turkish-greek civic dialogue - AEGEE Europe

6. Youth Magazine where young people of both countries write topics of
common interest
7. More school exchanges between Greece & Turkey
8. Bilateral Agreements within the framework of Socrates & Youth
Programme between the universities in Greece & Turkey University
students can act as pressure groups on universities and university
administrations
9. Establishment of Information Bank
10. Co-Organisation of European Football Championship
11. Handicapped Tournaments – Local, Concrete and Specific Projects
12. Existing cooperations such as Bosphorus University and University Of
Athens –Exchange Programme in History Department – Bosphorus & Crete
-Bilgi & Panteion should be promoted
2- EXERCISE : STEREOTYPING
The session participants were asked to write down the worst/the most hurting
stereotype/idea/prejudice the Other side has about his/her nationals. the
participants were asked to indicate their nationality on the paper. In the light
of the answers compiled from the index cards, three categories of stereotypes
have been established.
1. CATEGORY
The most common stereotypes are the history based ones.
GREEKS: Turks will always stay Turks.There is also a saying in Greek
“I become a Turk” says Greek when they get angry
Other stereotypes: Turkish military, Turkish politicians, you
killed our ancestors and our citizens
TURKS: The most common stereotype category is history based:
“They killed our grandfathers”
“I hate Greek conquerors, Megali Idea, history text-books”
2. CATEGORY
GREEKS: The next most common stereotypes Greeks have are related
with personal insults and humiliations: stigmatisation of
“Arabic” word for the Turks, problem of recognition, Turkey is
Association des Etats Généraux des Etudiants de L’Europe
a country excluded from the EU, Turks are hard to persuade,
and Turks are barbarians
TURKS: Personal insult about Greeks that Turks have: Greeks are lazy,
arrogant, they look down on others
3. CATEGORY
“I have no idea about the Other, I don’t have any prejudice.”
This answer is posed mainly from Greek side. Greeks don’t
know what Turks actually think about them.
BRAINSTORMING & DISCUSSION ON STEREOTYPES
HOW THEY ARE FORMED?
IS IT NECESSARY TO ELIMINATE
THEM?
Potential grounds giving way to stereotypes:
Stigmatisation in education: Both language education and family
education are of pivotal importance in terms of formation of prejudices.
Inactive education results in unconsciousness.
Influence of western ideas, nationalist policies. Such influences are
coming from outside, they are unavoidable and incorporated.
There should be a need, a necessity within each side to explore the
expectations and thoughts of the other. They need to be disturbed by a
practical matter, by a stereotype.
The fantasy of “we had a good old past” is also another stereotype
and it bumpers a-politicisation.
There is an understanding in international relations and political science:
“war is needed for success”, which of course is not true.
There should be such exercises on differences and similarities,
differences are more important (to discover)
Turks have a difficulty to accept Non-Muslim communities
Final Conference
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