Activity Report of the Executive Committee (2003)

January 1 – December 31, 2003

Alteration in the administrative committee

One of the most important characteristics of volunteer organizations is the willingness to changing flag. In 2003, we made a little change in our administrative committee as in every two years. We got fresh blood. It is so natural and appropriated that neither of them feels hurt or uncomfortable, even who started or turned over. In fact our administrative committee meetings are anyhow realized by participation of many volunteers. To date we never needed to put to a vote. While thanking to E.Leyla Ustel and Ayce Celikel for their participation, we welcome Seyhan Erdogdu and Tulin Koca for their joining in the administrative committee.

Working Environment Review:

Work Environment Review accomplished 71st volume at the end of year 2003. In this way it carries on being the longest published review about “child labour” and “labour health safety”. Our review is also transported to 81 public libraries this year with the contribution of the Libraries General Director Office, Ministry of Culture. Also it has been distributed to related sectors, especially to worker and employer unions and NGOs. In this manner it becomes the opportunity to be utilized by a large reader community.

Think-Tank:

• 18th January – Education in foreign language (Prof. Dr Aydin Koksal, Prof. Dr Semih with participation of all)

• 15th November- Brain drain (Ass. Prof. Dr Mustafa Akgul, Prof. Dr Turgay Dalkara, Prof. Dr Nevzat Ozguven, Dr.Seyhan Erdogdu with participation of all)

Our Meetings and Art Activities

PAINTING EXHIBITIONS

• 3-31 January – Cahit Kalenderoglu Painting Exhibition

• 3-28 February – Mert Sener Painting Exhibition

• 3-28 March – Meral Ergil Painting Exhibition

• 1-21 April – Leyla Ercan Painting Exhibition

• 23 April – 30 May -Works Awarded/Worth to Exhibit of the 1st Photography Contest on Child Labour

• 1-30 June – Kiymet Ugurman: Wood Painting Exhibition

• 1-31 October -Mixed Painting Exhibition

• 4-28 November -Exhibition of the Painters dealing with medicine (Ankara)

• 6-14 December – Exhibition of the Artists dealing with medicine (Eskisehir; Painting, Ceramic, Photograph)

• 8-31 December – Yigit Basak Painting Exhibition

SLIDE SHOWS

• January – Adnan Veli Kuvanlik: Other Side of the Water

• 20th February – Mehmet Aslan Guven: Messages From the Wall, The Other Light, On the Ice

• 13th March – Adnan Polat: Arianna, Creaht Cappadoccia, Imaginary Images

• April- Ozgur Cetinkaya – Ertan Karabiyik: Kids of Cotton

• December – Adnan Polat: City Nights

CONCERTS

• 9th January – Rahime Gur (Kanun; Turkish Music)

• 20th February – Levent KARACAM (Kanun), Murathan HAYRAN (Ud), Selcuk DINCSOY (Ud) and vocalist Esen AKDENIZLI (Turkish Music )

• March – Firat Yertutanol, Murat Demirtas, Serkan Bespinar, Berrak Saka (Guitar)

• 15th May – Cetin Gul (Baglama, Turkish Music)

• 11th December – Basar Baypinar (Guitar)

CONVERSATION AND PANEL DISCUSSIONS

• 20th March – World Poetry Day

• 6th December – Panel of Discussion; From Brain drain to Brain Power (Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yasemin Gunay Balci, Prof. Dr. Cem Kaptanoglu, Prof. Dr. A. Gurhan Fisek, Senay Gokbayrak)

Activities That We Joined And Contributed

• 28th April – A.G. Fisek directed discussion panels organized by ILO at “Commemoration Day Of Workers that are injured or died at the Labour Accidents’ and had a presentation about the approach and activities of our foundation.

• 10th May – A.G. Fisek joined the discussion panel “Labour Health and Safety: Problems and Solution Suggestions’ that was organized in Iskenderun by the Confederation of Hak Labour Union with the presentation “Regional Collaboration for Solution of Labour Health Safety’.

