Here’s a clip from the magnificent performance by Benay Gözkaman, lead singer of the Social Inclusion Band.
I’d like to congratulate Pınar Öncel and Tuna Özçuhadar, organizers of the Sustainable Film Festival, for all their success. I’d also like to congratulate my dear friend Ercan Tutal, founder of AYDER (Alternative Life Association), who founded the Social Inclusion Band.
Now, let’s get to the point. After watching the documentary Courageous Peace about Costa Rica and receiving critical acclaim, I couldn’t help but raise my hand and share my thoughts, both about the country and the documentary, as Honorary Consul of Costa Rica. Immediately afterward, Ms. Aynur Bektaş, who was sitting in the same seat as me, asked me a question and began a conversation. As we were talking, she asked, “What struck me most about this documentary is how a young candidate, who had no chance of winning the election, managed to stand out amongst all the other candidates and win. We also have a group called the Republican Unity Platform. As Honorary Consul of Costa Rica, could you tell us about Costa Rica and these recent elections?”
Since my recent presentations have generally revolved around the topics of “Sustainability, Solar Energy, 100% Renewable Energy in Turkey,” I’d put my speeches on autopilot. Presenting about Costa Rica wasn’t difficult for me, but I needed to work hard to explain the elections in Costa Rica. Eager to learn something new, I accepted the lady’s offer without hesitation, saying, “Of course, I’d be happy to come.”
An information bombardment regarding the Costa Rican elections
Following this, I texted Costa Rican Ambassador Gustavo Campos and Ekhart Peters, who had helped me become Honorary Consul of Costa Rica and whom I later worked for while Ambassador to Madrid, asking, “Could you please inform me about the recent elections?”
I received the relevant documents from both parties. As you can imagine, all of them were in Spanish. Ekhart, in particular, sent me at least 15 different documents on this topic. Of course, there was a problem: I’ve been incredibly busy these days. So, I couldn’t quite figure out when to read each of these documents and prepare the presentation. Anyway, just as I expected, the presentation preparation process was delayed until the very last evening. Last Saturday, after another busy schedule of meetings and dinners on energy storage systems, Latin America, and NGO themes, I was able to return home in the evening and immediately began preparing the presentation. Afterward, sleeping for about three hours, I woke up in the early morning, and continued preparing my speech. I finished the presentation by 2:00 PM the next day, when I left home. I occasionally called the Costa Rican Ambassador, even though it was Sunday, to ask him some questions. I also managed to grab a quick breakfast.
I left home around 2:00 PM and arrived at the Barış Manço Cultural Center around 2:30 PM. Coincidentally, Barış Manço’s song ‘Ali Yazar Veli Bozar’ came on while I was on the way. I personally loved him. May His Soul Rest In Peace.
When I arrived, I was warmly welcomed by the President of the Republican Union Platform and the relevant executives. We waited for those who were late due to traffic and began my speech around 3:15 PM. My presentation lasted about an hour.
This was followed by a Q & A session which lasted approximately 1-1.5 hours.
After the presentation, they hosted me for an hour in the Cultural Center’s cafe, thankfully.
They’re all very pleasant people. Our common denominator is Atatürk. Before I began my presentation to this audience of Atatürkists with significant life experience, I showed the following video:
You watched the interview on NTV with Foreign Minister Enrique Castillo, who made his first visit to Turkey in 2012. Minister Castillo visited Turkey for the second time in 2013, and after this visit, bilateral relations between the two countries gained significant momentum. In fact, because of the Action Plan prepared during this period, the Costa Rican Embassy in Ankara and the Turkish Embassy in San Jose were opened in 2014.
After sharing this information, I began my presentation. You can find the slides of my presentation below:
Sunumun sonunda da soruları cevaplarken arka planda aşağıdaki görselleri ekrana getirdim.
Taking questions amidst the stunning images of Costa Rica was a real pleasure. As each image came up, I heard participants mutter, “Look at this beauty! We absolutely must go here.”
Ultimately, it wouldn’t be fair to compare two countries so vastly different due to their geopolitical locations. Both countries have vastly different dynamics. In particular, the fact that Costa Rican presidents cannot run again after completing their four-year terms (they are allowed to run for another term after a lapse of time), the country has two rounds of elections, and the fact that the PAC disrupted the order of the center-right and center-left parties, which had been consistently elected for the past 50-plus years, in 2014. These reflect Costa Rica’s distinct political structure.
Of course, there are similarities. Latin Americans, whose character is similar to ours, are emotionally charged like us, act as a bridge between North and South America (we are a bridge between East and West), and have over 20 parties running in elections are also similarities.
Ultimately, there is one constant. This is essentially the same everywhere in the world. When voters tire of the current political system, they express their frustration at the ballot box. At the end of this process, they give new faces a chance. And ultimately, everything revolves around the people. For instance, during the PAC’s first term in power in Costa Rica, President Solis, who was implicated in the Cementazo scandal, was sidelined, while Carlos Alvarado, the young presidential candidate who served as his Labor Minister, was given a chance. In other words, in my opinion, the most important factor determining the outcome of an election in emotional countries like ours is the inspiring nature of leaders.
A photo of Costa Rican Minister of State Carlos Alvarado and his wife taken during the election campaign.
At the end of my speech at the Republican Unity Platform, I managed to get everyone to say “Pura Vida” in unison. Here are those moments:
Let’s continue to enjoy life despite all the difficulties we face. Pura Vida!
