Twenty years of MKM
Twenty years of MKM
Mesopotamian Culture Center (MKM), which started out from the alternative-revolutionary perspective against assimilation and cultural genocide, is celebrating its 20th anniversary with many initiatives.
The MKM has introduced many artists such as Koma Agirê Jiyan, Koma Çiya, Koma Gulên Xerzan in many fields of art including music, theater, modern dance and cinema.
The celebration concert at the Seven Towers Dungeons last night was joined by thousands who condemned the air attacks and the ground operation on Kandil. The concert commemorated the MKM artists who lost their lives due to the state terror.
ANF has talked with Ibrahim Gürbüz, the first board chairman and among the founders, about the foundation period of the MKM.
* How did the MKM idea come about?
- The idea of a culture centre was going around in the prison in 1985 when I was held in Bayrampasa Prison. I was thinking that first once outside, I would work on the economy and second on the rediscovery of cultural values which had been destroyed. I promised myself this and once out, I started to work on filling the vacuum caused by assimilation and denial policy of the existing of Kurds.
* Why a cultural center in particular?
- A nation can have very powerful armies and organizations but those armies and organizations could fall apart and disappear without a cultural, artistic and scientific organization. The art, culture, literature, novel, scientific and archaeological values of the people are the vital points of a nation. And we needed a culture center to centralize and collect our demolished cultural values and to relieve them from assimilation.
* How did this consciousness arise?
- With the common purpose of revolution, I resigned from my work, chemical engineer in an Archaeological Museum, in 12 September coup period. Then, I began to see that there were vacancies in the fields of art, culture and science. So I made contacts and held talks with some Kurdish intellectuals, institutions and political organizations who were also thinking over this idea for some time.
* Who did you work with, how did it start?
- We first founded an initiative committee which consisted of me, theater trainer Cemil Özen, painter Feyzi Bilge, Cabbar Gezici and Ýhsan Dörtkardeþ and important names such as Musa Anter and Ibrahim Beþikçi. We hired a building in Tarlabaþý district of Ýstanbul.
* Why the name Mesopotamia?
- Because Mesopotamian is the homeland of the Kurds, it is the Kurdistan. Our logo was created by painter Mahmut Nayýr who composed our ideal views like a mountain, the first Newroz fire, Kawa and the sun.
* What was the institution on your mind like?
- We thought that it shouldn’t be an ordinary association; it should be a school, an academy that should bring up persons and professionals in the fields of art and culture. It should also be a national institution to gather people to produce art, science and culture regardless of their different thoughts, ideologies and political movements. It should be a place where people will create works in any branch of art against assimilation and improve the Kurdish art and cultural values.
* What were the first works and activities of the MKM after its foundation?
- We first had three branches, science, art and culture, which were managed by Ismail Beþikçi, Cemil Ozen, who performed the first Kurdish theater play, and Irfan Oztürk. The branch of art included the fields of music, painting, dance and cinema, the science department consisted of language, literature and history, and the culture department consisted of commissions that visited all Kurdistan villages and gathered examples of cultural elements such as dengbej and proverbs. We published a magazine called Rewþen which is the first culture-art magazine of the recent period. We established the MKM to create a sense and consciousness of nation, homeland and history.
* Can you tell us about the MKM Family Association?
- It was formed in 1992 when the MKM and its branches were shown a great interest by a large number of people including children and parents. Our goal was to give children their cultural values, to establish connections with their families and to enable their protection of art and culture.
* And how was the Kurdish Institute founded?
- We had already been thinking about founding an institute after a cultural center. So, we found a a science research center and the Kurdish Institute in 1992 as we needed to separate the departments which were flocked by people including writers, academicians and artists coming from abroad.
THE FIRST CULTURAL AGREEMENT
* Where did you open your branch offices?
- We opened the first branch in 1993 in Izmir and later in Diyarbakýr and Adana. We then opened the branches in Erbil, Suleymaniya and Duhok where we made the first cultural agreement between the Kurds of the North and the South. A delegation of us made an agreement of culture with the Southern Kurdistan Minister of Culture, Serko Bêkes’. We signed a protocol and held a big meeting which was attended by about 250 intellectuals, artists, writers and academicians.
* The MKM was founded in a period of the most intensive pressures on Kurds and their institutions. How did this situation reflect to the MKM?
- We were in a real great adventure as we lived with a great fear and we always had a close brush with death. For instance, I was arrested soon after a speech I made at a conference of the EU’s Green Party in Ciragan Palace.
* How do you evaluate the 20th year of the MKM? Has it reached its goals?
- It could have been a palace of culture by now but at least it has obtained very significant achievements and raised many artists, writers, actors and film-makers despite all deficiencies, weaknesses and failures.
* Are the art, culture and politics not connected to each other already?
- There is no doubt a connection between the people and the art. The bravery events among the people can be reflected in many fields of the art for example. If you evaluate the art, you will offer the greatest contribution to the struggle of that people.
- How do you evaluate the nearing of some Kurdish intellectuals and artists, who were included within the MKM formerly, to the state policy followed by the AKP?
- I absolutely don’t see this nearing true as Kurdish intellectuals and artists should have their own unique stance by their people. They should expose the mistakes of the state, not be an instrument to its policies and tricks. Besides, they should put forward well-mannered criticism about the points they find wrong in the Kurdish struggle.