• 12th May – Oya Fisek joined the meeting about “Women’ that was organized by ILO.

• 12th June – Oya Fisek and Erdem Ilgi Akter joined the meeting about “World Struggle Day against Child Labour’ that was organized by ILO.

• 15-17 October – Oya Fisek joined and explained our activities at the panel that four of the NGOs carrying out studies concerning children were presented, at IV. National Child Culture Congress that was organized by Ankara University Child Culture Research and Practice Center with the aid of Kok Broadcasting.

• Oya Fisek joined the meeting that was organized by Anittepe Rotaracts and talked about our Foundation’s missions and activities; and invited them to join.

• U. Jale Sengul and Zeynep Ibrahimhakkioglu, as representatives of our Foundation, joined the meeting of British council about the topics to be paid attention at the approach of the Public Organizations to guilty children.

• 21st December – A.Gurhan Fisek joined the meeting that was organized by Democracy Generation of Turkey Democracy Foundation with the presentation of the “Politics and NGOs’.

• Gulbiye Yenimahalleli Yasar represented our foundation at the meeting that was organized by METU Graduates Society; and also participated near hundred NGOs.

• 12-19 December – Doruk Fisek, Didem Kamoy and Senay Gokbayrak joined the meeting of “3^rd Meeting of FutureWithout Fear” (Cemberlitas-Istanbul) that was organized by International Migration Institute (IMI); and young people from various Balkan countries participated.

• 15-17 December – Oya Fisek, Murside Mahmutoglu, U. Jale Sengul represented our foundation at the “International Foundation Symposium at the 80th Anniversary of the Republic’ that was organized by Prime Ministry General Directorship of Foundations of the Republic of Turkey.

Visits:

As every year it happens, student groups from the Labour Economics and Industry Relations Department of the Ankara University Political Science Faculty who are interested in “Child labour’ visited our foundation and got information about our activities.

• A group from the British council and their advisor Prof. Dr. Sevil Atauz visited our foundation and gave information about their studies concerning guilty children.

• Many authorized people from various firms visited our foundation and met ours to get information to carry out their projects related to European Union.

Our Kermes:

Organization of a “Kermes’ and participation into them take an important place in our foundation’s activities. It is not only an opportunity to make money for our foundation, but also it helps to our presentation and to make contacts with other NGOs. As a presentation of our foundation’s working and organization discipline, and capability of contacting a vast scale of communities, it also have the capability of being a “power show’ against the organizations that present themselves at the bazaar or to the visitors.

Our bazaar at the Ankara Dedeman Hotel at 16 April 2003 was a scene of many-sided participation. Whether artists presenting handicrafts or visitors to see and buy those things… The most important thing was that we shared our tables with 11 NGOs that are results of social solidarity, just as they do at their own bazaars.

• As every year, just before the special days like New Year’s Day etc. a bazaar is opened at our foundation’s centre. With the little things that are produced or given as a gift by our volunteers, it constitutes a hangout for people who want to present a smile to their darlings.

Kermes and Fairs we joined

The NGOs that we invite to our bazaars also invite us to theirs as a guest. In addition to this, different organizations are interested in our activities and our Foundation; they support us by inviting us to their bazaars. We thank a lot both to these organizations and people that work willingly at those bazaars for our presentation.

• Turkish – American Association, New Year’s Day Kermes

• Textile and Handicrafts Association

• English Pairs Group

• Kermes of CYDD (Association for Supporting Contemporary Life)

• Kermes of ANACEV (Anatolian Modern Education Foundation)

• Rotary (GOP) Fair

• Maltepe Rotary Club

• Kale Rotary Club

• Rehabilitation Center for Mental Handicapped

• Conference that is organized by the collaboration of TEMA (Turkish foundation for combating soil erosion) and Women Confederation

Contributions:

• Works that we carried out in Pendik Small Industry Area with Child Labour Office (Pendik) that is founded by Turkish confederation of employer associations as a part of ILO/IPEC project is transferred to the team that is formed by Turkish confederation of employer associations at 2002; and at January-December 2003, our Foundation contributed with some equipment to carry out the health service.

