Kurds and their future..

So many changes when it comes to construction and everybody seems to love it; Park View Apartments for example, is according to their website ‘the most prestigious project in Erbil’. I do not agree with their slogan owing to the fact that none of these Park View Apartments have a view or a park. This fact appears to be a minor issue since no one really seems to care about that part. ‘You can build a park on your balcony if you really want a park’ the salesperson answered when a friend of mine asked for clarification. The irony in this all is that we Kurds don’t mind paying an absurd amount of money for a project like Park View.

The builders, the engineers and the investors from Turkey and Lebanon don’t care about a Park. They do not care about our health and why should they? They are not here to invest in plants, parks or our health. What drives me mad is that we seem to think exactly the same. We love to invest in these ridiculously expensive projects, without really thinking ahead. We haven’t made plans for the future; our health, our safety or even our economy.

We all know the exact prices, square meters and location of these new projects but why are we so indifferent when it comes to our safety? Can we blame it on all the wars we’ve been through? That maybe because of all these wars we never really could look ahead?

Now let’s discuss our future here.

Let’s say we want to buy a villa in one of these projects, do we know if an invalid person can even enter the villa? What if your family member, who could walk yesterday but can’t walk today, wants to go in and out of your house? Can you rebuild your house? We have so many staircases in our houses; it really is as if no one has thought about an invalid person, at all. And when you want to get a stair lift, you can get a second handed one from Europe that will work for a couple of weeks but you won’t be able to find a new one even if you’re willing to pay a little more. We do not invest in good home medical supplies like electric wheelchairs. When is this going to change?

Let’s say we want to buy an apartment on the twentieth floor in Gulan Park. Is it earthquake resistant? Have we even thought about earthquake building codes now that more earthquakes occur due to the oil extraction? Have we thought about the social and economic difficulties we will face when a heavy earthquake strikes Kurdistan? What if, something like this happens do we even know what to do in situations like that?

We all know the telephone emergency number is 911 in the United States of America. All Dutch people know this number is 112 in the Netherlands but do we, Kurds, know which number to dial, here in Kurdistan, when in an emergency situation? Let’s, for argument’s sake, say that we all know the number here in Kurdistan; would you even want to give it a try when you need an ambulance or fire truck?

About a year ago, the maid from next door ran out of their house into ours screaming ‘fire, help, fire’ and I was as panicked as she was because I had no idea what number to dial. After a few phone calls I finally got the number of the “Erbil Civil Defense Directorate”. I explained where we lived and thought that it wouldn’t be very difficult as we live in a well-known compound.

I was thankful when I heard the siren only a few minutes later but lost hope when I saw the truck taking a left where he should’ve taken a right. I got so desperate that I almost ran into the house next door with our own water hose. By the time the truck arrived, neighbors had already taken care of the fire.

It’s not very different when it comes to the ambulance service here in Erbil. Most cars don’t make way for an ambulance with lights or the siren on. Why? ‘He might be in a hurry to eat his lunch.’ My colleague answered. People do not take it serious anymore but what if it is serious? Are we even prepared for that?