Filipino students showcase their skills and talent at the National Day celebrations in Al Rayyan
By Joey Aguilar/Staff Reporter
Students from various community and independent schools in the country led the cultural performances at the Al Rayyan Sports Club on Thursday to mark Qatar’s National Day celebrations.
Organised by the Ministry of Interior (MoI), the day-long festivity attracted a large number of spectators from Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia to witness the thematic shows, parade, song and dance competitions.
Dressed in colourful National Day costumes, groups of young performers from Doha Modern Indian School, Noble International School, Philippine School of Doha and the Philippine International School Qatar entertained the crowd with their presentations on stage.
Fun and excitement at Al Rayyan continued with a number of sports competitions and activities such as football, marathon and tug of war.
First Lieutenant Mohamed Abdallah al-Shafi from the community policing department who was in charge of the event told Gulf Times that he was pleased with the participation of the three expatriate communities in this year’s National Day celebrations.
He also lauded the performances of students saying each group had enthralled the crowd with their talent and skills.
“I’m very happy that many communities are participating in our cultural activities this year,” said First Lieutenant al-Shafi. “We hope they will all be here again next year and in our upcoming activities.”
Officials of the three expatriate communities also thanked the Qatar National Day committee for giving them the opportunity to perform every year at the event.
Ismail Suboh, chairman of the Malaysian Association of Qatar (MAQ), said that culture once again proved to be a universal language especially in celebrating a special and grand occasion such as the National Day.
“In terms of performance, language is not a barrier, whether you perform in Indian, Chinese, Malay or in other languages, the message is already there,” he stressed.
The Philippines and Indonesian community organsations also expressed their gratitude to the Qatar government, specifically MoI, for coming up with a well-organised associated activities of the National Day.
Frank Jamandre, chairman of the United Filipino Organisations in Qatar (UFOQ), told Gulf Times that the cultural performances try to portray the beauty of Qatar’s culture and how it impacts the Filipino community especially its youth.
“It is very important that we abide and respect each other’s culture in order to have an harmonious relationship with them,” he said.
Jamandre also stressed the importance of educating the Filipino expatriates about the tradition, norms and rules of the host county.
He said such cultural activities help the youth to comprehend and respect the culture of another country.
Jamandre’s statement was also echoed by Heri Kartono, chairman of the Indonesian Community Association in Qatar.
By participating in such events, he said people gain a deeper understanding of the cultures of other countries.
“It promotes and fosters unity among expatriate communities in Qatar,” said Kartono, who hopes to see other expatriate and Qatari performers in next year’s National Day celebrations.
