From: MSN NicknameEagle_wng  (Original Message)    Sent: 4/5/2007 6:32 AM
Hairi Ersoi (Turkey) became member of Writers’ Union of Abkhazia
3.4.2007
     

Hairi Ersoi (Kutarba), Turkish writer of Abkhazian origin visited Maykop the last week. The visitor told in his conversation with Natpress editor that recently he had become a member of the Writes’ Union of Abkhazia. That happened unexpectedly, he was invited to the last assembly of the World congress of Abazino-Abkhazian people that passed in Sukhum, where he found out that he was awarded with such honour.

Adygeya capital, as he said, looked just the way he imagined to himself: a beautiful, tidy and affable town. His main feeling that caused by the visiting of the republic was: he would like to return there again. He stayed in Maykop for a week, went to the mountains, visited the museum, met with repatriates.

- You told that the invitation to become a member of the Writers’ Union of Abkhazia was unexpected for you. Maybe it was not only unexpected, but deserved, too?

- First of all, it was very pleasant. As to that, was it deserved or not, it seems that there are writers, including in Turkey, who are worthy this honour more, than, say, me.

The writers, members of the Union, explained their choice with that I had published several books about the history of Abkhazia, novels, translations of Abkhazian authors, in particular, the best seller of Bagrat Shinkub "The Last of The Gone".

- And do such unions exist in Turkey?

- Yes, but I am not a member of such organization in Turkey.

- Question, maybe, not on our subject. You have been to Abkhazia, now you are in Adygeya. Abkhazia unlike Adygeya is actually an independent state. But either there and here repatriation of the compatriots does not develop. What, in your opinion, should be done to change this situation?

- The problems of returning of Abkhazes and Adygs, to my mind, do not differ in anything. All of us are ready to return right now. But that proceeds from our hearts and does not mean any practical readiness. And not only representatives of the Diaspora, but also the historical native land are not ready quite the same way.

To make the repatriation process to give appreciable results, we need professional approaches, preparation of real projects applied to the practice. As an example we may take Israel, where houses for re-settlers which would return only in 30 years are already constructed.

- It is not a secret that the process of assimilation of Adygs and Abkhazes in the Near East goes in the very fast rates. And the main thing in this phenomenon is loosing of their languages. Many people say that that is equivalent to loosing of the self-identification. Do you agree with it? And how can the literary work on not the native language affect this process?

- I agree with that having lost the language, a man loses his self-identification. If to speak about me, I must say that at first I had not aspired to become a writer. That choice was put before me because of the conditions, developed on that moment in the country, and the problems, the newcomers from Caucasus had to face then. And it should be written not only for Abkhazes, and Adygs, for the Caucasian peoples as a whole, but also for Turks, because they should know about our problems, too.

As to Abkhazian language, I know it very well and I love it. I also hope that the circumstances will develop not only for that I could write in my native language, but also for that the things I would have written would be needed.

- At one of the assemblies of the World congress of the Abazino-Abkhazian people they sounded information that Abazinian language was recognized b the most difficult language in the world and so it was written in to the Guinness records Book. But it is known that according to this criterion Adygeyan, Abkhazian, and Abazinian languages are approximately equal. I say that because the language is more complicated, and, having lost it, it would be more difficult to revive it again. So we see that a parallel with Jewish language (which was considered dead, and now became the state language of Israel) probably, is not absolutely correct. How could you comment it?

- In my opinion, in this case there could be only one comment: we should do everything to make the language live and develop.

- With financing of the European Union in Turkey in the last year the classes of Adygeyan and Abkhazian languages were open. How effective such help can be, what do you think?

- Yes, at first there were classes for teachers’ preparation in Ankara. So it was prepared about 30 men: more Adygs, lesser - Abkhazes. Then those teachers organized their own classes - already on the local places.

I was invited to the meeting organized in honour of the ending of one of such classes. Young people, their graduates, spoke in their native language, that they were trained, read verses. It is clear that they could have learnt only that minimum, which will allow them to continue study the language independently.

At the same time those classes gave to the graduates some reliance in themselves, understanding that if to be engaged in it further, everything will be okay.

On the other hand, creation of this brilliant assemblage of the graduates forces to think hard those who, knowing the native language, does not consider necessary to teach it their own children.

However as a whole this action, to my mind, can not cardinally change the situation. Though, I repeat, the benefit from it is doubtless.

- Not all our readers can familiarize with your creative works. Would you tell us what, in your opinion, you have managed to make as a writer, what you still have to make?

- Already having begun to write, I still did not think of the literary creativity. But as a mankind I was excited with that my compatriots, living in Turkey, were exposed to assimilation, as their language and culture were perishing. It was obvious that situation to no small degree was promoted by the state ideology of Turkey and the corresponding political system, which twisted the history, organized persecutions against those who tried to tell the truth.

The first books I wrote were historical. In them I tried to restore facts and events, to show the beauty and treasures of our culture. However the historical works can not use a wide reader's audience. Therefore, at the end, I addressed to such genre as the historical novel. Two novels are already written by me, another two now are prepared for printing. Their main theme is the Adygeyan-Abkhazian exile.

So I can’t say that my choice was not justified. The circle of the readers of my novels appeared to be considerably wider. They are discussed at the conferences, reader's meetings, where certainly, they invite me as the author.

Natpress

http://www.natpress.net/stat_e.php?id=2657