Philippine House speaker receives Turkish school delegation
Date posted: February 28, 2014
PHILIPPINES
Feliciano Belmonte, speaker of the Philippine House of Representatives, received in his office Malik Gencer, general manager of Fountain Schools, Ferhat Kazkondu, president of Pacific Dialogue Foundation and Merve Ozkan, Turkish Olympics coordinator in the Philippines.
The delegation members briefed Belmonte on the Turkish school’s activities and the language olympics. Belmonte said, “With the schools you’ve opened here, you gave us the opportunity to get to know Turks and their culture better.”
The delegation invited the speaker to the Philippines finals of the Turkish Olympics on Feb. 26. Belmonte hailed the olympics and said, “These events bringing together diverse languages, faiths and cultures show us differences do not matter but the love in our hearts does. Its contribution to the global peace is priceless.”
At the end of the meeting, the delegation presented a Kutahya porcelain plate to the speaker, as a memento of the day.
Published [in Turkish] on Cihan, 25 February 2014, Tuesday
Indeed, if analyzed from a political science perspective, it can be said that prestigious events like the International Language and Culture Festival play key roles in diplomatic relations with foreign countries and they can be evaluated as an instrument of “soft power” — which is significant in contemporary world politics. In addition, such events undermine the separatist versions of nationalist ideologies and pave the way for the weakening of “negative nationalism.”
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