Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Turkiye Hasanthi Urugodawatte Dissanayake met Turkiye’s Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy on Tuesday (19) at the Culture and Tourism Ministry in Ankara.
The Ambassador congratulated the Minister for his appointment as Culture and Tourism Minister and extended her congratulations for the inscription of Gordion, an ancient archaeological site in Polatli as a UNESCO World Heritage Site on Monday (18).
The ambassador highlighted the long-standing relationship between Turkiye and Sri Lanka, evidenced by the silk route of the sea, with cultural influences spreading with trading communities, noting that some Sri Lankan Muslims still wear the Fez Cap, which is also called ‘Turki Toppi’ in Tamil, during marriage ceremonies in Sri Lanka. She underscored the significance of both countries in terms of trading hubs, not only during ancient times, but also in the modern times.
The ambassador emphasized the significance of the year 2023 for both countries with Sri Lanka commemorating its 75th anniversary of independence, Turkiye celebrating the 100th anniversary of establishment of the Republic and the two countries celebrating 75 years of diplomatic relations. Among the key activities to celebrate in 2023, Sri Lanka’s Embassy is collaborating with Foreign Affairs Ministries of both countries and the Turkish Embassy in Colombo to issue postal stamps simultaneously on October 29 2023, to mark the anniversaries. She also indicated that renowned Sri Lankan artist Vasantha Perera has agreed to design the stamps and he would be visiting Turkiye later this year for an exhibition and to start a painting series on Turkiye.
The ambassador highlighted the famous Turkish tele dramas such as ‘Kadin’ (women), which is dubbed in Sinhala which was very popular in Sri Lanka and emphasized how such TV series could increase understanding among people, as part of cultural diplomacy that contributes to tourism, and to economic and political diplomacy between the two countries.
The ambassador said that a Sri Lanka Film festival in Turkiye would be organised in 2024 with the contribution of cinematographer Anomaa Rajakaruna, Sri Lankan writer and poet Sunetra Rajakarunanayake and filmmaker and writer Eranda Mahagamage who is currently pursuing his PhD studies at Istanbul Medeniyet University in Turkiye.
Source: Daily News