The MKM has introduced many artists such as Koma Agirê Jiyan, Koma Çiya, Koma Gulên Xerzan in many fields of art including music, theater, modern dance and cinema.
The celebration concert at the Seven Towers Dungeons last night was joined by thousands who condemned the air attacks and the ground operation on Kandil. The concert commemorated the MKM artists who lost their lives due to the state terror.
ANF has talked with Ibrahim Gürbüz, the first board chairman and among the founders, about the foundation period of the MKM.
* How did the MKM idea come about?
- The idea of a culture centre was going around in the prison in 1985 when I was held in Bayrampasa Prison. I was thinking that first once outside, I would work on the economy and second on the rediscovery of cultural values which had been destroyed. I promised myself this and once out, I started to work on filling the vacuum caused by assimilation and denial policy of the existing of Kurds.
* Why a cultural center in particular?
- A nation can have very powerful armies and organizations but those armies and organizations could fall apart and disappear without a cultural, artistic and scientific organization. The art, culture, literature, novel, scientific and archaeological values of the people are the vital points of a nation. And we needed a culture center to centralize and collect our demolished cultural values and to relieve them from assimilation.
* How did this consciousness arise?
- With the common purpose of revolution, I resigned from my work, chemical engineer in an Archaeological Museum, in 12 September coup period. Then, I began to see that there were vacancies in the fields of art, culture and science. So I made contacts and held talks with some Kurdish intellectuals, institutions and political organizations who were also thinking over this idea for some time.
* Who did you work with, how did it start?
- We first founded an initiative committee which consisted of me, theater trainer Cemil Özen, painter Feyzi Bilge, Cabbar Gezici and Ýhsan Dörtkardeþ and important names such as Musa Anter and Ibrahim Beþikçi. We hired a building in Tarlabaþý district of Ýstanbul.
* Why the name Mesopotamia?
- Because Mesopotamian is the homeland of the Kurds, it is the Kurdistan. Our logo was created by painter Mahmut Nayýr who composed our ideal views like a mountain, the first Newroz fire, Kawa and the sun.
* What was the institution on your mind like?
- We thought that it shouldn’t be an ordinary association; it should be a school, an academy that should bring up persons and professionals in the fields of art and culture. It should also be a national institution to gather people to produce art, science and culture regardless of their different thoughts, ideologies and political movements. It should be a place where people will create works in any branch of art against assimilation and improve the Kurdish art and cultural values.
* What were the first works and activities of the MKM after its foundation?
- We first had three branches, science, art and culture, which were managed by Ismail Beþikçi, Cemil Ozen, who performed the first Kurdish theater play, and Irfan Oztürk. The branch of art included the fields of music, painting, dance and cinema, the science department consisted of language, literature and history, and the culture department consisted of commissions that visited all Kurdistan villages and gathered examples of cultural elements such as dengbej and proverbs. We published a magazine called Rewþen which is the first culture-art magazine of the recent period. We established the MKM to create a sense and consciousness of nation, homeland and history.
* Can you tell us about the MKM Family Association?
- It was formed in 1992 when the MKM and its branches were shown a great interest by a large number of people including children and parents. Our goal was to give children their cultural values, to establish connections with their families and to enable their protection of art and culture.
* And how was the Kurdish Institute founded?
- We had already been thinking about founding an institute after a cultural center. So, we found a a science research center and the Kurdish Institute in 1992 as we needed to separate the departments which were flocked by people including writers, academicians and artists coming from abroad.
THE FIRST CULTURAL AGREEMENT
* Where did you open your branch offices?
- We opened the first branch in 1993 in Izmir and later in Diyarbakýr and Adana. We then opened the branches in Erbil, Suleymaniya and Duhok where we made the first cultural agreement between the Kurds of the North and the South. A delegation of us made an agreement of culture with the Southern Kurdistan Minister of Culture, Serko Bêkes’. We signed a protocol and held a big meeting which was attended by about 250 intellectuals, artists, writers and academicians.
* The MKM was founded in a period of the most intensive pressures on Kurds and their institutions. How did this situation reflect to the MKM?
- We were in a real great adventure as we lived with a great fear and we always had a close brush with death. For instance, I was arrested soon after a speech I made at a conference of the EU’s Green Party in Ciragan Palace.
* How do you evaluate the 20th year of the MKM? Has it reached its goals?
- It could have been a palace of culture by now but at least it has obtained very significant achievements and raised many artists, writers, actors and film-makers despite all deficiencies, weaknesses and failures.
* Are the art, culture and politics not connected to each other already?
- There is no doubt a connection between the people and the art. The bravery events among the people can be reflected in many fields of the art for example. If you evaluate the art, you will offer the greatest contribution to the struggle of that people.
- How do you evaluate the nearing of some Kurdish intellectuals and artists, who were included within the MKM formerly, to the state policy followed by the AKP?
- I absolutely don’t see this nearing true as Kurdish intellectuals and artists should have their own unique stance by their people. They should expose the mistakes of the state, not be an instrument to its policies and tricks. Besides, they should put forward well-mannered criticism about the points they find wrong in the Kurdish struggle.
