Rawya Ahmed, a Yemeni Female Artist Shows Beauty, Hopes through Paintings
New
Age Islam News Bureau
08
January 2021
•
Gulf-Israel Women’s Forum: Building the Bridges to Gulf Women's Hearts
•
England Women's Cricket Team to Make 'Historic' Trip to Pakistan
•
India Announces Completion of Project For Afghan Women
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/rawya-ahmed-yemeni-female-artist/d/124020
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Rawya
Ahmed, A Yemeni Female Artist Shows Beauty, Hopes through Paintings
2021-01-08
Yemeni artist Rawya Ahmed stands in front of one
of her paintings displayed in an exhibition, in Sanaa, Yemen, on Jan. 6, 2020.
(Photo by Mohammed Mohammed/Xinhua)
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SANAA,
Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- Rawya Ahmed, a Yemeni female artist, opened her first
personal exhibition in the Houthi-controlled Yemeni capital Sanaa. Instead of
visualizing the pains of the war and destruction, the artist's paintings offer
a rare serene beauty, which she hopes to console the people that have been
caught up in the bloody war.
"For
me, it was a discharge of negative energy that I have got during the war. I
used to feel annoyed but didn't know how to get rid of the pressures. Luckily,
I finally found that I can seek shelter in the beautiful things, " Rawya
told Xinhua.
Rawya's
exhibition is a rarity in Yemen since the war erupted in 2014. Now for most
Yemenis, the most pressing problems are escaping the next air raid or finding
the next meal for their families. But some artists, like Rawya, now try to put
the country in a positive light through their brushes and colors, and try to
find an escape for the people and themselves to momentarily forget the sounds
of explosions and air raids.
In
Rawya's paintings, she tried to change the misery on people's faces by using
delightful colors.
"In
the exhibition, we have special sections on paintings of famous people in the
country, such as the Yemeni writer and poet Abdullah Al-Baradouni, and the
singer Abu Bakr Salem," Rawya said, adding that the artistic portraits of
familiar faces can offer people a nostalgic consolation before the war erupted.
While
daily life in Yemen is tough to say the least, some people still seek aesthetic
pleasures. Many visitors coming to the Rawya's exhibition believed it could
alleviate the despair inside their hearts.
Samah
Al-Wajih, one of the visitors who attend the exhibition, expressed her gladness
in the paintings and wished all the world to see that there is still beauty, despite
the destruction, in the country.
"It
is terrific that in the disaster-stricken country, there are still people
capable of creating beautiful arts like this. This certainly calls on the world
that there are hope and life inside this war-ravaged country," Al-Wajih
told Xinhua.
"Young
men and women are looking, through their paintings, for love, peace, and safety
away from the war. In these drawings, You can feel the touches of a person who
wants peace and a good life far off the crazy war that destroyed souls,"
Abdul Wasea Al-Ahnoumi, an organizer of the exhibition, said.
The
fighting between Iran-backed Houthi militia and a Saudi-led military coalition
supporting the country's internationally-recognized government has left the
Arab country in ruins.
"We
had enough war really. Not a single day goes by without losing a person dear to
us. The war needs to stop. We need responsible authorities to help us protect
peace and art, not inciting wars," the artist said. Enditem
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2021-01/08/c_139652291.htm
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Gulf-Israel
Women’s Forum: Building the Bridges to Gulf Women's Hearts
January
8, 2021
Members of the Forum during a meet-up
How an online forum, helmed by two successful Jewish
career women, is opening doors for dialogue on peace and prosperity
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The
Gulf-Israel Women’s Forum is an idea whose time had come. The online platform,
which predates the signing of the momentous Abraham Accords on September 15, is
the brainchild of Justine Zwerling and Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, who have been
friends for almost 30 years.
In
retrospect, Fleur says she knew in “their bones that this was our part to play
in the regional peace story”. “We have been there and done that,” she says. “We
saw the tangible benefits and wanted to replicate our previous successes to
make the Middle East a better place for our sons and daughters.”
Justine
has carved a niche for herself as the head of primary markets for the London
Stock Exchange (LSE) and is also the founder of the Jewish Women’s Business
Network. She was also named as one of the 100 most influential women in finance
and diversity in 2020.
Fleur
wears many hats. She is the deputy mayor of Jerusalem and holds the foreign
affairs portfolio. She also co-founded the UAE-Israel Business Council with
Israeli entrepreneur Dorian Barak.
The
Forum, which has hundreds of members, is an offshoot of the Council. Its
germinal thought, as Justine puts is, is premised on “who you are”, “what you
do” and “how I can help you”.
“Fleur
and I realised that we are living our life’s dream to reunite as women and
family,” says Justine. “We knew that the Forum was one of the critical steps
while building the Council, as both are inextricably linked.” Justine says the
key was playing to the instinctive strength of women who are “natural
networkers, nurturers, multitaskers and gamechangers”.
Fleur
remembers coming across a research paper that had cited women create 10 per
cent more value than men for their businesses through networking. “The study
made a lot of sense to me,” she says. “I believe that women are strong
connectors, as we not only converse more, but also listen more.”
She
believes women can be natural peacemakers in the Arabian Gulf. And what better
place than the UAE and Bahrain, who are signatories to the historic Abraham
Accords. “We want to make this a Gulf-wide initiative, as we understand other
countries may come on board of the Abraham Accords and our network should evolve
into a regional grouping,” adds Fleur.
As
Jewish women who have successfully built impactful women’s communities, Justine
says, “We knew that we have so much to learn from our Emirati and Gulf sisters.
Bringing us together in organic small forums was the first key to beginning our
new future, together.”
The
Forum, Justine points out, would unite women from the Gulf and Israel in
friendship, culture and business. “We are all daughters and mothers of the
Middle East. We have created a place for friendships, businesses and culture to
flourish,” she says.
