Nuran AKTAS / Zehra DOGAN

ANTAKYA - In Vakıflı Village, established at the Moses Mountain foothills'  and Turkey's only Armenian village; organic farming and the cooperative, Choir of civilizations and art, operating pension and tourisim, are carried out with the women's branches, established by women. Ecological life is developing on the axis of women's culture. This situation, arouses great respect on the men of the village.

Vakıflı Village, which was founded in the mid-19th century, is an Armenian village, which is connected to the district Samandağ of Hatay. In the village, established at the Moses Mountain foothills'  and overlooking the Mediterranean, there are 30 households. Turkey's only Armenian village, which was governed by Frenches between 1918 -1939, has been giving migration since the departuring of frenches. However, residents of the Vakıflı Village, in order to avoid migration and economic problems, get their hands on the organic agriculture with performing a social and economic move. Vakıflı Village inhabitants are completely dealing with organic farming. So that, it received Social and Sports Fair Play Award which was organised by Turkish National Olympic Committee (TOC) The reason of the award is providing 1 million euros export revenues for the country's economy, with citrus products by doing organic farming. Tourism is highly developed in the village. Nearly two thousand of people from Vakıflı, who live in İstanbul and in Europe, comes to the village for the summer. And in terms of economic income this is important for the villagers. We visited Vakıflı village, It has women's branches and in every aspect of life based on to ecological sustainability. Village inhabitants shared us, dimensions of the ideal life from the women place in the Armenian culture to women contributions in the village economy. Coming to meet us Araksi Sidarlı(80),one of the oldest woman in Vakıflı Village ‘’ there was an armenian folk song in our village while a bridal procession was coming to our village’’we sang the ‘’hala hala nino’’ song. Now I want to sing it for you’’. And she started to sing her song. Our visit to the Armenian culture and villages, started with this beautiful melody.

‘Women are always strong and productive’

 Elena Çapar(33), member of Agricultural Cooperative, tasked in the Surp Asdvadzazin (Virgin Mary) the Armenian Church, member of women branches, expressed that great importance is given to the organization of women in Vakıflı village. She stated that opening a kermess is the first step of women's organizations. Elena said they they had revenue that they had not anticipated at the end of the kermes. she said ‘’ we have earned very good money. So we continoued to it. it is a very nice feeling to have financial power. Now we feel proud to contribute to the village economy’’. saying she condemned the pressures against women, Elena said women's are not being oppression is due to the  struggle for their rights. she  pointed that  all women have  to be organized.. Record of success is very difficult without the organization. Women's power is undeniable. Women always strong and productive, "she said. Who have completed part of the Tourism and Hospitality Management at the university, Carolin Kartun (20),said she is working to develop tourism in the village Vakıflı. Voicing they opened two board in their Village, Carolin.’’ people are coming to visit us. They want to stay there. So we strated to build boards. We are working to our own means without getting support from outside, with the financial support of village women's branches.

‘Women, should not marry without enough consciousness’

Kuhar Kartun (37), member of Agricultural Cooperative, tasked in the Surp Asdvadzazin (Virgin Mary) the Armenian Church, member of women branches; Indicating that women in the church  are also  active members of the women's branches. She said, as women branches they opened a bench in the courtyard of the church. Kuhar is pointing that; women are originally organized under the cooperative. She said; In our religion women are more in the forefront. they keep us in the forefront in every subject. We are not behind of men. But not in front of them. Our conviction is women are next to men. Kuhar, calling attention that; according to Armenian culture at an early age of marriage is not regarded good, said that early marriage is 25 years of age. she stressed that women should not marry without enough consciousness.’’ We give importance to religious wedding. Should be the official wedding. But the religious wedding, the sine qua non, "she said. Kuhar voicing the church support to the women, and she said they started selling their products in the courtyard where allocated to them. Kuhar said they are keeping the products' recipes secret, which patent belong to their own and produced with special formulas. ‘’ We have got some variety natural products such as; walnut jam, various liqueurs, mandarin syrup, concentrated syrups, turpentine, laurel soap, pomegranate sauces and vinegars thyme grass. These products’ patent is belong to us and we keep it secret. They do not contain any additives. So, we will obtain our economic freedom’’ said Kuhar.

