NHKM reacts to Nâzım Hikmet exhibition in İzmir: 'Do not turn Nâzım into a showcase for capital'

The Nâzım Hikmet Cultural Center (NHKM) Istanbul has expressed its opposition to the exhibition titled "Nâzım Hikmet / Romantika: A Journey of a Lifetime," which is planned to be organized by Folkart under the auspices of the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality.

In the statement released by the NHKM, they objected to the presentation of Nâzım Hikmet solely as a "romantic poet." The statement argued that the poet's communist identity and political struggle were being ignored in an attempt to use him for the corporate promotion of capital groups.

The text, which included criticisms directed at the exhibition's sponsor, Folkart, and the Sancak family, brought up the company's growth during the AKP government era, its political connections, and its construction projects in İzmir. Drawing attention to workplace fatalities at Folkart construction sites, the NHKM stated that Kudbettin Kırergin lost his life after falling from the sixth floor due to a lack of occupational safety measures at a Folkart construction site.

Take your hands, stained with workers' blood, off Nâzım immediately!

CALL TO CONTRIBUTING INSTITUTIONS

The statement also responded to İzmir Metropolitan Mayor Cemil Tugay's remarks, "We are bringing together the blue of İzmir with the freedom blue of Nâzım Hikmet." The NHKM stated that Nâzım Hikmet's worldview cannot be placed side-by-side with companies accused of destroying nature and turning the city into a site for rent-seeking.

The capitalist class has for years wanted to strip Nâzım of his political struggle, his communist and partisan personality, and reduce him to the figure of a 'romantic poet'... Those who devalue the lives of workers and turn the city into a rent-seeking area cannot represent Nâzım's hope for the future; they can only turn that hope into advertising material.

The NHKM reminded that Nâzım Hikmet came to İzmir in 1925 under the assignment of the Communist Party of Turkey and carried out organizing activities among workers there. The statement declared, "It is not Folkart that brought Nâzım to İzmir, but the struggle of the working class that has kept him alive in İzmir for a hundred years."

Addressing the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, the NHKM stated that public power should not be used in favor of capital groups. It also called on institutions contributing to the exhibition, such as the Nâzım Hikmet Culture and Art Foundation, the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art, and the Ara Güler Museum and Research Center, to re-evaluate their support.

Do not leave Nâzım, whose legacy you have set out to protect, along with his struggle and art, in the hands of a predatory mentality; do not be an instrument to his pollution. Do not allow your contributions to be turned into the corporate showcase of a capital group. Re-evaluate your contribution to this exhibition and share your stance with the public.

The statement concluded with the words, "We, the true friends of Nâzım, will fulfill our duty."

News Source: 12punto