Organised by Turkish Cypriot Trust UK, the Turkish Cypriot culture and art festival occurred on Sunday, 10 June at Lee Valley Athletic Centre whereby just over 14 thousand festival lovers attended.
Special guests such as, Baroness Meral Ece, Enfield Labour MP Joan Ryan, Council leader Nesil Çalışkan, Enfield Mayor Saray Karakuş, TRNC London Consulate ÜlkÜ Alemdar, TRNC representatives, association leader.
Speaking at the festival, Enfield council leader Nesil Çalışkan outlined the importance of functioning in solidarity and representing various cultures through organising events. Nesil stated how happy she was to see thousands at the festival and thanked everyone for putting effort into this organisation.
The festival aimed to introduce the Turkish Cypriot culture to the younger generation in particular, those who attended shared wonderful moments with friends and families.
Turkish Cypriot artists from Cyprus gave concerts, artists from London also shared the stage and ensured festival lovers enjoyed themselves. Short theatre shows were performed, the London Turkish Folk Association and the Nicosia Folk Association (FOLK-DER) gave the guests a pleasant moment with their traditional folk dances.
There various stands of handcrafts reflecting the Turkish Cypriot culture, authors and poets, traditional foods and drinks, also old children’s games were presented. The guests who came to the festival enjoyed the happiness of discovering their delicious cultural dishes and had the opportunity to see donkeys.
Festival coordinator Ahmet Havalı emphasized the important of the festival which signifies unity and stated that as TCT they aim to traditionalize the festivals alongside other events.
Havalı, expressed that the TRNC government has presented great interest for the festival, also added that the government and business circles from Cyprus and England contributed financially to the festival.