; local governorships
- sources
- citation
- TUSEV CSO Monitoring Matrix Turkey 2022-2023; AFAD coordination protocols; humanitarian access documentation
- tactics
- Institutional CSO Exclusion
- label
- Institutional CSO Exclusion
- code
- TC-35
- needs review
- false
- role
- primary
- Administrative CSO Burdening
- label
- Administrative CSO Burdening
- code
- TC-24
- needs review
- false
- role
- secondary
- Institutional CSO Exclusion
- narratives
- Sovereignty Protection / State Security Infrastructure
- label
- Sovereignty Protection / State Security Infrastructure
- code
- NF-10
- needs review
- false
- role
- primary
- Sovereignty Protection / State Security Infrastructure
- campaign ids
- campaign phase
- Phase 3: Enforcement Intensification
- channels
- AFAD coordination structure
- governorship entry restrictions
- Ministry of Interior permit requirements
- civic response
- CSOs documented access barriers publicly; TUSEV qualitative research captured sector frustration; Doctors Without Borders and other international CSOs issued statements; some CSOs obtained permits but process took days during critical window
- consequence category
- Institutional CSO Exclusion; Emergency Power Abuse; Administrative Burdening
- created at
- 2026-09-24T17:50:55.358311+00:00
- date precision
- day
- escalation
- 3
- harm track
- Track 1 — Organisational Integrity
- id
- TUR-042
- institutional consequence
- CSO earthquake response capacity constrained by AFAD gatekeeping; international humanitarian standards on civil society access not met; bureaucratic barriers caused delays in aid delivery; AFAD coordination established precedent for state monopoly on disaster response
- notes
- Crisis instrumentalization pattern: state-of-emergency governance extended to humanitarian disaster, displacing CSO comparative advantage in rapid response; analytically important for playbook as distinct 'disaster civic space' pattern
- occurred on
- 2023-02-06
- trigger type
- TR-07: Crisis / Emergency Instrumentalization
- updated at
- 2026-09-24T17:50:55.358311+00:00
- version
- 1
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