Opinion: City puts humanity before everything else in wake of Turkey-Syria earthquake, writes Paul Bristow MP

The devastation of the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria has been deeply painful and saddening.

The scenes that have unfolded on our television screens have been difficult to watch.

My condolences are with all of those who have lost loved ones in this tragedy, and my thoughts are with those whose lives have been shattered within the space of hours.

As I’m writing the death toll stands at 41,000 and continues to escalate rapidly. The shocking loss of life already exceeds the population of Bretton, Dogsthorpe, Gunthorpe and Werrington combined.

UK stands shoulder to shoulder with Turkey

Thousands of teams have been searching the ruins to find survivors.

British search and rescue specialists have joined the efforts, and our country stands shoulder to shoulder with Turkey and Syria.

We support them with search dogs, rescue equipment, seismic listening devices, concrete cutting and breaking equipment, and propping and shoring tools.

To help support the survivors, we have sent enough vital supplies such as tents and blankets to help support the needs of up to 15,000 people.

The hard to believe news that a young girl and 13-year-old boy have been found alive in the ruins of the earthquake after more than a week is a rare moment of joy amongst the grief.

Amid the depths of despair, this was truly a glimmer of hope.

At Christmas we speak of how the light shines in the darkness but the darkness does not overcome it.

When coming together for Diwali, we celebrate the victory of light over darkness, and good over evil. The joy of Hanukkah is marked by the lighting of candles. Lanterns light up homes, mosques and streets during the Holy month of Ramadan.

Peterborough overcomes darkness

So, in the darkness of Monday evening Cllr Ansar Ali organised a candlelit vigil in Cathedral Square. The light in Peterborough truly overcame the darkness.

It was there that irrespective of our backgrounds, our different faith groups came together to show solidarity with our Turkish and Syrian brothers and sisters.

The vigil saw many speakers, and brought not only different faith groups together but also the different generations of Peterborough’s community leaders.

Ekta Patel, representing the Bharat Hindu Samaj, summed up how Peterborough’s response is so overwhelmingly and typically generous: “We can contribute with our time, we can contribute if not with our money then with our goods, we can contribute in so many ways … just you all turning up here shows that we care …. and we can all pray in our own ways.”

Once again, Peterborough has come together in a time of challenge and adversity, as we have so many times before. We have joined forces in an amazing way to honour the victims and support the recovery.

If you can support the recovery efforts in Turkey and Syria in anyway, I would encourage you to visit local charity Children of Adam.

The remarkable generosity and efforts across our city makes me proud of Peterborough.

If I can be of assistance to any constituents who are concerned for friends or family, then please do get in touch with me via [email protected].

I’ll end with the words of Councillor Ansar Ali, who put it perfectly: “to put humanity first before everything else.”