Musician GURYEL ALI has just returned to Australia after taking part in a “goodwill” tour in Turkey. He reflects on the time he spent around the Gallipoli Peninsula…
Having long hosted visitors to Gallipoli, Çanakkale is a town nestled on the bank of a narrow stretch of water known as the Dardanelles. An international waterway which runs alongside the Gallipoli Peninsula, gaining control of this strait was the Anzacs’ goal in 1915.
Only a short distance by ferry and then car from Anzac Cove (which lies on the other side of the Gallipoli Peninsula), Çanakkale is both ancient and modern. The board walks have a similar feel to our waterfront in Geelong or at Southbank in Melbourne.
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A MOVING MEMORIAL: Shrapnel Valley on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey. PICTURE: Courtesy Guryel Ali “They loved that we were Australian. For me, as a Turkish/Australian, it was doubly precious.” |
Restaurants, cafes, bars and hotels line the boardwalk. The streets, however, are cobbled and narrow, filled with history and the small shops of traders who make their living selling ornate handwoven carpets, intricately-designed jewelry and rose-flavoured Turkish delight.
Last Friday and Saturday nights, I and a group of 40 Australians performed goodwill concerts along those boardwalks to thousands of Turkish nationals.
They loved that we were Australian. For me, as a Turkish/Australian, it was doubly precious.
I was already emotional, having visited Gallipoli the previous day. I had found myself deeply moved by the sites of Lone Pine and Shrapnel Valley.
Nothing had prepared me, though, for the memorial placed at Anzac Cove by the Turks which was emblazoned with the words of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the Turkish commander of the campaign (he would later become the president of Turkey and bring reform to the nation in the form of a separation of religion from the state).
A letter he wrote to the mothers of the fallen Anzacs buried there on the grassy slopes, it choked me up:
“Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives…
You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country.
Therefore, rest in peace.
There is no difference between the Johnnies
And the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side,
Here in this country of ours.
You, the mothers, who sent their sons from faraway countries…
Wipe away your tears.
Your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace.
After having lost their lives on this land, they have
Become our sons as well.”
– Ataturk, 1934.
As I read these words I felt a swell of national pride I’d never felt before. But not only did I feel Australian, incredibly, I felt Turkish as well.
At the subsequent concerts in Çanakkale, I shared these my feelings via interpreters, going on to tell them that 100 years ago we came to this country bearing arms but that today we come with the message of peace, goodwill and the love of God.
The audience cheered; really cheered. An elderly man came toward me with tears in his smiling eyes and handed me a huge bunch of daisies. And said to the translator: “Tell this man we wish him and the Australians peace and blessing and that all will go well in your future”.
I have been in many wonderful meetings in my life, but that moment surpasses them all.
I then sang my song Lest We Forget playing the accompanying DVD on a screen. You can click on this link to hear and see the song. And pray for these beautiful Muslim people.
