Main focus of Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Drawing lessons from the catastrophe

More than 200 people were killed by the earthquake that shook Italy's mountainous Abruzzo region on Monday. Thouands were wounded and around 100,000 have lost their homes. As helpers in the region continue to search for survivors, the European press draws the first lessons from the catastrophe.

La Stampa - Italy

In the aftermath of the earthquake the liberal daily La Stampa criticises the negligence of the Italian planning authorities: "The earthquake … tells of houses that were constructed too hastily and cheaply. Iron was kept to a minimum and concrete was used that contained a lot of sand but little cement. It tells of irresponsible building firms and government contractors who, lacking scruples and discipline, were driven into a frenzy by the construction boom of the last two decades. … Here in Italy we have one of the world's most renowned earthquake research centres (in Pavia) and one of the most effective civilian defence units. But we have failed to perceive the plight that decades of neglect and superficiality have created - the type of constant plight that … requires urgent measures to change a situation that has long been intolerable. For precisely this is the cruel paradox that has emerged in Abruzzo. We talk of 'stability' without noticing the thousands of buildings around us that have long since lost their stability." (08/04/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Architecture / Cities, » Italy
All available articles from » Stefano Boeri

La Repubblica - Italy

The left-liberal daily La Repubblica comments on Italy's image in the international media: "If you read the foreign papers you see immediately that an earthquake in Italy has very different consequences than in Japan or California. ... In terms of earthquake security, there is no balance in Italy beween working outside of and in compliance with the norms. As the world is discovering, Italy lies outside all norms. No one respects building regulations. Certainly, these cannot prevent earthquakes ... but they do urge us to use caution, and to go the extra step to save lives. ... Even if we can't stop the destructive force of nature, it should not be said abroad that we are a lawless country. ... Earthquake security technology must be applied, the iron that supports our concrete must be measured. We need builders, authorities, legislators and judges made of steel." (08/04/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Environmental Policy, » Italy
All available articles from » Francesco Merlo

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung - Germany

After the earthquake in Italy's Abruzzo region the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung calls the country's politicians to account: "Many houses were built without permission or illegal extensions were added to them. The governments that granted amnesties for these offences, including those of Silvio Berlusconi in the years 1994 and 2001, were particularly popular. But because of these amnesties the technical features of these houses were never checked. All the constructors had to do was transfer the appropriate fees to the tax authorities. … The minister for transport and infrastructure has now announced that the damage to public buildings caused by the earthquake in L'Aquila amounts to over 1.3 billion euros. Italy's most prominent disaster control expert Guido Bertolaso has been saying for years that in the long term it's cheaper to take measures to prevent disasters than to have to repair the damage every time one occurs. However so far he has not been able to convince either Italy or its politicians to take action." (08/04/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Architecture / Cities, » Italy
All available articles from » Tobias Piller

Corriere del Ticino - Switzerland

A hobby seismologist was allegedly able to predict there would be an earthquake by measuring increased radon levels in the ground water. The daily Corriere del Ticino writes: "An unknown but brilliant scientist makes a great discovery which, however, is ignored, and after the event we learn that he was right all along. The protagonist is 'earthquake expert' Gioacchino Giampaolo Giuliani who ... has now become a kind of national hero. But Giuliani is no expert, only a technician. … A genuine and reliable indicator that can give timely warning … that an earthquake is about to occur is the holy grail of seismology. But this doesn't apply to Giuliani's data about the behaviour of radon gas. So how can one claim that gas is a reliable indicator? Only if one is driven by other intentions, like for example telling a plausible story that moves the public, conjuring up a hero from nowhere or forcing a government into an awkward position. Intentions that no doubt will be useful to someone but have nothing to do with science." (08/04/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Environmental Policy, » Italy
All available articles from » Marco Cagnotti

Libération - France

In the wake of the earthquake in Italy the daily Libération discusses the earth's hostile power: "The earth is not a mother, or at best it's a very cruel one. Earthquakes and tsunamis ... remind us of this terrible reality. These disasters have no sense or meaning whatsoever. Above all humans cannot be held responsible for them, as we are entirely incapable of predicting or protecting ourselves from them. Only devout extremists put them down to the will of God or the devil. They are simply the result of impassive fate. This very absurdity gives rise to two remarks. If nature is a victim which must be protected, it is also and above all an inhuman entity we inhabit by hook or by crook, thanks to our inventiveness and perseverance. In its philosophical indifference to humans it is above all, like the ocean, a hostile force. It must be protected, but we must also protect ourselves from it." (07/04/2009)

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More from the press review on the subject » Environmental Policy, » Global
All available articles from » Laurent Joffrin

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