On 21 September, UNFICYP hosted an ‘artvocacy’ event in Ledra Palace Hotel where two Cypriot artists, Ramadan Nalcıoğlu and Vicky Panagi, came together with young people from across the divide, activists and UN peacekeepers and painted a mural in one of the walls outside the hotel to mark International Day of Peace.

Speaking about joining this UN initiative, Vicky Panagi said: “Art can bring people together. Many people from the across the divide came together today to paint and get to know each other. Cyprus is divided and I grew up with this division and this is something we want to end, and we want the two communities to come together and live in harmony”.

Ramadan Nalcıoğlu added that “art is culture and culture brings people together. Art is a movement for activism and art is always politics and is always a voice. And maybe art alone cannot bring peace, but by connecting people to each other it is capable of bringing peace.

To mark the day, the idea was to create a street art collective group painting experience, which is historically tied to social progress and human rights. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the island, Colin Stewart, together with the Mission’s Force Commander, Major General Erdenebat Batsuuri joined the crowd and collaborated in painting the mural.

On her part, Cypriot activist Marilena Kyriacou highlighted that “this is a great initiative. And I am so happy and grateful that these initiatives continue to happen. These days are very important. I participated; I painted the leaves. But for me what I always think, being an activist in this field for so many years, is that we need to focus on the importance of the intercommunal aspects of it. We need to change the narratives and understand that it is not only about Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots, but it’s for everyone, all the people living on this island and that peace needs to be achieved for everyone, for locals, minorities, international students, immigrants, refugees, LGBTQ people. Peace demands constant and everyday work”.

Enjoying coming together with other Cypriots as well as with the UN peacekeepers, young Cypriot activist, Ada Olgun said: “I had the incredible opportunity to work with a team to create a mural for International Day of Peace. It was a joyful and inspiring day, full of creativity and teamwork. We worked with a number of young individuals to make our ideas a reality, transforming what had been empty into a symbol of peace and cooperation. I met people from the UN and gained new friends, which made painting the mural much more fun”.

The creative backbone of the initiative was to promote art as an effective element that brings people together and enables collaboration among people. The theme of the mural as “Our Common Future begins with Peace” and the outline of the project came as a result of a meeting of the artists with young Cypriots to hear about their views, challenges they face and how to design a future they want.

Expressing his enthusiasm, young Cypriot Sait Bulak said: “Today I joined this UNFICYP’s action, and we drew very nice paintings. It was a very good experience, and I am very happy to be here”.

Actively engaging throughout the event, young Cypriot Aeryn Clemenceau said: “I enjoyed participating in this event today. For me, taking part in this beautiful and constructive initiative to use art to come closer, to get to know each other, to build relationships and to cultivate peace is especially relevant in Cyprus, which has been divided for so long.”

In a world with rising geopolitical tensions and protracted conflicts, there has never been a better time to remember the values needed for a culture of peace.

Every year on 21 September, the UN commemorates the International Day of Peace. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace. In that declaration, the United Nations’ most inclusive body recognized that peace “not only is the absence of conflict, but also requires a positive, dynamic participatory process where dialogue is encouraged, and conflicts are solved in a spirit of mutual understanding and cooperation.”