The Arab Thought Forum’s Third Youth Conference:Toward developing institutionalized work for Arab youths [Archives:2008/1177/Last Page]
July 31 2008
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For two days, Arab youth from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine and Syria came together to discuss various issues and what should be done to create a better future for themselves and future generations.
Sabreen is an 18-year-old Egyptian college student who has lived the past 10 years of her life in Jordan. Her Jordanian accent is so remarkable that one would be surprised to learn that she's originally from Egypt. Other than an identity issue, Sabreen complains of gender discrimination in her own family.
“I wasn't allowed to travel to Syria to participate in an event that was so important to me and in which I was a key player. My family said they wouldn't allow their daughter to travel by herself to such an event. If it had been my brother who wanted to go, it would've been no problem. I hate that,” she said.
Her frustration is one reason she began working at the college newspaper. She needed a place where she could express herself and where her work would be recognized because of her talent and not be objectified because of her gender or nationality.
Sabreen is just one of some 200 young men and women who participated in the Third Youth Conference organized by the Arab Thought Forum in Amman the middle of last month. The forum takes an interest in young people as the future and this year's conference discussed ways to develop institutional work related to youth in the Arab world.
Jordan's Prince Hassan Bin Talal, who chairs the Arab Thought Forum, sympathized with Arab youth at the opening ceremony, describing their challenges and their not so encouraging environment. He pointed out that the situation of today's Arab youth is a direct result of what adults are doing. However, he highlighted ways to move ahead, indicating a ray of light through some of the activities and projects created by the forum and other concerned organizations.
“Like Martin Luther King, I too have a dream. I have a dream that one day our young men and women will rejoice at a life without discrimination, degradation and oppression,” he said.
The prince emphasized the need to “empower youth legally because this is exactly what they need in order to find their place in the sun.”
The forum's general secretary, Dr. Hassan Nafi'a, agreed, further noting that Arab societies suffer from oppression, corruption, high costs of living and lack of rule of law.
“Societies that take no interest in women's and youth issues are rigid societies with no hope for development. The solution is to listen to the young generations and hold constructive dialogue with them,” he proposed.
Nine themes, numerous recommendations
The participating youth were distributed among nine themes: education, family, health and environment, citizenship and public participation, religious influence, equality favoritism and nepotism, legal and legislative awareness, freedom of expression, networking and communication. Sessions took place over two days, concluding with numerous recommendations.
Among the general recommendations were to provide more training and public opportunities for youth so that they will learn more and gain more confidence in their abilities. Discussions focusing on technology revealed that Arab youth greatly depend upon the internet and modern technology.
Participants displayed concern about quality of education and lack of opportunities to participate, even at universities and higher education institutes.
As one University of Jordan student remarked at the education session, “We want teachers to respect us and work with us, not against us.”
The young participants also pointed out that Arab families gradually are losing their close-knit structure and positive social values. They concluded that most family problems occur because there's no dialogue between family members and “nobody really wants to listen to the other,” they complained.
An interesting issue running throughout the sessions was the comparison between men's and women's rights and obligations. As expected, the men disagreed with the women on gender-related issues, but eventually agreed that for the sake of a better future for Arab youth, both men and women must be empowered.
Disparity and taboos
The youth participating in the sessions surprised the organizers and session leaders with their intellect and their deep understanding and concern.
Through her participation on the health and environment team, Samar Mazghani explained that certain taboos should be broken and youth should feel free to talk about certain currently frowned upon issues. For example, one's sexuality, political affiliation, religion, etc., shouldn't be hidden, but rather discussed openly so that both individuals and society as a whole may thrive.
Mazghani gave the example that drugs, AIDS and other STDs are spreading because Arab society refuses to acknowledge their existence or why they are occurring.
At the same session, the youths expressed their concern about the environment and how they should promote a sense of volunteerism among youth and children to care for their environment.
Heated discussions also took place regarding religion and religious influence in daily life. As Doa'a, a student at Jordan's Irbid University, commented, “I'm scared that the number of fanatics is growing. I'm afraid that a day will come when the rights I've earned regarding education, work and public participation will be taken from me on the pretext of religion.”
The youths also said they hope to emigrate from their respective countries because they find no freedoms or an encouraging environment in the Arab world in which to thrive and prosper.
“Let's face it, we aren't equal. There will always be someone who has a better opportunity than me because he or she knows some VIP or has more money or a strong family name,” said one Iraqi student in Jordan.
Huda Al-Zu'obi, director of the Arab Culture Association in Gothenburg, Sweden, noted that she has seen many Arabs excel abroad and how they would rather live away from their homes and enjoy freedoms than live in oppressive countries surrounded by their family and friends.
She added, “It's a shame that we don't live up to our principles because there's so much to learn from Islam that could make us world pioneers.”
Heated discussions also took place on the freedom of expression team, with the participants split between those wanting no limits at all and those saying there must be rules.
“Let the people be the judge, not the Ministry of Information or any media council governed by the government. The people are the ultimate judges who will make a particular media either successful or not worthy of their time,” Egyptian blogger Wael Abbas pointed out.
However, his idea wasn't well received because most of the young participants couldn't imagine a world without any boundaries. “It would be chaotic, and blasphemy and insult would spread,” said Abdullah, a student at Jordan's Al-Esra University.
Time to listen, cooperate and create
At the conference's final session, Prince Hassan briefly commented on what he saw and heard in the sessions.
“I'm delighted that I witnessed a sense of noble partnership and a true desire to listen and comprehend. But I also saw signs of creativity, pioneering and leadership and this has made me glad. I can say that this event was a great success,” he concluded.
Commenting on some of the youths' remarks in the nine sessions, he indicated that they should be turned into real projects to be seen and felt in practical life. However, he also emphasized the need for legal education and awareness.
The prince noted that if there's a single project deserving the Arab world's attention and support, it's creating career development centers for youth. He explained that through such centers, young men and women in the Arab world can become empowered with the skills and capacities required in the job market rather than wasting years studying redundant topics or becoming depressed due to unemployment.
Finally, Prince Hassan congratulated the participants for their efforts, noting how they came from around the Arab world and farther to listen to each other and cooperate in order to create seeds for projects and ideas that will make Arab youths' future brighter and more prosperous.
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