Fans of the Turkish first division soccer team Besiktas threw children’s toys on the lawn in solidarity with the earthquake victims. Recordings showed, among other things, how large amounts of stuffed animals rained onto the lawn on Sunday evening at 4:17 minutes – the time of the earthquake. The names of the provinces affected by the quake were displayed on the scoreboard. The club shared footage of the action on Twitter.
In the game against Antalyaspor, government-critical slogans were heard again. Fans chanted, “Government resigns,” recorded on tape. Fans of the Turkish first division club Fenerbahce had already called for the resignation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government on Saturday evening.
On February 6, a 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck southeast Turkey and northwest Syria early in the morning. Another earthquake of magnitude 7.6 followed in the afternoon.
After the disaster, criticism of the Erdogan government’s crisis management was raised. The opposition also accuses the president of not adequately preparing the country for such an earthquake and of failing to supervise construction, for example. The government denies the allegations.
Presidential and parliamentary elections are scheduled for May 14 in Turkey. Erdogan is seeking re-election. His government’s handling of the earthquake has become a key campaign issue.
