At this time of year, the Easter period provides a cultural renewal and a strengthening of our identity. Easter festivities, more then the Christmas season, bring with them a sparkle of Maltese tradition in our everyday life.
With our towns and villages brimming with activities, in this period we are exposed to more cultural activities than usual, with exhibitions and re-enactments of Our Lord’s Passion held in the community. Together with these, one find’s sacred events such as Good Friday processions.
One may say that during these days, sacred art and the traditions associated with these events become part of our daily life. There are even some changes to our menu, with the inclusion of traditional sweets such as the kwarezimal, carob sweets, figoli and the Easter Sunday speciality – lamb roast.
This year, together with the events associated with Easter, the Maltese calendar for April contained another traditional event. The Freedom Day regatta had two districts sharing the winner’s podium, Cospicua and Marsa, hence offering a spectacle of colours to Grand Harbour. I would like to congratulate the winners and all the participating districts that keep this tradition alive in our sports and cultural calendars.
This type of event keeps our cultural identity alive, and this is important for future generations. This is also the belief of the European Union, which funds projects that promote culture in member states.
Different programmes have been formulated to promote what make us Europeans, so that the subject is disseminated holistically. These programmes offer funding for projects that unite people and make them share their experiences and identity.
Among these programmes, one finds Culture, Comenius, Youth and others. These programmes offer the opportunity for European citizens to share their identity not only between themselves but also, on certain occasions, even with third countries.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, Voskopojë in southeastern Albania was one of the most prosperous cities in the Balkans, becoming an intellectual, artistic and scientific centre. However, turmoil in the region around Voskopojë saw it razed to the ground in 1916, leaving its rich architecture in ruins.
Mireille Smeets of the French organisation and project leader Patrimoine sans Frontieres said: “Of the town’s original 26 churches, only six have survived.
“Paintings are in a state of decay. Still, Voskopojë has a beautiful cultural and natural heritage. We were asked to give advice on the preservation of the monuments of the city.”
The project brought together technical and cultural heritage institutions and associations from six countries. The project included “a multi-disciplinary workshop with, among others, archaeological diggings and a summer-field workshop for the restoration of mural paintings with Albanian, Greek, French, German, Italian and Dutch professional restorers, students and art historians. Culture 2000 funding helped immensely in furthering the project. The gathered expertise was then publicised as part of a publication”.
In addition, where were the profits for the local community? “We created awareness of the richness of Voskopojë’s own heritage. During communism, all religious heritage was disregarded. People forgot what they had. Thanks to the Culture 2000 programme, we were able to attract potent sponsors and develop a strategic plan, with the community embracing the idea of sustainable development and cultural tourism.”
Other activities that are aiding our knowledge-gathering in respect of culture is eTwinning, which encourages partnerships between primary and secondary school students, in which a chosen topic is discussed.
These projects permit students to discover and share their everyday life with fellow students in another country. The projects introduce new customs to our children, while at the same time allowing them to make new friends.
They build respect between the future generations, which will guarantee further success for the European Union, success based on the values of solidarity, liberty and respect for humanity.
This will guarantee peace and democracy across the European Union and neighbouring states. Euro sceptics tend to criticise the beauty of interculture. It is very important that, while each culture draws from its own roots, it does not fail to blossom when crossing other cultures.
Therefore, it is not a matter of identifying and safeguarding every culture in isolation, but rather of revitalising them in order to avoid segregation and cultural entrenchment and prevent conflict. This is what the European Union is trying to do when funding these projects. It is becoming a vital means of maintaining peace and world unity.
The beauty of discovering is associated with the gesture of sharing. When we share our culture, we are exposing our identity and acting as ambassadors for our country and traditions.
david.casa@europarl.europa.eu
www.davidcasa.eu
