turkish-greek civic dialogue - AEGEE Europe

local men were dancing, at times alone and at times with young women from
Greece. They kept on dancing with great joy. Soon the women in my workshop
made their way to middle and started dancing the Greek version of halay. This
was like a dream come true: This land of co-existence and its people were
embracing young people from Greece and Turkey, no matter how different they
looked, no matter how little they knew each other. As Grandma Lutfiye said,
“They were all children of this land”.
Once there was a small town, called Livissi. Small and peaceful it was until big
powers, big armies, big ideologies and a big treaty came. The big treaty these
big entities created did a big injustice to the people of Livissi, Makre and their
Turkish brothers and sisters. Now, eighty years later, young people with big
hearts and a big dream helped others better understand the big agony of this
land. And they also helped them grasp why modern ethnic categories and overused
ethnic adjectives “Greek” and “Turkish” can never capture the complex
and the rich cultures that still exist in this region. As the festival closed, once
again there were tears in Livissi, just like eighty years ago, but this time these
tears were signs of future contact and better days to come.
KAYAKÖY
A FESTIVAL OF YOUTH, FRIENDSHIP AND PEACE
................................................................................................................Gülüm Pekcan
Dance Theater Workshop Leader
One day, while I was struggling through intensive routine, two beautiful young
girls showed up with an exciting project in hand. It was a project to contribute
to Turkish-Greek friendship... A well-thought, good project. I was expected to
lead the dance theatre workshop and put a show on stage at the end. I was very
excited. The project was brought to life by intelligent young people. That day,
with this enthusiasm, I accepted the offer.
Turkey and Greece are two countries having two societies that have lived on the
same land, under the same emperorship; therefore, very close but unluckily
lived the sorrow of war. They have lived rooted amity, shared sorrow and the
Association des Etats Généraux des Etudiants de L’Europe
days brought out today. The juniors had chosen
“Kayaköy” for this fest for it had witnessed the
history.
That day I decided on the project, before the fest
was to come. The name would be “Rainbow”.
The colours would represent the countries and
the positive energy they create would represent
life and friendship. Rainbow appears after rain
and looks adorable. And this is what makes it
unreachable and unforgettable.
After we chose the young dancers who would
attend the workshop, time passed fast and the
fest came to the door. I was very excited.
We met the Turkish and Greek participants. I told them about the project I was
planning. And I met my lovely Greek assistant, Tatiana. We all were fascinated
with the ambiance of Kayaköy. But I had a lot of work and three days. We
started to work. 20 young dancers who met there, also met a high discipline
trainee there. It was very hot, we had our workshops on a small stage built
in a school garden. We were dancing 6 hours a day. We didn’t know Greek,
they didn’t know Turkish. English was spoken and the most important of all
we understood each other through our bodies and feelings. We had fabric,
balls and paper of rainbow colours. Each dancer was representing a colour and
the colours were representing the countries. Opposite forces were black and
white, represented by Tatiana and me.
The show had 4 parts: To be aware of different worlds, to create a world
together, write our names using our bodies – in Turkish and Greek, and at the
end harmony and cheerfulness in peace.
All was pleasant; to meet new people and to have show with them in such a
short time... The presence of young people and the beauty they create... This
festival gave me hope for the future.
Thank you for all...
KayaFest Youth and Culture Festival
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