Tlemcen, capitale de la culture islamique 2011 :

[Al-khiyal]

Algerian President inaugurates commemoration of Tlemcen capital of Islamic culture 2011, Morocco boycotts

ALGIERS, April 16, 2011 (KUNA) -- Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika inaugurated Saturday evening the celebration to commemorate "Tlemcen capital of Islamic culture 2011" in the presence of 15 cabinet members and representatives of eight regional and international organizations and 25 countries. Assistant Secretary-General of the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL), Abdulhadi Al-Ajmi led the Kuwaiti delegation to the event. The grand celebration, held on Latta Setti plateau, downtown Tlemcen, west Algeria, gathered dozens of members of the diplomatic corps in the country and foreign guests and local public figures including former president Ahmad Ben Bella. Director-General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) Dr. Abdulaziz Othman Al-Twaijri and Algerian Minister of Culture Khalida Toumi addressed the opening ceremony. The activities were unofficially opened last night in a popular celebration with 57 local and foreign troupes offering artistic performances. However, Morocco's Bensalem Himmich who led his country delegation to the unofficial celebration boycotted the official inauguration of the event in protest against the presence of representatives of the Western Sahara. Several Arab and Muslim delegates to the event voiced resentment at the presence of the so-called Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) which is only recognized by Algeria, a Moroccan diplomat told Maghreb Arabe Presse (MAP). The SADR is a member of the African Union (AU) but not a member of the ISESCO, Morocco's news agency quoted the source as saying. Morocco quit the AU in 1982 in protest against the granting of membership of the union to the disputed territory.

[Al-khiyal]

[Al-khiyal]

'Tlemcen Capital of Islamic Culture 2011' kicks off

April 19, 2011 -- Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika last week-end officially inaugurated the international event, "Tlemcen, Capital of Islamic Culture 2011". The year-long celebration will serve to allow "a better understanding of Islam by Westerners and greater understanding among peoples", Bouteflika said Saturday (April 16th). "Our duty is to work jointly not to the establishment of confrontation and disruption, but to build consensus, dialogue, exchanges founding the great reconciliation of human cultures," he said. He highlighted the unity of humanity where cultures are "numerous, diverse, varied and all respectable". Religious Affairs Minister Bouabdellah Ghlamallah underlined the importance of the celebration in countering distortions of Islam and inviting Western cultural and religious figures to clear the road towards understanding and convergence.

The inauguration brought together representatives of 29 countries, members of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (ISESCO), as well as 12 non-member states, including China, India, Spain and Portugal and the United States. It will "pave the way for a true dialogue among civilisations so as to draw nations and religions closer," said Dalil Boubakeur, rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris. "The delegations that attended the Tlemcen event, especially non-Muslim ones, were impressed by the antiquity and authenticity of this civilisation that truly reflects the national cultural heritage," he said. "Now more than ever, we need to showcase to the world the treasures and heritage of our cities, such as Tlemcen, Adrar, Ghardaia," Boubakeur emphasised. "We need to register and classify all monuments of historical and cultural value so as to protect and appreciate them."

The ceremony featured a major artistic festival comprising 22 giant floats that toured the streets of Tlemcen. About 400 artists from different provinces, trained by 60 foreign experts specialised in plastic arts, sculpture, decoration and other metiers, showcased their work. The event aired on Algerian national television. The procession kicked off with a float reflecting the diverse heritage of Tlemcen and displaying a map of the Muslim world and the countries participating in the cultural rendezvous. Lebanese artist Abdelhalim Caracalla directed the opening show under the slogan, "Tlemcen, the Echo of Faith". The ceremony was concluded with fireworks.

The agenda featured numerous themes, on top of which was the restoration of the physical cultural heritage of Tlemcen, including its antique buildings, city walls, slums, small mosques, public baths, ovens, shrines and Qur'ranic schools. The programme also included scientific and intellectual seminars to explore the history of the city and its cultural specificities, in addition to seven festivals featuring folk dance, Diwan music, Andalusian music, mosaic, decorations, Sufi music, as well as an international festival for religious singing and another one for Haouzi music. Also on the agenda were nine exhibitions on Islamic history. About 365 books about the heritage of the city will be published.

[Al-khiyal]

الأسبوع الثـقافي لدولة العراق بتلمسان
حضارة الرافدين تحط رحالها بعاصمة الزيانيين

استقطب سهرة أول أمس، قصر الثـقافة الجديد بتلمسان جمهورا غفيرا، جاء من أجل اكتشاف العراق في أول أسبوع ثـقافي دولي ينظم بمناسبة ''تلمسان عاصمة الثـقافة الإسلامية''، تحت شعار ''العراق مهد الحضارات''.

وقال الشاعر حامد الراوي، رئيس البعثـة الثـقافية العراقية، في حفل الافتتاح في كلمة مرتجلة ''العراق يعرف أن ثـقافته وصلت أرض الجزائر منذ قرون، فتشابكت وتداخلت الثـقافتان الجزائرية والعراقية''، مضيفا أن بلاده ستعمل على الاستفادة من التجربة الجزائرية لتحضير تظاهرة النجف عاصمة الثـقافة الإسلامية لسنة .2012
وتمنى سفير العراق في الجزائر، عدي الخير الله، من جهته، أن يوفّق الوفد في نقل صورة لامعة عن حضارة بلاد الرافدين. كما أشار إلى أن ''العراق ستتجاوز انتكاستها التي تعيشها منذ عشرية''.

وقد افتتح سهرة العراق المخرج ''أر أرشاك أسيان'' والفنانة العراقية ''شيرين محمد عارف''، بأوبرات استعرضت إبداعات الدار العراقية للأزياء. ورافق العرض صور عن طريق الشاشة العملاقة، عرضت مختلف التحف والرسومات والآثـار لمختلف الحضارات المتعاقبة على مدن العراق، من بابل وبغداد والبصرة وحضرموت وغيرها. وعلى وقع معزوفات عراقية المقامات والألحان، اكتشف جمهور تلمسان أنواعا راقية من الألبسة، عادت بالأذهان إلى عصور الخلافة، وما كان يعيشه سكان بغداد من تحضر وتمدن. لتتوالى العروض العراقية، بين الشعر والسينما والطّرب الأصيل الذي جسّدته الفرقة البصرية بلباسها العربي الأصيل. وسيكتشف الجمهور، على مدار أسبوع، مزيدا من اللّوحات الثـقافية العراقية، من خلال ما سيقدم من عروض ومعارض ومحاضرات.