Izražavajući značenje i važnost ovog dana, knjige su prva sredstva koja nam otvaraju vrata potpuno različitih svjetova kad naučimo čitati, nakon prvog obiteljskog obrazovanja koje dobivamo. Poput procesa koji započinje puzanjem, a završava trčanjem u djetinjstvu, i knjige imaju razvojne faze. U svijet književnosti ulazimo s bajkama. Vremenom knjige predstavljaju temelj naše opće kulture o mnogim temama kao društveni simbola i društvene norme, koncepti dobrog i lošeg, poslovice, kao i uvida u druga društva i živote čitano. Kasnije, romani, udžbenici, povijesne knjige, biografije... Različiti se horizonti otvaraju u našim umovima s različitim vrstama knjiga. Knjige mijenjaju naš pogled na život, proširuju svijet ideja, proširuju rječnik, produbljuju teme razgovora i, što je najbolje, omogućuju nam 'posjet' drugim svjetovima s mjesta na kojem sjedimo.

Tamo, odakle sam ja došla, u Turskoj, 23. travnja slavi se kao "Dan nacionalne suverenosti i djece", a to je dan koji je Ataturk poklonio djeci. Jedna od najvažnijih karakteristika 23. travnja u mojoj zemlji su svečane ceremonije u kojima djeca imaju priliku razgovarati o knjigama koje čitaju. Prema Ataturku, djeca su bila djedovi i bake budućnosti. Ovaj lijepi dan, koji za mene znači dva praznika, vrlo je važan u smislu naglašavanja zašto bi djeca, budući vođe, trebala imati život ispunjen knjigama.

Moje prvo iskustvo s knjigama, kojeg se sjećam, započelo je enciklopedijama svih vrsta, s knjižnicom punom svezaka kod kuće. Dok nisam znala čitati, gledala bih slike i pokušavala razumjeti i pogoditi što znače. Kao dijete umirala bih od znatiželje. Bila sam fascinirana kad bi mi roditelji čitali, razmišljala sam kako čitanjem sve možeš shvatiti.

Kad sam krenula u školu, bila sam toliko motivirana započeti 'dešifriranje' tih tajanstvenih 'kodova' u knjigama. S tim entuzijazmom dovršavala sam svoju drugu knjigu dok su moje kolege iz razreda još vježbali abecedu. Kad bih završavala jednu knjigu, toliko sam bila nestrpljiva početi drugu, gledati svijet iz druge perspektive! Kad bi se svijet u knjigama spojio s mojom dječjom maštom, osjećala bih da sam u posebnom svijetu. Naučiti nešto u pri tom bilo je neprocjenjivo, osjećala sam da koristim svoje vrijeme punim plućima, da je to vrhunac mog dana.

Sjećam se jednog običnog putovanja u srednjoškolsko vremena, čitala sam knjigu na putu kući autobusom. Dva ili tri dana kasnije, kad sam se vraćala istim autobusom, prišla mi je jedna putnica i rekla: „Čitali ste drugu knjigu prije dva dana, tako ste brzi! Voljela bih da i moja kći to čini... ” Bila mi je čast čuti ove riječi koje sam čula od nekoga koga nisam poznavala, što mi je jako puno značilo. Objašnjavala sam objasniti gospođi kako i njezina kći može steći takve navike. Tada, nisam ni slutila da će ti posebni svjetovi postati dio mog posla, a ne hobi, što će mi pružiti priliku da danas pišem o tome. Još jedno važno sjećanje bilo je kada smo učeniku s ekonomskim poteškoćama kupili dio školskog potrepština. Nekoliko dana kasnije, moj prijatelj, kojemu smo pomogli, pitao je možemo li mu dati više knjiga umjesto školskih potrepština. Tada sam shvatila da su knjige uistinu najbolje sredstvo protiv siromaštva i neznanja.

Kada govorimo o neznanju, knjige su najvažniji instrumenti u međunarodnoj kulturnoj razmjeni koji osiguravaju održivost društava. Povijesne knjige, memoari, biografije i mnogi drugi žanrovi omogućuju nam da upoznamo društava, razumijevamo njihove ideologije i da učimo o njima. Kako je jezik prvi i osnovni element kulture, on je i dragocjen za prikazivanje ostalih kulturnih elemenata.

