Answering thrown stones with love, care
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Radikal
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 05, 2009 00:00
HAKKARİ - The way to deal with children who throw stones at the police at demonstrations is to show them someone cares about them, says the rector of Hakkari University.
Professor İbrahim Belenli said he played football with the children. "Those children erect barriers on the streets. But when they see my car, they push it aside," he said. "What’s important is to show people love them. They see me as one of them."
Hakkari University was established only last year, and Belenli, who has a doctorate from Oxford University, has been the rector for the past seven months.
He said the children’s behavior and state of mind were fine but added that it was too early for the complete transformation of Hakkari. Hakkari, on the southeastern edge of the country, is one of the poorest provinces in Turkey and is mainly in the news for violent street demonstrations and fights against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK.
During one demonstration late last month, a 14-year-old was repeatedly hit by a police officer with the butt of his rifle.
There have also been reports from Diyarbakır and Adana that children were sentenced to long jail terms for participating in such demonstrations.
Belenli said the state was doing its utmost to win over the children of Hakkari and develop the province. "As our personnel size increases, we will also get involved in local projects," he said, but added that everything should start with understanding the people. "The lack of communication is a constant problem."
He said he was thinking of setting up a sports center for the children where trainers might spot those with a future in sports. "Ankara University, the Education Ministry and the Hakkari Sports Directorate will help us in that regard," he said.
Not all the departments could admit students this year, he noted. "The students at the five departments in the engineering faculty will study at İTÜ (Istanbul Technical University) until the university is ready. Students in the education faculty are currently studying at the Adana Çukurova University, while those studying economics are at Istanbul University," he said.
He said he needed two years to prepare the university before all students joined the 600 already studying at the campus.
He said Ankara University was their sister university. "Whenever we give them a call, they provide us with serious support," he said.
He said the Hakkari University’s small size was its main strength, arguing that whenever they needed something the media and other universities did their best to help them.
He said his relationship with the local government was good. "Once one overcomes the obstacles, and there is a meeting of minds on love for people, the rest is straight forward," he said.
Importance of empathy
The mayor, Mesut Bedirhanoğlu from the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, was giving all the support he could, Belenli said. "I always bring the issue to empathy. The mayor also believes in the importance of empathy."
"Hakkari is key to the solution of many of the country’s problems," he argued, adding that that was why it was important to treat Hakkari as a case study.
Belenli’s four children, though not living in Hakkari, came from time to time and were involved in a project to establish links between students at big cities and those in Hakkari, he said. "They collect books and donations for Hakkari," he added.
Hakkari University was established only last year, and Belenli, who has a doctorate from Oxford University, has been the rector for the past seven months.
He said the children’s behavior and state of mind were fine but added that it was too early for the complete transformation of Hakkari. Hakkari, on the southeastern edge of the country, is one of the poorest provinces in Turkey and is mainly in the news for violent street demonstrations and fights against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK.
During one demonstration late last month, a 14-year-old was repeatedly hit by a police officer with the butt of his rifle.
There have also been reports from Diyarbakır and Adana that children were sentenced to long jail terms for participating in such demonstrations.
Belenli said the state was doing its utmost to win over the children of Hakkari and develop the province. "As our personnel size increases, we will also get involved in local projects," he said, but added that everything should start with understanding the people. "The lack of communication is a constant problem."
He said he was thinking of setting up a sports center for the children where trainers might spot those with a future in sports. "Ankara University, the Education Ministry and the Hakkari Sports Directorate will help us in that regard," he said.
Not all the departments could admit students this year, he noted. "The students at the five departments in the engineering faculty will study at İTÜ (Istanbul Technical University) until the university is ready. Students in the education faculty are currently studying at the Adana Çukurova University, while those studying economics are at Istanbul University," he said.
He said he needed two years to prepare the university before all students joined the 600 already studying at the campus.
He said Ankara University was their sister university. "Whenever we give them a call, they provide us with serious support," he said.
He said the Hakkari University’s small size was its main strength, arguing that whenever they needed something the media and other universities did their best to help them.
He said his relationship with the local government was good. "Once one overcomes the obstacles, and there is a meeting of minds on love for people, the rest is straight forward," he said.
Importance of empathy
The mayor, Mesut Bedirhanoğlu from the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, was giving all the support he could, Belenli said. "I always bring the issue to empathy. The mayor also believes in the importance of empathy."
"Hakkari is key to the solution of many of the country’s problems," he argued, adding that that was why it was important to treat Hakkari as a case study.
Belenli’s four children, though not living in Hakkari, came from time to time and were involved in a project to establish links between students at big cities and those in Hakkari, he said. "They collect books and donations for Hakkari," he added.