‘We make determinations based on respectful farming to nature’

One of the prominent features of vakıflı Köyü is organic farming is also known in world public opinion. Agricultural cooperative authorized, Bedros Kehyeoğlu said that they had decided to form cooperatives for development economically. The inclusive viewpoint to the nature is pioneering for them, he said. Underlining that they are making organic farming for their and public's health Bedros’’ thus we protect both the nature and the health. Definitely we do not use hormone. We use bee at the fertilization of flowers. We don't use drugs to settle this business.’’said. He pointed out that; as organic farming developed, the chemists, who is working on the issue, suffered damage. Many times we are exposed to sabotage. We started to export tomatoes. We were on television and that day we wereexposed to sabotage. While tomatoes were 200 TL on the market, we were selling tomato with 1700 TL. But they prevented it. There were 50 tons of tomatoes exports. This doing 85 thousand TL.  As we were exposed to sabotage the 85 thousand tl was 4 thousand TL. We have suffered from great losses.’’he said. women took place in the main center of cooperatives,,Bedros voicing that,’’ We, Vakıflı village men, do not do  work without consulting to women’’ said. ‘’women know many things about nature much better than men’’said Bedros and he expressed; ‘’Before commencing work, taking the opinion of women has become the basis of principle’’.Bedros indicates that  ‘’every woman working in their greenhouses has the presence of her own shares. With equity method, the woman is  working both, as well as becoming business owner’’.The number of  women member is indication of our unity. Cause, if you do not give women value you can not give self-worth yourself, too. Cooperative is the only way to solve the economic problems of all villages, voicing Bedros ’’ The villagers immediately appeal tocooperatives. Disappears because of the growing holdings. They give their own land, work as a laborer. If they established cooperative they will gradually strengthened.’’said. Bedros stated that being able to survive is only possible with cooperative. And also he said the villagers should take based on the collective way of life.

Lori Kartun (16) is going to school in Samandağ district where vakıflı village connected. She said,,her goal is going to  the Faculty of Agriculture after finishing school. And alosa she stated that their own village has great success in organic farming, Lori said’’ our village is interested in farming. We are very good at organic farming. In order to contribute to my village and ensure continuty I want to stay here. So I want to be an agricultural engineer.

‘Being together with women at life is nice’

Berch Kartun, headman of vakıflı village voiced that he is very happy because of the organized women in their village. And he stated that the men in the village are supporting to the formation of women's branches. Berch, said these:

‘’Women gave financial support to us for the construction of the village hostel in the first year of women's organizing. This surprised us. We congratulate them. At life, being together is important. We give support to women's organization. Because, they have been clamped to each other. We like this situation. their financially freedom is pleased us. They give support to men both material and spiritual. We support them until the end. They make contribution to our village. Thus their self-confidence is developing.  In many cases women are better than men’’

On health problems the first referance adress is 'nature'

Serpil Kartun is member of Agricultural Cooperative and Women branches. She said, with organic farming, we materialized an alternative production to the system by not using any chemical fertilizer. And she continued like that:

‘’besides agricultural production, we are making orange marmalade, walnut jam, apricot jam, black cherry liqueur, raspberry liqueur, raspberry liqueur, orange liqueur at home. we are making soap from olive oil and laurel oil. We have homemade wine. After packing them in an extremely hygienic environment, we offer them for sale. women who live in the village, appeal to plants to cure diseases. In order to treating diseases we apply the methods that the elder ones told us.on joınt sprains, we grate laurel soap, which is our own production,we put egg into it and than we wind it on the sprained part. Also we have got natural herbal teas. when we have a flu we drink Mountain tea. We have got sage tea. We boil the loquat and lemon flower than we drink it. these treatment methods were used by our elders.’’

