02.03.2023 Exchange students from Timor-Leste visit the Center for Conflict Studies

In December students from our partner university in Timor Leste went on an excursion to Berlin together with other exchange students from Ukraine, Japan and Spain.

For the second time, students from our partner university Universidade da Paz (UNPAZ) from Dili (Timor Leste) studied peace and conflict studies for a semester at the Center for Conflict Studies. The exchange semester was made possible by the Erasmus programme for mobility with partner countries. The students took various courses at the Center and in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Philosophy as well as German and English language courses. The Center also organised an introductory seminar for the exchange students on various research topics in peace and conflict studies, e.g. on youth and conflict and on transitional justice. A highlight of the stay was the excursion to Berlin.

Excursion Report: East Timorese Students' Trip to Berlin

On December 6th, a group of students from East Timor, the Ukraine, Japan and Spain embarked on an excursion to Berlin with Pia Falschebner and Felix Anderl of the Center for Conflict Studies. The three-day trip was filled with educational and cultural activities, allowing the students to learn about the city's history, culture, and society. Particularly, the group engaged with the topic of “dealing with the past” in Germany, sparking interesting discussions about the differences in memory culture across countries.

After taking the train to Berlin together, the group started the day of 7 December with a guided tour of the Humboldt Forum, where they learned about the colonial past and presence of Berlin and discussed the way this history is presented in the museum. After a brief visit and photo opportunity at the Brandenburg Gate, the group went to the Memorial for the Murdered Jews of the Holocaust, where they learned about the Holocaust and discussed the ways its victims are remembered architecturally at this site. Furthermore, this was compared to the Holocaust memorials of the murdered homosexuals and the Sinti and Roma people.
In the evening, the students then went on a tour of the Parliamentary Building (Bundestag) from.

On the final day of the trip, the students embarked on a "Cold War Walking Tour." This tour took them through the streets of Berlin, where they learned about the city's role in the Cold War. After a much-needed break, the group visited the Environmental History Museum from and then departed for Marburg ending their excursion.

Overall, the trip was a huge success, and the students gained valuable knowledge about Berlin's history and culture. The educational activities allowed the students to learn about the city's and country’s past and present, and the cultural experiences gave them a glimpse into Berlin's diverse society. The excursion was a great opportunity for the diverse group of students to expand their knowledge but especially to engage in discussions about memory and how different the past is approached in each country.