The Ministry of Culture held Monday at its Bait Al-Hikma (House of Wisdom) Hall a seminar on Palestine’s Arab and Islamic identity. Director of Palestine House for Culture in Turkiye Sameer Attiyah participated in the seminar which was moderated by the Director of Culture and Arts Department in the Ministry of Culture Mariam Yassin al-Hammadi.
In remarks to QNA, Sameer Attiyah said that holding the seminar in an exceptional time as the State of Palestine and the Palestinian people are facing challenges in their land, and their identity, pointing that the Ministry of Culture was keen to hold this seminar to discuss the memory of generations in Palestine and outside it.
He added that this “valuable and rich” seminar discussed the historical stages of the Palestinian identity; the reasons for this identity to be the subject of challenges inside Palestine and among the Palestinian diaspora; and the Arab roles in supporting the Palestinian cause, in addition to setting clear answers to many inquiries related to Palestinian culture and identity.
He explained that the Ministry of Culture, presented a very important aspect of the memory of generations as it shed light on life experiences inside and outside Palestine. Since the beginning of the Israeli occupation, the Palestinian identity has not been affected because the Palestinian people adhere to their Arab and Islamic identity, Attiyah said adding that despite the hardships they face every day, the Palestinian people are steadfast, resisting their enemy and adhering to their rights, culture and identity.
For her part, al-Hammadi said that identity is the feeling of the common denominator among people, as a social construct and not as a natural state. This is linked to special representations that express belonging, namely values, customs, traditions, and behaviour. National identity is usually established based on land, but in the case of Palestinian identity, it is based on land or belief in its land, an Arab Muslim identity, linked to belief in the Palestinian cause and its expressions, she added.
Al-Hammadi said that the Palestinian identity emanating from Jerusalem has spread and made Palestine a widespread concept among intellectuals in the Arab world.
This has increased the Europeans’ view of this land as the “Holy Land,” which made them realise the power and impact of the land of Palestine.