‘Not two body, each body must have a brain’

Eda Kısador (35) is member of cooperative and women’s branches and also she takes place in Society Civilizations Chorus. She stated that the women  work actively in the life of the village. Eda voiced that active participation to life is possible with the organizing between them. And she continued;

‘’ This is not the success of this day for us but it is the beauty of our own cultural. you break one thing and destroy it. But to maintain the cultural heritage is so beautiful that we are learning without realizing and We are teaching without realizing. This is the most beautiful side of our village. We are being a brain for every body. A beauty from the past. We are hosting many tourists in our village. At the same time, we introduce to the tourists our agricultural products and and our culture. In order to develop tourism, we have repaired old boarding houses and we opened them to use. Keeping up is only possible with production. We give place to artistical works. We sing our melodies everywhere. In this way we introduce our culture. We love very much to live with’’

Drawing attention, everything has changed with the organization of women in the village, Eda said these:

  ‘’ five years ago, we did a kermess and each woman made a product, that she knew, we and sold it. After kermess we earned 2 thousand TL. We supported to repairing of the house ,that the cooperative granted and  150 TL increased.With tis Money we bought seedling. We wrote the name of each child on these seedling. We kept each child responsible for the care of the seedling. The children owned their duties and they grew the seedlings. Currently the beautiful trees you have seen at the roadside, is the beauty brought by the  women.’’

‘Cities are not safe places for women '

Eda expressed that ''cities are not 'safe' places for women, thus,  for living women's culture the villages are more ideal centers’’and she sais fallowings:’’morally 'shameful' the theft and harrassed do not occur in the village. We live in our villages like brothers. I have never heard from my mother that she said ‘ Oh my daughter you are woman, be careful. do not go there and do not do this' .This is a beauty of the Armenian culture. I love to live in the village than to live in the city. We can sit up late in coffeehouse until midnights. Our children can play in the streets until late. No one say to children that ’’ now it is late, come home’’ I love the beautiful smell of this village more than everything. I never exposed to any sexually assaulted. I do not exposed to violence. I am very happy.’’  in vakıflı village we celebrated both our own feasts and Muslim feasts. Their holidays are also special and beautiful for us ’’

Eda Kısador, who wanted to speak through a women news agency from vakıflı village, said followings;

‘’ First of all, I have a message to men. women get with you, not behind you. Why would she come behind you? Times has changed.. We do not need physical power on the contrary we need brain power. in the past people felt the need for physical power. they were making farming with physical power. if a woman wants she can manage the world from a seated position. Why is it not giving opportunity to women advancement? is not it the women who parturient the men? Is not that woman who giving second life, after God? God, created nature and the woman is really a great. Are they look down what and whom? Can you imagine? Head of all things is woman. the family's iron is woman. As Nazım Hikmet said; actually woman is our hands, our legs, our mother, our daughter, she is  everything of us… in order to catch the hapiness… This is also as the same in our culture. I always believe in the power of nature. Nature, has given a very nice featureto man. has given him physical force. But I do not see it as a superior. I say separate beauty. Why does not everyone live their own features a beautiful way? I would like to share with you a poem that I wrote on women's day.

I know a very good drug, but doctors can not write it on a prescription,

I know a very effective drug, but pharmacists can not sell,

I know a drug, the expiration date never pass,

Do not notice before or after a meal is always permitted,

You know, the child runs, falls down, injures her knee,

Comes back, says mother, my knee hurts with crying and crying,

We sigh when our child get closer in order to take her pain,

Then we embrace her, and we caress her hair and kiss her,

To drain the magic medicine,

She looks at her knee says passed, and continue to run,

Woman, do you know you are a drug, is there more?

Farewell with Armenian melodies

Vakıflı's Panos Uncle(Çapar), who prays for people to live brotherly, greeted us with a smiling face when we left the village. 80-year-old uncle Panos, giving information about the history of the village, ‘’ There was organic farming until 1950. Everything was too natural, abundant and lucrative. But now it is not so. we make loss in organic farming. Our products are natural thus they grown too late. Those who use chemical fertilizers, take both early and abundant product. And, it is also unfair to our labor. But whatever, we do not think to make production that damage to nature. We can not think’’ said. Panos Uncle pointed out that in the vakıflı village women have an original place. And continued; ‘’ Women are always very valuable for us. Women in our village are more skillful, more wise than men. They are much more productive and successful’’ After his speech, Panos Uncle took his instrument. With Armenian melodies which he sung with his powerful sound he bade farewell to us.

Photo: Nuran AKTAS

Camera: Zehra DOGAN

Translator: Rojda GULCİCEK

JINHA

(na-zd/hp/rg)