Natural v man-made disasters: What is worse?

It is difficult to tell whether the pain experienced by those who survived the earthquake is more or less extreme than the pain caused by internal wars and conflict linked to regional and international interventions.

Devastation from natural seismic tremours unfolds en masse, taking only seconds to flatten homes, villages and even cities, killing their residents and leaving only a few survivors. 

The destruction here is en-masse, and the terrifying upshots occur all at once, followed by batches resulting from aftershocks that leave fewer casualties. 

On the other hand, devastation inflicted by political and military conflict happen gradually, over weeks, months and sometimes years. This was the case in many conflicts which gripped the Arab world in the past decade.

Measuring devastation

If the scale of devastation is measured by the number of victims, then earthquake casualties are typically less in number. Similarly, the suffering of the injured and survivors is also relatively less and shorter-lived.

When looking at international action, earthquakes usually garner a quicker and greater humanitarian response from the international community, not typically found in war or internal conflict responses.

While the responses might be politically motivated, nonetheless relief efforts help to reduce the suffering of those afflicted by natural disasters, unlike those crushed by political 'earthquakes'.

There is no greater example than Syria, whose people have endured arguably the greatest suffering in the last century — with more than half a million killed and many more injured. This suffering only multiplied after the earthquake devastated large swathes of northern Syria.

Read more: The orphaned Syrian suffering

But perhaps even more grotesque was the politicisation of some international aid, whether by the donors or the same political parties responsible for the Syrians' suffering long before the earthquake hit.

While this politicisation was less intense in Turkey than Syria, rising anger is increasingly being expressed over the decline in care for the earthquake victims — particularly ahead of elections on May 24. These accusations have diverted attention from the affected areas to major cities such as Ankara and Istanbul, where political conflict is unfolding. 

More than 50,000 people died in the earthquakes and countless more lost their homes, displacing them from their hometowns. Many still do not have proper shelter and are living in tents or busses.

The Syrian tragedy

Of course, the tragedy is greater in Syria as the earthquake came after years of shells and missiles raining over people's heads. Some of those displaced by the earthquake, had already been displaced by the war.

When such mass devastation occurs — whether as a result of earthquakes or as result of war — victims turn into mere numbers and statistics.

And for those unfortunate ones who were buried before being identified, numbers instead of names mark their final resting place. As if it's not enough to lose their lives, they also lose their names.

In conclusion, it is safe to say that human cruelty causes more pain and suffering than natural disasters. This is because conflicts have no end and war crimes often go unpunished. But what do you expect in a country controlled by those who have no respect for human life?