Saturday, December 24, 2022 – 1:27 PM
Carthage – Tunisia, 24 December, WAM / Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, the Tunisian city of Carthage yesterday witnessed the launch of the seventh session of the Kairouan Festival of Arabic Poetry, which is organized by the Department of Culture in Sharjah, with the participation of Tunisian poets, intellectuals and critics.
The opening ceremony was held at the House of Wisdom in Carthage, in the presence of His Excellency Abdullah bin Muhammad Al Owais, Head of the Department of Culture in Sharjah, His Excellency Rashid Muhammad Al Mansouri, the UAE Ambassador to the Republic of Tunisia, and Muhammad Ibrahim Al Qaseer, Director of the Department of Cultural Affairs in the Department and the representative of the Governor of Tunis, the First Delegated to Carthage, Ezzedine Al Chebbi and Hala Al Wartani. Head of the House of Wisdom and a group of writers, academics and those interested in poetry.
Poet Jamila Al-Majri, director of the Kairouan House of Poetry, confirmed that the Houses of Poetry initiative and many other cultural events at the Arab and international levels express the unceasing care of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah for the intellectuals, noting that it is the matter that makes the House of Poetry keen to be at the level of honesty and enthusiasm. To achieve broader radiation in the service of the cultural movement in Tunisia.
She explained that Kairouan House of Poetry has become a destination for poets from Tunisia and neighboring countries and Arab intellectuals who visit it whenever they visit Tunisia on cultural occasions, pointing out that the Department of Culture in Sharjah has a prominent role in encouraging the work of the house through publishing and printing books in various literary fields.
Al-Majri reviewed the activities of the House of Poetry during the current year, which amounted to 45 activities and received more than 140 participants, explaining that the festival is the fruit of the house’s work in opening up to various experiences and the participation of poets from the far north of Morocco to its south, and representing most of the country’s states.
She said, “Seven years have passed since the founding of the House in 2015, since the launch of seven beacons, whose light continues to shine brighter and wider to illuminate the sky of the Arab world from its Gulf to its surroundings, and this is the dream of Arab poets. An unprecedented historical achievement that made the equation between power and culture come true when the ruler is enlightened.”
For his part, Abdullah Al Owais stressed in his speech the importance of strengthening the bonds of Arab brotherhood through cultural events. He said, “The meeting is renewed in green Tunisia, and the bonds of Arab brotherhood are strengthened through a series of various cultural forums and festivals, whose regular attendance expresses the depth of brotherly relations between the UAE and the Republic of Tunisia under wise leadership in both countries.
He added, “It is a matter of pleasure and pride to witness the opening of the seventh session of the Kairouan Festival of Arabic Poetry, as it is the festival that started from his home in Kairouan. The fragrance of poetry is fragrant with its original meanings, and the poets gather in the House of Wisdom and the Carthage Municipal Hall to sing their poems and enjoy the lovers of the letter, the word and the noble meaning.
The attendees of the opening ceremony followed a video tape documenting the most important stations of the House of Poetry in Kairouan during the current year, which showed the annual harvest for the year 2022 for the house through the movement of activities between evenings, seminars, dialogue sessions and artistic paragraphs so that the audience can explore the daily work that does not stop for months inside and outside the house.
The festival’s activities included holding poetry sessions and evenings, and a critical symposium titled “Transformations of Modern Tunisian Poetry”.
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Ahmed Al-Boutli / Batoul Kashwani
