Fourteen years ago, Habip formed an association for modernization, improvement of standards and the increase of use of qualified materials for public restrooms. From then on, he says, he has long been an advocate of clean toilets in Turkey. His union is a member of the World Toilet Organization (WTO), founded in Singapore in 2001 by Jack Sim.
The WTO is committed to improving toilet and sanitation conditions worldwide. Habip hosted Sim last year in Turkey and they worked together on reforms for public toilets in Turkey. Every year, the WTO holds a symposium in a different member country. Habip plans to organize the 2009 World Toilet Summit in Turkey.
Emin Çakmak is the Turkey representative of the Inaugural General Assembly of the World Toilet Association, founded in Korea in 2006 by Sim Jae-Duck. The assembly is certified by the UN, supported by UNICEF and has branch offices in 56 countries. In fact, the founder of the association is so enthusiastic about toilets that he lives in a toilet-shaped house.
Toilet institutions should be established
Habip's main complaint revolves around the unsanitary conditions of public restrooms, which he says has two causes. First, tourists do not share the Turkish toilet culture and are unaware of how to use the traditional Turkish squat toilet. The second issue, he says, is that mosque charities want to profit from mosque toilets.
Habip feels it is wrong to collect a fee from these "public" toilets. He suggests that the Directorate of Religious Affairs should undertake the costs of maintaining these toilets, especially in tourist sites. Similarly, Çakmak notes that the restroom situation does not comply with Islamic rules because the toilets are not clean. He added that water heated to 35 degrees Celsius needs to be used in order for microbes to be killed, but that water at this temperature is rarely found.
According to a study conducted by UNICEF, 35 percent of infant deaths are caused by parasites found in toilets. Habip stressed that Muslims should set a good example of cleanliness and a way to do this is by paying much attention to the issue of hygiene in public restrooms. "People already pay taxes. No extra money is necessary to keep the toilets clean." He claims that people do not pay to use toilets at places of worship in any other place in the world and that it cannot be considered acceptable to collect money for toilets in a country whose population mostly comprises Muslims. Habip emphasized that a financial source and coordination center should be formed as part of an institution founded by the Directorate of Religious Affairs and related ministries. "In this way, restrooms, which are supposed to be cleaned in shifts, will be more hygienic and clean and satisfy people's needs."
Habip is also concerned about the lack of interest from local governments. He has corresponded with various organizations, hoping to make toilets free in metros, train stations, museums and at airports. These efforts have paid off as the practice of charging for restroom use has been withdrawn at airports and museums. His organization also got in touch with the Handicapped People's Union to cooperate in developing standards for toilets for the handicapped, though results are yet to materialize.
Çakmak approaches the issue differently. He emphasized that hygiene alone is not enough but that accessibility by the elderly and handicapped are of importance. By taking these issues into consideration, Çakmak and his colleagues have prepared projects based on standards applied in North Korea. For example, he has signed a protocol with the mayor of İstanbul's Şişli municipality, Mustafa Sarıgül, to build a public restroom in Maçka Park. Similarly, he has agreed with Yalova Mayor Barbaros Binicioğlu for another project near the İDO docks. He stated that his main duty is to give project support to the municipalities that want to build clean restrooms and to control the undertaking of projects. "The management of the toilets should be overseen by the Women's Cooperative Union … and handicapped people should be given preference in hiring as the managers of these restrooms, as it is in Korea." He added that these are the preconditions to give support for the projects in Korea. The control of the toilets is provided by volunteer supervisors.
Habip says that serious studies need to be performed in İstanbul, especially in the district of Eminönü, which many tourists frequent. Otherwise, İstanbul cannot be a capital of culture. He cited China, which hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics, as an example, pointing out that China had concentrated on toilet problems and repaired old and neglected toilets during the run up to the Olympic Games to ensure visitors were satisfied.
Habip added that there are no restrooms available in tourist sites such as beaches, ski slopes and on Mount Nemrut. If they do exist, they are not hygienic. This is caused by inappropriate infrastructure; however, there is an alternative to solve the problem: portable toilets. Habip leases portable toilets, a relatively new concept in Turkey. He criticizes the government for spending a large amount of money on tourism and not using any of it to improve public restroom facilities. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism should address this issue, he says.
Habip worked with the vice president of Providence Health, Mehmet Pektaş, for some time and also wants to meet with İstanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture Board of Directors President M. Nuri Çolakoğlu about the World Toilet Summit. Similarly, Çakmak indicated that Çolakoğlu should put public restrooms onto his agenda; however, he said it is rather late for such projects to be implemented in the country compared to other places. Habip called for local governments, health administrations and district governorships to give some consideration to the idea. Çakmak said checks on the condition of public restrooms are ordered by the Ministry of Domestic Affairs in Korea and a similar application should be practiced in Turkey as well. He met with Atilla Koç during his ministry, however, they could not move forward with the idea because of political instability.
On the other hand, Habip praised former Eminönü Mayor Ahmet Çetinsay for his work in getting school toilets repaired. Çakmak also voiced his appreciation for the Opet Board of Directors member Nurten Öztürk for her launch of a clean toilet campaign and for her services in schools, which included presenting cartoons about toilet education in cooperation with the Ministry of Education. Çakmak added that the president of Inaugural General Assembly of the World Toilet Association, Jae-Duck, is a former mayor and now is a deputy. During his time as a mayor, Yalova and Suwon were declared as sister cities and following the 1999 earthquake, Jae-Duck provided aid to Yalova. Çakmak emphasized that they work to serve humanity, and that they are not interested in the commercial side but rather the social dimension of the topic.
Habip has recently been working on public bazaar toilets. For the last few years he has visited nearly all the bazaars in İstanbul and documented the opinions of retailers and consumers. He observed that there are no restrooms available at the bazaar sites and noted complaints from retailers. He created some solutions for bazaar sites and presented the report to the Chamber of Sellers. "They act as if this is the last issue to be dealt with," he noted. Although it has been difficult to move forward and they are often disappointed, these clean restroom advocates do not intend to give up.
Tourists satisfied with toilets
In spite of the complaints by Habip and Çakmak, tourists seem to be content with the conditions of toilets. Janssen from Denmark said he first came to İstanbul 18 years ago and that the toilets are getting better day by day. Walking around the Grand Bazaar, Angel Chan from Macau stated that she has not had any problems so far and finds toilets relatively clean. An American couple told Sunday's Zaman that they used a public toilet near Hagia Sophia at no cost and that the toilet was European-style as they are used to. Surprisingly, Jan from the Czech Republic claimed that unless hygienic seat covers are used on European toilets, various diseases may be contracted. Thus, he finds Turkish style toilets more hygienic. Algerian tourist Emel explained that the situation is almost the same in her country and that they have to pay a fee to use public toilets. Most tourists do not complain about fees and they say a fee is necessary for the maintenance of the toilets.
Grand Bazaar restroom janitor Ümmühan Artan explained that the Union of Shopkeepers of the bazaar manages the toilets and charges YKr 50 per person. The bazaar toilets are fairly clean and well kept. Actually, it is an expected situation for tourist sites because it is important for respectable promotion of a country abroad. Because of this, municipalities allow shopkeepers to open shops in touristic areas on the condition that they have decent restroom facilities.
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