Međutim, ne daje se svakom društvu prilika da slobodno govori o svojoj kulturi i usmenoj predaji, odgaja svoju djecu na svojim bajkama i čine da njihove priče odjekuju kroz povijest. Na primjer, Romi su bili raštrkani širom svijeta i pokušavali su se uklopiti u svako društvo u kojem žive. U međuvremenu su bili izloženi diskriminaciji i borili se za opstanak. Stoga ono što se danas naziva romskom književnošću uključuje različita djela pisaca iz cijelog svijeta napisana na različitim dijalektima romskog jezika. S obzirom na teške okolnosti s kojima su se Romi suočili, postojanje romske književnosti još je vrijednije.

Romi se spominju u djelima različitih autora širom svijeta. U povijesti književnosti Shakespeare je prvi spomenuo Rome u "Sanu ivanjske noći" iz 1596. godine. Romi se u predstavi nazivaju "Egipćanima", jer se smatralo da dolaze iz Egipta. Kasnije, kao rezultat skraćivanja riječi "Egipcien", Romi se u literaturi spominju kao "Gypcian", od čega nastaje egzonim "Gypsy". Romima uglavnom nije pružena prilika za pristup obrazovanju. Analizirajući razdoblje viktorijanske i moderne britanske književnosti, može se vidjeti da je diskriminacija prema Romima bila prisutna putem referenci poput "ljudi koji su skloni počiniti zločine, grešnici i oni za koje se ne zna tko su".

Iako su živjeli nomadskim načinom života i nisu imali stalni krov nad glavom, postoje vrijedna djela napisana o Romima koja su preživjela do danas. Jedno od najvažnijih djela o Romima, koje su napisali Nebojša Bato Tomašević i Rajko Đurić, poznati romskih aktivist, "Cigani svijeta" može vas odvesti na putovanje kroz tajanstvenu povijest Roma. Ova knjiga, koja je rezultat zajedničkog rada Tomaševića i Đurića, započinje opisom putovanja Roma iz Indije u zapadnu Europu. Autori prikazuju trenutke kojima su svjedočili u posjetu romskim logorištima tokom hodočašća koje je trajalo dvije godine.

Prema autorima, romski jezik je “jedina knjiga koju su Romi ponijeli iz Indije: on predstavlja njihovu kolektivnu memoriju i svjedočanstvo o pogledu na svijet ovog naroda.“ "Cigani svijeta" publiku upoznaju s privlačnim, netaknutim, realističnim i posebnim trenucima Roma.

Vraćajući se na obilježavanje 23. travnja, Svjetskog dana knjige i autorskih prava, ovaj se Dan u Barceloni obilježava darivanjem ruža i knjiga. Što se tiče Ujedinjenog Kraljevstva, škole daju učenicima plaćeni bon za poticanje njihovog interesa za knjige. Ovaj lijepi dan potrebno je iskoristiti kao priliku za promicanje čitanja, podizanje svijesti i poticanje pojedinaca da uče o svjetovima, događajima i društvima koja nikada nisu vidjeli. Svaki narod jednako zaslužuje govoriti o svojoj povijesti, kako bi je drugi prepoznali i upoznali. Knjige su najbolje sredstvo za učenje o drugim ljudima i kulturama, a svjetski mir može se postići samo kulturnom razmjenom i prosvijetljenim generacijama.

 

 

According to the decision taken as a result of the convention of the International Publishers Association Congress in Barcelona in 1995, UNESCO declared April 23 as "World Book and Copyright Day". This day coincides with the date of death or birth of many masterminds of literature who inspired countless generations, from the English Shakespeare, to Spanish Cervantes, to the Turkish Cemal Süreya, and the Russian Nabokov. For this beautiful day, a more meaningful date could not be chosen than April 23rd.

Expressing the meaning and importance of this day, books are the first tools that open us the doors of completely different worlds after the first family education we receive, when we learn to be literate. Like the process that begins with crawling and ends with running in infancy, books also have a developmental phase. We enter the literature world with fairy tales. In time, books form a basis in our general culture on many subjects such as the symbols of society, sociological characteristics, the concepts of good and bad, proverbs, other societies and lives. Later, novels, textbooks, history books, biographies… Different horizons open up in our minds with different types of books. Books change our view of life, expand our world of ideas, increase our vocabulary, deepen our conversation topics and, best of all, allow us to visit other worlds from where we sit.

Where I came from, in Turkey, April 23rd is celebrated as "Sovereignty and Children’s Day", which is a day that Ataturk gave as a gift to the children. One of the most important features of April 23 in my country is that it is joyfully celebrated with ceremonies and children are given the chance to talk about the books they read. According to Ataturk, children were the grandparents of the future. This beautiful day, which means two holidays for me, is very important in terms of underlining why children, the future leaders, should have a life intertwined with books.

My first experience with books, which I remember, started with encyclopedias of all kinds, with a library full of series at home. When I did not know how to read, I would examine the pictures and try to understand and guess what was being mentioned. As a child, I would die from curiosity. I would be fascinated when my parents would read to me, I’d think they had deciphered life.

When I started school, I was so willing to start deciphering these mysterious codes in books. With this enthusiasm, I was finishing my second book while my classmates were still practicing the alphabet. As one book ended, I was so eager to start another, to look at the world from another perspective! When the world in the books combined with my child imagination, I would feel that I was isolated from the outside world. Learning something in the meantime was invaluable, I felt that I was spending my time to the fullest, that it was the highlight of my day.

I remember an ordinary trip during high school times, reading a book on my way home by bus. Two or three days later, when I was returning by the same bus, one of the passengers approached me and said, “You were reading another book two days ago, you’re so fast! I wish my daughter would be like you…” I was honored to hear these words I received from someone I didn’t know, which meant the worlds to me. Then, I tried to explain to the lady how her daughter could acquire this habit. Back then, I had no idea that these sophisticated worlds would become a part of my job rather than a hobby, which would give me the chance to write about today. Another crucial memory that I remember was a time when we bought a student with economic difficulties part of his school needs. Days later, my friend, whom we helped, asked if we could give him more books instead of providing more for other basic needs. It was then that I realized that books were truly the greatest defense mechanism against poverty and ignorance.

Speaking of ignorance, books are the most important instruments in the international cultural exchange that ensure the sustainability of societies. History books, memoirs, biographies, and many more genres allow us to get to know societies, understand their ideologies, and learn about them. As language is the first and basic element of culture, it is also the treasure for portrayal of other cultural elements.

However, not every society is given the opportunity to tell their cultures and stories freely, to raise their children with national fairytales and to make their stories echoed throughout history. For example, Roma people were scattered around the world and tried to fit in every society they live in. In the meantime, they have been exposed to discrimination and struggled for their lives and basic needs. Therefore, what is called  Romani literature today includes different works of writers from all around the world written in different dialects. Given the hard circumstances Roma have faced, Romani literature’s existence is even more valuable.

It is likely to encounter Roma people in works of different authors around the world. Roma people are first mentioned in the history of literature by Shakespeare in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" dated 1596. Roma are referred to as "Egyptian" in the work, because they were thought to have come from Egypt. Later, as a result of the shortening of the word "Egipcien", Roma are mentioned in literature as "Gypcian" which is an exonym of "Gypsy". While the Roma people were barely being provided education, moving towards the Victorian and modern British literature period, it can be seen that the discrimination towards Roma was present through references such as "people who are prone to commit crimes, sinners, and have nondescript identities". 

Despite their nomadic way of life, not being able to gather under a single roof, there are valuable works on Roma people that have survived to the present day. One of the highlight works on Roma, Nebojša Bato Tomašević and Rajko Đurić’s "Gypsies of the World" can take you on a journey through the mysterious history of the Roma. This book, which is a joint product of Tomasevic and Đuric, opens with a description of the journey of Roma from India to westward Europe. The authors portray the moments they witnessed in their visit to the Roman encampments during a pilgrimage that lasted two years. 

Romani language, according to the authors, is “the only book that the Gypsies brought with them from India; it represents their collective memory and is a testimony of these people’s view of the world.” “Gypsies of the World” introduces the audience to the eye-catching, untouched, realistic and rare moments of Romani people. 

Going back to the highlight of April 23, World Book and Copyright Day, this day is celebrated in Barcelona by giving each other roses and books. As for the UK, schools give students a paid voucher to encourage their engagement with books. It is necessary to use this beautiful day as an opportunity to promote reading, to raise awareness and encourage individuals to learn the worlds, events and societies they have never heard. Every nation equally deserves to tell its own history, to be recognized and known by others. Books are the greatest tools to learn about other people and cultures and world peace could only be achieved through cultural exchange and enlightened generations.