• Our “Summer Camp for Labour Children” campaign goes on this year too and thanks to many of our volunteers or friends that appreciate our activities, nine female and nine male apprentices had the chance of a holiday. As it was last year, “Turkish Women Association for Surviving Our Culture and Mutual Aid of Heilbronn and Vicinity’ kept on helping this year too. We thank all for their contribution at the maintenance of this campaign.

Studies of Project:

• OSTIM and Sincan Organized Industry (Ankara) are model centres that Fisek Institute continues its studies about child labour and common health unit at working places. “Mobile Clinics’ that we use first in Turkey at the small workplaces are carrying on visiting them and the children working there.

• At 7-13 September 2002, a holiday was organized for the apprentices in Burhaniye, Oren Efem Holiday Village aiming to give them an opportunity for their yearly vacation just as last year. This program included many activities other than those of everyday, such as swimming, dancing, various games and conversations. Teacher of the girls was Arzu Uyar and that of the boys Aktan Akiner. We think that favours and standards were shared at this program.

• “Nusret H.Fişek Library Site”, a part of Prof. Dr. Nusret H. Fisek Science and Art Environment continues serving. This settlement of 12 libraries includes the following sections:

1. Library of Child Labour

2. Library of Health-Safety-Environment at the Workplace

3. Library of NGOs

4. Library of Social Security

5. Library of Demography

6. Library of Women Labour

7. Library of Public Health

8. Library of Trade-Unions

9. Library of Social Policy

10. Library of Human Rights

11. Library of Turkish Foreign Migration

12. Library of General Culture

Over three thousand books are put on service until the final day of 2003. An effort is going on to register all the books we have and to upload all of them to our website. We thank to Hulya Durukan who made it very carefully possible to transfer those books to the web. During this year, it’s been followed with a big pleasure how functional the software “Bookworm’ that is created by our data processing research and development group was. Possibility of online access to the Library Site increased visitors and its usefulness capability.

Collaborations with other Organizations:

• Cooperation with Turkish confederation of employer associations about child labour: The project of common health unit concerning the children working at the Pendik Small Industry Area at Istanbul is presently continuing. We thank to all that expend effort in this project, especially to the General Secretary Bulent Pirler, Research Specialist Zubeyde Celebioglu and Director of the Project Dr. Nezih Varol.

• The cooperation with Municipality of Eskisehir Tepebasi that was created by means of the remembrance activities of Prof. Dr. Nusret H. Fisek gave its profit at the panel “From brain drain to the brain power’ and the painting exhibition “artists dealing with health’ at December the 6th. We thank to all who expend effort, especially to Dr. Ahmet Atac, Mayor of Tepebasi.

Research and Development Studies on Occupational Safety:

The research and development group that is established for improvement in Occupational Health and Safety is carrying out its studies. At this context, we support the periodic “Working Environment’ with articles; and its special feature of being one of the two longest survived periodic is preserved. These studies intend to create nationwide contacts between the interested people and to share the information and experience widespread. The website www.isguvenligi.net is constructed with this goal and takes 30-50 hits per day. This website is carried out successfully with articles-news and visual parts that are created and daily renewed by the “data processing research and development group’ and our volunteers supporting it. Our foundation supposes survive of such a freeware web page about labour health security a social mission. We thank to Prof. Dr. Ismail Topuzoglu, Mustafa Tasyurek, Gurbuz Yilmaz, Doruk Fisek, and Didem Kamoy for their support.

