The characteristic of this disaster, the time, location, and magnitude of which is unknown, is that it causes loss of life and property. Therefore, societies with weak economic power and insufficient precaution are more affected. It is not correct to interpret earthquakes and accidents with an understanding of inevitable fate or to perceive them as divine punishment without taking precautions. On the contrary, everything that exists in the universe has been created in a certain measure and order. Earthquakes occur within the scope of these measures and laws by the discharge of energy accumulated on the fault fractures in the ground. Islam holds human responsible for all natural disasters and accidents in a comprehensive manner, as foreseen by tawakkul, will, destiny, reason and science. According to this, it is a religious and humanitarian duty to take precautions for possible natural disasters, traffic and work accidents by considering the developing technical tools and equipment of the age. As a matter of fact, the measures taken by Japan and developed countries regarding these events are successful.
In the recent past, there have been many earthquakes in our country that resulted in property damage and deaths. In the investigations made after the earthquake, many defects and errors were defected such as location selection, project errors, lack of inspection, poor quality, and insufficient material usage. So much so that while one of the two adjacent structures was intact and standing, the other was destroyed. Because the buildings were built by different people. While sufficient and proper material was used in one of them, insufficient or poor-quality material was used in the other. For this reason, it seems that human flaws come to the fore in the collapsed buildings. Due to this issue, many buildings unfortunately have been graves for their residents in Erzincan, Marmara, Van and Elazığ earthquakes in the last quarter of the century. Because the people who undertook this job prioritized their own interests rather than focusing on the quality of the job. Moreover, they abused their authority and influence. They also deactivated the administrations and relevant legislation in order to achieve these targets. Even if law suits were filed against those responsible, whose mistakes were documented, after the earthquakes, it was too late. Therefore, even if punishment is given in return for the pain and tears experienced, it will not benefit anyone. Loss of life and property will not come back.
As encountered in daily life, people immediately need to reinforce their sense of responsibility on this issue. For this reason, the importance of studies on religious, moral, social and psychological issues on natural disasters is indisputable. For both the individuals and the society needs to be enlightened on religious and moral issues and be reminded of the sense of responsibility in order to minimize the losses in accidents, earthquakes, disasters, etc.. This sensitivity in natural disasters is at least as important as geology, planning, technical and engineering studies. It should not be forgotten that every study to be conducted in this field is both a public service and an expression of the value given to human life. The real sense of tawakkul (trust) begins after these comprehensive studies are done. Otherwise, nobody has the right to put forward an excuse such as “it is in our destiny” for the victimization suffered due to human fault. As a matter of fact, in the Qur’an, saving the life of a person is regarded as equivalent to saving all humanity.
Human is the only creature on earth with a sense of responsibility. Because human beings are unique creatures with the mind and will that are not found in any other living things, with their faith, value judgments, and lifestyle. Therefore, human is asked to choose the right path in moral, social, cultural and legal aspects, and is held responsible for their actions. In fact, what shapes life is people’s willed behaviors and responsibilities. Because the Almighty Allah entrusts the development of the earth to humans. In that case, it is not right to be hasty to blame the other for what happened due to the problems experienced during the disasters. Therefore, whatever the reason is, it is not correct to blame each other for disasters. However, it may be appropriate to take action after sound information and documents are found and the criminals are identified. Technical and professional interpretations, especially on the challenges that arise, should be left to the views of scientific experts.
In order to contribute to this field, it has been deemed appropriate to conduct this study under the title “Earthquake and Responsibility Awareness in the Context of Tawakkul and Destiny”. Because the world has to continue to live face to face with incidents such as earthquake, war, fire, floods and epidemics, as it has been until today.
