While settling into a new place, you always have a warm feeling if you see, hear or taste something familiar. That feeling can be most vivid for those who flee war. For example, a children’s story might describe how a girl arranges her veil; a father joins Friday prayers; or a family gathers to share sweet tea. That’s why storytelling is helping thousands of refugee children from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to reconnect with their roots even as they adjust to their new lives in Europe.
Maitha Al Khayat and Noura Al Khoori, Emirati authors of children’s books, created this experience by holding a series of readings for refugees in Berlin recently, visiting the children in classrooms, a library and at their accommodation. The visit was part of the Berlin International Literature Festival which was held in late September.
Al Khoori, from Abu Dhabi, has just published The White Hands, which describes a refugee boy's journey from his homeland to a neighbouring country. In 2013, the young mother published her first book Fanteer the Fluffy Flamingo, followed by The Golden Dates. Listening to The Golden Dates in Berlin, a girl from Syria whispered to her friend: "We are also sitting on the floor and having tea!" And after the readings, many children moved closer to the authors, taking their hands and chatting with them excitedly.
Al Khoori says: “I felt as if they found a magical home in the books. I wish that such an initiative to let kids connect back to their roots through books is kept alive and regular.”
Al Khayat, from Ras Al Khaimah, also presented her book, My Own Special Way. The mother of five has written 17 books, including I Love My Dad's Long Beard and I Love My Mum's Pretty Veil.
She says: “The refugee kids could relate to different parts of our stories. Even though we had to switch to [the] Syrian dialect when telling our stories in Arabic, their knowledge of their mother tongue was impressive.”
Due to the influx of refugees, there is a growing need for Arabic children’s literature in the German education system – for the cultural enrichment of both Arab and German children. But there is a shortage of these books in the publishing market. Children at the readings asked Al Khayat and Al Khoori for more stories.
Christoph Rieger, director of the children’s and youth programme at the Berlin International Literature Festival, says: “The richness of storytelling of Arabic writers must be made even more visible in children’s books with a literary quality.”
Here, the Government has declared 2016 as the “Year of Reading”, in order to strengthen people’s affection for literature.Literature can also support the integration of refugees. For example, the project “Comic Connections” is building a steady solidarity in Berlin, where comic artists from both Syria and the German capital have held weekly workshops with refugee children since February.
Another initiative in Germany is the Poetry Project. “Poetry is a good bridge to cross foreignness. That was our idea when we started The Poetry Project,” says founder Susanne Töpel. She explains how teenage boys from Afghanistan and Iran, who have fled to Europe, have met mentors in Berlin for the past eight months. They have written about their loneliness, fears and their families. Eighteen-year-old Mohamad Mashghdost from Iran wrote: “I wanted to leave. And I stayed. I wanted to stay. And I left. Leaving was not important. And neither was staying. I was important, I, who did not exist.”
Ulrich Schreiber, founder and director of the Berlin International Literature Festival, invited the teenagers to the festival.
“I never heard that kind of poetry before,” he says.
“This project can lead to the birth of young poets. A lot of people in the audience at the festival had to swallow their tears.”
At the festival, Al Khayat and Al Khoori also held a reading for 290 children. They bubbled with questions such as: “Why do you wear the veils?”; “Why are the men wearing white clothes and women don’t?”; and “Isn’t it hot in the black dresses?”
Al Khayat says: “Their questions showed tolerance and curiosity. They even found it cool for me to wear the niqab.”
The writers presented a slideshow comparing family life in Germany and in the UAE, with images of the subway in Berlin and Dubai, and of German cars in Dubai. “Oh! My parents are driving the same car,” shouted one boy.
A teacher said: “Especially in intercultural encounters, everything is too focused on the differences between cultures and individuals. We need to focus more on commonality and connecting, so we are able to form a bridge between the cultures.”
Al Khayat and Al Khoori hope to strengthen that bridge between Arab and German culture. Hopefully Arabic literature for children and young adults will develop as swiftly as the refugees’ sense of safety in their new homes.
Birte Hendricks is a writer based in Germany.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Apple%20Mac%20through%20the%20years
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PREMIER LEAGUE RESULTS
Bournemouth 1 Manchester City 2
Watford 0 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
Newcastle United 3 West Ham United 0
Huddersfield Town 0 Southampton 0
Crystal Palace 0 Swansea City 2
Manchester United 2 Leicester City 0
West Bromwich Albion 1 Stoke City 1
Chelsea 2 Everton 0
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Burnley 1
Liverpool 4 Arsenal 0
How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
The%20specs
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FIGHT%20CARD
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COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse Of Madness'
Director: Sam Raimi
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Michael Stuhlbarg and Rachel McAdams
Rating: 3/5
Company%20profile
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Rashid & Rajab
Director: Mohammed Saeed Harib
Stars: Shadi Alfons, Marwan Abdullah, Doaa Mostafa Ragab
Two stars out of five
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The biog
Fast facts on Neil Armstrong’s personal life:
- Armstrong was born on August 5, 1930, in Wapakoneta, Ohio
- He earned his private pilot’s license when he was 16 – he could fly before he could drive
- There was tragedy in his married life: Neil and Janet Armstrong’s daughter Karen died at the age of two in 1962 after suffering a brain tumour. She was the couple’s only daughter. Their two sons, Rick and Mark, consulted on the film
- After Armstrong departed Nasa, he bought a farm in the town of Lebanon, Ohio, in 1971 – its airstrip allowed him to tap back into his love of flying
- In 1994, Janet divorced Neil after 38 years of marriage. Two years earlier, Neil met Carol Knight, who became his second wife in 1994
Profile box
Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
RESULTS
6.30pm: Meydan Sprint Group 2 US$175,000 1,000m
Winner: Ertijaal, Jim Crowley (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer)
7.05pm: Handicap $60,000 1,400m
Winner: Secret Ambition, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Handicap $160,000 1,400m
Winner: Raven’s Corner, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
8.15pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group 3 $200,000 2,000m
Winner: Folkswood, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
8.50pm: Zabeel Mile Group 2 $250,000 1,600m
Winner: Janoobi, Jim Crowley, Mike de Kock
9.25pm: Handicap $125,000 1,600m
Winner: Capezzano, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
Scoreline
Real Madrid 1
Ronaldo (53')
Atletico Madrid 1
Griezmann (57')
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
RACECARD
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
