KAFFED

KAFFED organizes Circassian Genocide commemoration events every year. After the 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes, they coordinated with the Circassian associations in the region and provided assistance.

History

Circassian cultural activities began in Turkey after the Young Turk Revolution in the Ottoman Empire. Political societies such as the North Caucasian Society (Şimalî Kafkas Cemiyeti) and the Caucasus Independence Committee (Kafkas İstiklâl Komitesi), both aiming for the independence of Circassia and supported by the Committee of Union and Progress, were established. In 1908, the most important of these societies, the Circassian Union and Charity Society, was founded. These societies were closed with the banning of minority societies in 1923.

Association activities in Turkey restarted in the 1960s and 1970s, as Circassians moving from villages to cities established associations. The Ankara Circassian Association was founded during this period in 1961. Efforts to unite Circassian-Caucasian Associations in Turkey under a central organization began with a meeting held in Ankara in 1975. This was followed by meetings in Istanbul, Kayseri, Antalya, and again in Ankara. Following a meeting held on November 5, 1977, Circassians waiting at a bus stop were attacked by armed assailants, and one person lost their life. As a result, activities were suspended. Associations resumed activities in the second half of the 1980s, and meetings interrupted in 1977 restarted in the early 90s. KAFFED was established on July 3, 2003, with the aim of uniting all Circassian associations in Turkey.