Leaders mark progress in culture capital union

There are only eight months left for the cities of Pécs, Essen and Istanbul to take over the title of the European Capitals of Culture. Although trouble occurred in managing the organization a few weeks ago in Istanbul, it is possible to see at least that work is gaining speed.

The Parliament members working on the project came together Saturday to discuss, investigate and support the projects in Istanbul. The meeting behind the closed doors included Turkish Parliament Speaker Köksal Toptan, Hungarian National Assembly President Katalin Szili and the German parliament president, Norbert Lammert.

According to Toptan, the meeting added a new dimension to the work being done as part of Turkey’s bid for European Union membership.

"We discussed our vision and understanding on the ongoing museum and urban projects in Istanbul," Toptan said. "We decided to boost the speed of promotion for the capitals of culture."

Arts and culture

"We will work to identify the country’s arts and culture with the identity of the inhabitants when talking about the 2010 European Capitals of Culture, Istanbul, Essen and Pécs," Lammert said.

After the meeting at Dolmabahçe, Lammert said Pécs, Essen and Istanbul are such different cities in terms of their location and size, but they also have many things in common.

According to him, those who work for the organizations and projects within the 2010 European Capital of Culture symbolize unity.

Lammert, reminding that the basin of Essen-Ruhr and the Essen region will be one of the culture capitals, said that because the region is big, they have different plans for making use of the space in 2010.

Fifty-three cities in Ruhr will hold various activities through 2010, and Essen will be the center for all types of planned events.

"We are eager to continue our projects and plans. We are investing in the cities for 2010," Lammert said. "Within the framework of 2010 European Capital of Culture, we will take up the region’s history and development in details."

The basin of the Ruhr River is a new region. After developing with industrialization at the end of 19th century, the population increased to 5 million. It grew and developed with the people migrating into the basin area.

In the last 80 years, people from central and Eastern Europe - 4 million people from Turkey in the past decade - have migrated to the area, Lammert said, adding that the number of Turkish-origin people is more than one-third of the population of PŽcs, a Hungarian city, and its surrounding area.

Lammert thinks that the region has developed with migration and multicultural dialogue, and that interaction sometimes creates conflicts. The Ruhr basin is not working alone on the project; it has 200 sister cities and they support the work for the 2010 European Capital of Culture. Officials from those sister cities will be visiting the Ruhr region as guests in 2010.

Getting motivated
Lammert and the other three presidents of the assembly are motivated by the progress. "We want each resident to become a part of the city’s cultural identity. We will trigger the communication between people and are aiming to continue the same projects after 2010," he said.

The next 2010 European Capital of Culture meeting will be in the Ruhr area.

Szili said it is not only the cities that will be colorful during 2010 but the countries will also get their share.

Szili said that it is appreciated for European Union member Hungary’s Pecs, EU founder state Germany’s Essen and EU member candidate Turkey’s Istanbul to come together for projects. Szili said he was happy to be integrated with Turkey.

The European Capital of Culture project creates an intercultural bridge, according to Szili, who said he learned something new during the meeting. "Via parliament diplomacy we can promote the project to a vast population and make a mark for the future year’s projects," he said.