What
started as a small online forum grew organically and several virtual meet-ups
and socially distanced in-person meetings were held in Dubai and Israel amid
the pandemic. “Fleur and I hosted 10 online forums last year on diverse topics,
such as women in media, Israeli and Emirati cultures, and a challah-baking
session with our Emirati sisters who were curious to learn to bake traditional
Jewish bread (used during sabbath),” remembers Justine.
More
events are in the pipeline this year involving women from Israel and the Arab
world focusing on technology, finance, healthcare, media and other sectors. “As
a representative of Jerusalem, I’m more excited at the potential for my city as
a tourist and technological hub,” points out Fleur. “For the uninitiated, Jerusalem
has almost 40 per cent Arab population. It’s important to involve East
Jerusalem Arabs in the Israel-Gulf normalisation process because they will
benefit tremendously from this in several ways. East Jerusalem can be a natural
bridge between Israel and the Gulf because of shared language and culture.”
Fleur
envisions East Jerusalem as the “back office” of the Middle East. “Plans are
afoot in bringing Fortune 500 companies to open their research and development
operations for the Middle East in East Jerusalem, which will offer financial
incentives and opportunities for the Arab-speaking workforce,” she says.
Similar
enthusiasm about the Forum is also exuded by Ariella Steinreich, senior
vice-president of Steinreich Communications, who — along with her team — has
been taking the lead on helping Israeli and Gulf companies communicate with
their new friends and explore business opportunities in each other’s markets.
“What makes the Abraham Accords different from past peace deals is that this
time around, the people in all three countries were incredibly supportive.
They’ve taken to social media to share their excitement and to meet people in
the other country,” she says.
Steinreich
cites the overwhelming response to a virtual Women in Media event that the Forum
had organised in November where women journalists from three countries
addressed participants about their experience of covering the accords and their
hopes for the region.
“Journalists
played an integral role in the historic Abraham Accords, they helped educate
the public on the positive impact this would have on the economic and social
levels,” she says. “This event allowed participants to hear directly from some
of the journalists who were at the fore.”
Justine,
Fleur and Ariella are bound by a common goal — to act as a bridge between
Israeli and Arabian Gulf women. They are successful career women, who want to
radiate peace and prosperity among women in the region.
https://www.khaleejtimes.com/wknd/features/wknd-special-building-the-bridges-to-gulf-womens-hearts
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England
women's cricket team to make 'historic' trip to Pakistan
Jan
7, 2021
KARACHI:
The England women's cricket team will travel to Pakistan for the first time in
October this year for a limited-overs series when the men's side will also be
here for a white-ball series, the PCB announced on Thursday.
The
England women will play the two T20Is as double-headers alongside the men's
team on October 14 and 15 while the ODIs will be played on October 18, 20 and
22 October at the National stadium in Karachi.
The
men's side will tour Pakistan for the first time since 2005.
We
have today confirmed that England Women will tour Pakistan in October 👇
—
England Cricket (@englandcricket) 1610013618000
"World
champions England accompanying their men's side for their first-ever tour to
Karachi is an extremely powerful and strong announcement for Pakistan, our
women's cricketers as well as for the global sport," PCB (Pakistan Cricket
Board) Chief Executive Wasim Khan said in a statement.
"Women's
T20Is taking place before the men's matches at the iconic National Stadium will
mean more eyeballs will follow these matches than ever before.
"The
three ODIs against the world champions will assist the Pakistan women's side to
access, gauge and fine-tune their ICC Women's World Cup 2022 preparations as
they aim to produce improved performances than in the past," he added.
ECB
Managing Director of Women's Cricket, Clare Connor, was equally ecstatic.
A
stunning @Tammy_Beaumont innings against 🇵🇰 back in 2016! 🗓
https://t.co/3MDb4Gwf34
—
England Cricket (@englandcricket) 1610015421000
"The
England Women's cricket team has never toured Pakistan before so this is
another important step in our history and journey.
"Not
only will this be a cricket tour that provides valuable competitive opportunity
to both teams, it should also serve as another powerful and positive message as
we drive forward our equality ambitions for more women and girls to derive
empowerment through the sport," Connor added.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/news/england-womens-cricket-team-to-make-historic-trip-to-pakistan/articleshow/80153594.cms
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India
announces completion of project for Afghan women
7th
January 2021
Kabul
[Afghanistan], January 7 (ANI): Indian embassy here on Thursday announced the
completion of a high-impact development project on increasing the economic
opportunity for Afghan women through handicrafts in Ghor province.
In
November last year, India had announced a new phase of over 100 high-impact
community projects in Afghanistan worth USD 80 million (Rs 592 crore).
"@IndianEmbKabul
announces successful completion of a "High Impact Community
Development" Project on enhancing the economic opportunity for Afghan
women through handicrafts in Ghor Province. @MEAIndia @economy_of," the
Indian embassy tweeted.
On
November 24, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had attended the 2020
Afghanistan Conference and announced Phase-IV of the High Impact Community
Development Projects in Afghanistan, which envisages more than 100 projects
worth USD 80 million that India would undertake in Afghanistan.
India's
development portfolio in Afghanistan has to-date amounted to over USD 3
billion, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had said.
Jaishankar
had highlighted during the conference that no part of Afghanistan today is
untouched by the 400 plus projects that India has undertaken in all 34 of
Afghanistan's provinces. More than 65,000 Afghan students have also studied in
India.
India
has invested heavily in peace and development in Afghanistan and believes that
the gains of the last two decades must be preserved and the interests of
minorities, women and vulnerable sections must be ensured, the MEA had added.
(ANI)
https://www.bignewsnetwork.com/news/267464406/india-announces-completion-of-project-for-afghan-women
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