2023-10-08 17:32:58
Sudanese refugee women residing in Cairo participated in the third session of the “She is the Arts” festival, which includes the participation of a large number of women’s groups from around the world, in order to present their talents and artistic abilities, by presenting a show bearing the same name of their band, “Isolated Island.”
The initiative was launched by Sudanese refugee women with the support of the “From Here We Start” Center with the aim of creating a youth forum for cultural exchange and expression of identity through art and cultural dialogue activities, which aims to integrate and display what refugee and immigrant youth go through, and their connection to their culture, and also aims to promote peaceful coexistence.
Sudanese artist Hadeel Al-Hadi, a dance instructor in the “Isolated Island” group, told Asharq Al-Awsat: “I am an independent artist interested in performing arts, a singing performer and a percussionist. I founded a children’s Sudanese dance group, and from there we expanded and created a group of a number of young refugee women from Sudan. The band includes a large number of refugee women in all fields of arts.”
The number of Sudanese residing in Egypt exceeds 5 million individuals, according to official Egyptian and Sudanese statistics.
Al-Hadi pointed out that “the band’s main goal is to present performances, dances, and various songs, so that viewers can learn regarding Sudanese arts, dance, and performances,” pointing out that their goal is to change society’s vision of them, and she continues: “We are not refugees in the conventional sense, but we are artists who are able to express themselves.” We are human beings regarding ourselves, and we were able to achieve this during our recent participation in the “She is the Arts” festival, where we presented more than one show at the Jesuit Cultural Center in Alexandria and the Falaki Theater in Cairo under the supervision and direction of the choreographer, artist Nagham Salah.
Part of one of the performances of the “Isolated Island” band (the band)
Al-Hadi explained that there is cooperation with other nationalities residing in Egypt during the band’s performances, as female artists from Syria participate with them in some performances.
Nevin Qenawy, founder and director of the “She Arts” Festival, expressed her happiness in a statement issued by the festival’s administration with the participation of Sudanese refugee women: “I am happy to have teams of refugees, male and female, from various countries of the world join in the third edition of this (She Arts) Festival.” year, to display their inspiring artistic creativity, as the festival is one of the important opportunities that this year provided creative refugee women and men with a smart space to support their various artistic talents, and I would like to thank all the artistic bodies that support the festival, from the government, companies and various institutions, including the High Commissioner for the United Nations. United Nations Refugee Affairs in Egypt, who responded to our call to include a number of refugee women in the activities of the 2023 (She is the Arts) Festival.
The management of the “She is the Arts” Festival invited one hundred Sudanese children to attend a children’s concert for free, in cooperation with the German School Choir in Alexandria and the Fabrica Children’s Band.
The numbers of Sudanese arrivals and refugees in Egypt have increased in recent years due to the escalation of political and economic tensions in Sudan and South Sudan, making departure the first choice for Sudanese citizens, and Egypt was their first destination, according to observers.
According to the International Commission for Refugees’ report for March 2023, Egypt hosts more than 288,000 registered asylum seekers and refugees from 60 different countries, the majority of whom are from Syria, then Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Yemen, and Somalia. The UN report explained that refugees and asylum seekers live in Egypt in an urban environment (cities), and are largely concentrated in Greater Cairo, Alexandria, Damietta and several cities on the northern coast.
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