Media Relations:

Broadcasts joined via interviews or conversations:

• Radio of Ankara: Basak Soyluoglu joined the program hosted by Bilsat Yazici-

Ahmet Fakioglu concerning the “Exhibition of artists dealing with Health’

• Radio of Ankara: A. G. Fisek participated in the program “labour life’ of the programmer Hasan Ugurlu and gave information about the occupational disease of working children and adolescents.

• TRT-1 Television: A.Gurhan Fisek joined the program “Sunday Panaroma’ that is carried out by programmer Kadriye Kansu and program supervisor Mustafa Balbay and talked about our foundation and brain drain.

• A.Gurhan Fisek was invited to the program produced by Mustafa Karaculhaci at Baskent TV and talked about the activities of our foundation.

• Television of Abu Dhabi: Programmer Tursem Caglav interviewed with A.Gurhan Fisek about the fact of labour children in Turkey and our foundation’s interference plans concerning this subject.

• Announcements of activities that are organized by our foundation at the Prof. Dr. Nusret H. Fisek Science and Art Environment began to take place in monthly magazines about the cultural activities in Ankara (TOMER Culture and Art Guide of Ankara, Arkadas, Ankara Culture and Art Map, Coluk Cocuk Magazine)

• Coluk Cocuk Magazine: announced the results of the 1st Photography Contest on Child Labour and broadcasted the photos.

• Cumhuriyet Newspaper: Isik Kansu wrote two times about the 1st Photography Contest on Child Labour

• Arkadas Ankara Culture And Art Activities Bulletin: Gaye Eyigungor wrote out an article presenting Fisek Institute at 2003.01. (Issue: 93)

• TRT-GAP: A.Gurhan Fisek carried out counselling of the program “Here Is The Chance” that is directed by Zekiye Ergun and produced Belkis Tuncay and broadcasted at 12.00 in every other Sunday for 13 weeks. By her work in this program, director Zekiye Ergun was honored by mention award in Radio-TV Program category of Izmir Press Society Sehit Hasan Tahsin Journalism Contest in 2003.

Our Web benefits:

• By means of our websites and their continuously updated contents we maintain the diversity of subjects and aim to be known by a large community. Many people expended effort in those studies till today. We thank to L. Didem Kamoy, Doruk Fisek, Ekin Meroglu and Koray Loker for making it possible to use the web at this period.

fisek.org.tr: Besides the information about our activities and approaches, this site includes various informative parts for readers. Also there is the access for “Libraries Settlement’ at this site. Our web statistics show that the mean number of daily visitors roused from 147 (in January 2003) to 231 in December 2003. In December, highest number of hits was 301. This site includes an English section and it attracts the visitors. We can list those countries in order that visited our site and we could determine as follows:

www.isguvenligi.net: A site including news and articles for readers who are interested in the labour health safety and equipped with the opportunities for correspondence and meeting. By means of the “horror tunnel’ we aim to present the negative parts of the applications; and participation by means of the question of the month and the portal. In addition to the countries above, also the following countries had access to our labour safety site:

1. Lithuania

2. Belize

www.dagkecisi.com: at this site named goat, one of the symbols of freedom and climbing to tops, will take part the success stories of citizens living and working in foreign countries. Main theme of this web site is brain-drainage. We also look for the possibilities to profit from the brains carrying out their studies at foreign countries.

Our site is completely renewed and get rich in the last few days of the year and also can be accessed from www.beyingocu.com. Besides those listed above these countries have also been among our visitors throughout the year:

1. Cocos (Keeling) Islands

1. The Seychelles

linux.fisek.com.tr: Our volunteers joining to the activities of Linux/Turkey, the symbol of free software and our institute that is supporting this effort is glad to serve the informatics world by means of this site. In addition to those from the countries above, guests from the following countries also visited this site at 2003:

www.fisek.com.tr: This site is composed of informatics, health and labour safety divisions, and draws attention of people in need of information about our services. In addition to those from the countries above, guests from the following countries also visited this site at 2003: