Activities of the first Kurdish Culture week will be organised in Brussels, the capital of Belgium between 17 and 21 September.

Activities such as “cinema,” “Kurdish village,” “photograph exhibitions” reflecting Kurdish culture, concerts and seminars will be organised in the Place d'Espagne near Grand Place in Brussels during the week.

The purpose of this activity which is being carried out for the first time is to gather the people from different ethnic groups and different mentalities in a lasting collective arena based on the dialogue between different cultures. The public in Belgium will find the opportunity to meet the art and culture of the Kurdish people in many different ways during the culture week.

In promotional leaflets for the week, it is said that Kurdish people started to come to Belgium from 1960s, refugees and students following them in the 1990s. The number of Kurds in Belgium is not known because Belgium classifies the Kurds according to their citizenship. However, according to the organisers of the Kurdish Culture Week, at least 50 thousand Kurds live in this country. If other ethnic groups and peoples, Chaldeans, Armenians, Syriacs-Assyrians and Turkmen living in Kurdistan are added, the population from Kurdistan exceeds 100 thousand.

The cultural activities will start on 17 September at 15:00 and will continue until the late hours of the night.

On 18 September, there will be a recital of Music, Cinema, traditional Kurdish cuisine and Kurdish village visit activities will be organised and a conference regarding the issue of the Kurdish people, Kurdistan and the diaspora will be carried out. However, because of security measures, in order to participate at this conference, the people who want to attend have to register in advance.

Mehmet Atlı and Tara Jaff will take part in the musical programme of the culture week.

Meanwhile, movies screened will include "Sürü" [Herd], "Folge der Feder" (Suivre la plume), "My Sweet Pepper Land" and "Welcome" and folk dance demonstrations will also take place.

The institutions which will take place in the programmeare as follows. National Congress of Kurdistan (KNK), Kurdish Institute of Brussels, Federation Wallonie-Bruxelles, metropolitan municipality of Amed, İnfo-Türk, Vrede, Masereel Fonds (a volunteer cultural organisation defending and promoting the Flemish language), Van municipality, Batman Municipality, Kurdistan student units, the federation of Armenians in Europe for Democracy and jJstice, La Bellone (Maison du spectacle-demonstration house), Mondiaal Neuws (MO-Flemish newspaper), Vlaamse Gemeens Chapsco Mmissie (an authoritative organisation amongst the Flemish-speaking communities), Mala Gel (Brussels people’s house).