'Bursa Diary Story Contest' is organized by Bursa Metropolitan Municipality to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Lausanne Exchange. The contest, in which the stories of the immigrants who migrated to Bursa from the Balkans at different times, will be discussed, can be applied until September 1, 2023.
Bursa Metropolitan Municipality, which continues its works in many areas from infrastructure to transportation, continues to contribute to the cultural and artistic life of the city. Aiming to make Bursa a more livable city by attracting immigrants from all over the country, from the Balkans to the Caucasus, the 'Bursa Diary Story Contest' is organized on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Republic and the Lausanne Exchange. Those who want to participate in the competition, where all literature lovers can apply until September 1, 2023, can visit the website yarismalar.bursa.bel.tr for information and application.
In the Selection Committee of the competition, Bursa Uludağ University Turkish Language and Literature Department faculty member Prof. Dr. Nesrin Karaca, Mustafa Çiftci, one of the leading names in Turkish storytelling, Writer Nevzat Çalıkuşu, known as the living memory of Bursa, Hasan Erdem, who made Turkish history popular with his historical novels and stories, and Güray Süngü, who is among the important names of Turkish literature with his novels and stories. At the end of the competition, the stories deemed appropriate by the selection committee will be collected in a book and made permanent. 15 TL for the first place, 10 thousand TL for the second place, 5 thousand TL for the third place, and 2 thousand 500 TL each for incentives.
A good legacy for the future
Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Alinur Aktaş, who spoke at the meeting held at the Bursa Museum of Migration History for the promotion of the story contest, said that the story contest would be a good trust to be left to the future of Bursa. President Aktaş stated that although he is not the child of a Balkan immigrant family, he gets emotional every time he goes to the Balkans and feels like he belongs there. The names Tetovo, Crete, Mamusa, Thessaloniki, Komotini, Mostar, Dobruca, Plovdiv, Sanjak evoke a continuation of Turkey. The value of Bursa comes from this. Bursa is a colorful city that has received immigrants from many different places. A colorful mosaic. It's like a colorful flower garden, but the obvious one is the Balkan geography. It is possible to see the traces of all sides, from Bulgaria to Serbia, from Macedonia to Kosovo. Wherever we go in the Balkans, we see a trace or work of Turkish history, culture, art and tradition. Our ancestors cared about the Balkans, revived and reconstructed them, embroidered them. I would like to point out that there are very important partnerships between Bursa and there.”
We should refresh our memory
Explaining that this year will be the 100th anniversary of both the Republic and the Lausanne Exchange, President Aktaş stated that they will evaluate this year with different programs and activities, and he published the "Bursa Journal" magazine, which is in demand and followed fondly not only in Bursa but all over Turkey. He stated that they made it an occasion for the 100th Anniversary of the Lausanne Exchange. Mayor Aktaş said, “For this purpose, we thought of opening a story competition about our cognates and brothers who had to migrate to our city from the Balkans. Of course, culture and arts entertain us, make us laugh and relax. But at the same time, I think that it should be conscious, thought-provoking and instructive. I believe that not forgetting the pain experienced, refreshing our memory and learning lessons from history will create a serious infrastructure for shaping our future. I've heard serious stories about it. I think each of them is valuable individually. These are of no importance unless they turn into written documents. We aim to bring up the immigrants who migrated from the Balkans to Bursa at different times to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Lausanne Exchange," he said.
Will be passed on to future generations
Explaining that what happened in the Lausanne Exchange will shed light on these days, President Aktaş wished the competition to be beneficial in advance. President Aktaş said, “I commemorate our martyrs who sacrificed their lives for our blessed country, especially Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our Republic, Osman Gazi, the founder of the Ottoman Empire, Orhan Gazi, the conqueror of Bursa, and our immigrant brothers and sisters who died on the way of migration with mercy and respect. We will hold the award ceremony on October 29, the 100th anniversary of our Republic. We quickly forgot the sufferings of 100 years ago. We will pass on this suffering to future generations by turning it into a book. I would like to thank everyone who contributed to the competition," he said.
The city of Evlad-i Fatihan
Author Nevzat Çalıkuşu, known as the living memory of Bursa, also reminded that there are literary works with the theme of migration in the broad sense in Turkish literature and that most of them come into existence in the field of novels. Stating that the organization of this contest on the 100th anniversary of the Lausanne Exchange and the XNUMXth anniversary of the Republic is in a very good place, Çalıkuşu said, “We cannot thank Bursa Metropolitan Municipality enough. Bursa is a city of Evlad-i Fatihan. This idiom is particularly prevalent in the Balkans. Bursa, which receives intense immigration from the Balkans, Caucasus and Anatolia, is a very collectible city in this sense. After all, the root is the capital, the old homeland. When you go somewhere, you go from here. The return is also here. Bursa has such an attraction. Therefore, this competition has been very accurate.”
Precious stories will come out
Author Hasan Erdem, who made Turkish history popular with his works, reminded that he spent his childhood in Bursa's Bahar Neighborhood, where Bulgarian and Yugoslav immigrants are in the majority, and emphasized that he heard many immigration stories from those who lived in his childhood. Stating that he has been living in Kurşunlu, Gemlik for 16 years, Erdem said, “Here, too, the Lausanne refugees live and I spend time with them. With Lausanne, 1 million 200 thousand Greeks migrated to Greece from Turkish lands. From there, 400 thousand Muslim Turks came here. At that time, the children and grandchildren of Greek families who migrated come to wonder about the lands where their ancestors were born and lived. We are talking to them. Both sides have painful stories. I hope we will read valuable, didactic, instructive and informative stories about these sufferings. I wish success to all participants. I'm sure good things will happen," he said.
Güray Süngü, one of the important names of Turkish Literature, also thanked those who contributed to the organization of the competition and wished that the competition would be beneficial for Turkish literature.