BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//masahat - مساحات - ECPv6.16.3//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:masahat - مساحات X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://masahat.no X-WR-CALDESC:Events for masahat - مساحات REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:Europe/Oslo BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 TZNAME:CEST DTSTART:20140330T010000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:CET DTSTART:20141026T010000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 TZNAME:CEST DTSTART:20150329T010000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:CET DTSTART:20151025T010000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 TZNAME:CEST DTSTART:20160327T010000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:CET DTSTART:20161030T010000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 TZNAME:CEST DTSTART:20170326T010000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:CET DTSTART:20171029T010000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 TZNAME:CEST DTSTART:20180325T010000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:CET DTSTART:20181028T010000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 TZNAME:CEST DTSTART:20190331T010000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:CET DTSTART:20191027T010000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0200 TZNAME:CEST DTSTART:20200329T010000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0200 TZOFFSETTO:+0100 TZNAME:CET DTSTART:20201025T010000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20191122T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20191122T210000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20190904T175432Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240829T094134Z UID:2334-1574442000-1574456400@masahat.no SUMMARY:The Struggle for Home - The Question of Syria 2019 DESCRIPTION:This year’s Question of Syria will expand the discussion beyond nation state politics by reflecting on questions of belonging\, exile\, everyday political expression\, right to land\, citizenship and return. \nThe Question of Syria 2019 – The Struggle for Home invites intellectuals\, specialists and artists from Iraq\, Palestine\, Syria\, Sudan as well as Norway to think together about home. \nWith the Syrian conflict entering its 8th year\, new struggles continue to erupt in the Arab world\, with Algeria and Sudan being the latest revolting countries. Political struggles continue across regions touched by the Arab spring\, but they also disappear in the conditions of migration and displacement brought about by these struggles. \nThis year’s Question of Syria will focus on these new realities. The Syrian struggle has shown that it is important to think beyond borders\, particularly following the millions of people that have sought refuge in the region\, Europe\, including Norway\, and elsewhere. \nProgram\n17:00 / Searching for Home \n\n\n Time\, Space and People: Untold History of Mosul – Omar Mohammad\n \n\n When Home is Unattainable\, What Replaces it? – Alia Malek\n \n\n Home and Homeland in the Palestinian Right to Return – Nadim Khoury\n \n\nModerated by Joakim Parslow\, Associate Professor – Middle East Studies\, University of Oslo. \n18:30 / Break & Book signature \nDuring the break\, Alia Malek will sign copies of her book\, The Home That Was Our Country: A Memoir of Syria\, which be available for sale in the bookstore at Litteraturhuset. \n19:00 / The Art Of Resistance \n\n\n Reclaiming Home: Visualizing Resistance in Sudan Protests – Cassius Fadlabi\n \n\n Carnival: Celebration\, Protest and Strategies of Art Activism – Camilla Dahl\n \n\n An Update from Lebanon – Rana Issa\n \n\n Reclaim the Streets: Ad-busting as a Tool for Civic Agency and Empowerment – James Finucane\n \n\nTime\, Space and People: Untold History of Mosul\n \n OMAR MOHAMMED\n HISTORIAN \nMosul has been for centuries a city of unique coexistence and had its own identity locally and internationally. Christians were not only leading their own community\, they were the alternative to Rome. Jews were developing their language and had a different life than it was told to us by recent studies. Muslims and other groups worked all together and produce their own products that helped Europe during its industrial revolution. What happened to a city was once on the Silk Road to be a destroyed one? Who are the people of Mosul now? What space they have? and what time they are living? \n \nWhen Home is Unattainable\, What Replaces it?\n\n \n \n Alia Malek\n Journalist \nIn 2015\, Malek traveled from Greece to Germany with a group of Syrians fleeing their country’s disintegration. The refugees had met while marooned on the same raft in the middle of the Aegean Sea. Each of them came from a different part of Syria and from different socio-economic classes. Their sites were set on making it to Sweden and the Netherlands. Some of them would be forced to ask for asylum in Germany. Since then\, Malek has been reporting on their lives and displacement across these three countries as part of a 10 year reporting project. Drawing on this work\, she will consider what replaces the very idea of home when home itself becomes unattainable and its permanence illusory. \nHome and Homeland in the Palestinian Right to Return\n \n Nadim Khoury\n Associate Professor II \nThe right of return has been central to the Palestinian struggle since 1948. What home Palestinian refugees should return to\, however\, has been less than obvious. In this talk\, I want to explore the different meanings of home underlying the right of return\, especially as this right has been recognized\, negated\, and negotiated since 1948. The goal is not only to offer a historical survey but to pose a urgent question: what home should a just peace promise Palestinian refugees\, refugees who have been denied a home for far too long? \n \nPART TWO: THE ART OF RESISTANCE \nReclaiming Home: Visualizing Resistance in Sudan Protests\n \n \n Fadlabi\n Artist \nDuring the Sudan uprising many sudanese in diaspora found different ways to contribute to the revolution. In Fadlabi’s case he made more than a 100 posters about different events to be used in Sudan by his friends. He will talk about that experience and the part that art plays an important role not only in telling the story of revolutions\, but sometime even in shaping the goals of the revolution \nCARNIVAL: CELEBRATION\, PROTEST AND STRATEGIES OF ART ACTIVISM\n \n CAMILLA DAHL​\n Artist \nIn 2019\, the collaborative art project “Carnival – an Intercultural Celebration and Protest” was performed in Oslo as a carnival parade and an exhibition at the Intercultural Museum. Inspired by the traditional carnival\, the aim was to engage artists\, schools\, local communities and activist groups to gather in the carnival to celebrate and protest in creative ways. Together we were to explore how the upside-down perspective of the carnival culture could activate new spaces of political engagement and participation\, and how artistic expressions and strategies could be used to ridicule and resist systems of power. As one of the initiators\, Camilla Dahl will talk about the various forms of projects that participated\, ranging from socially engaged and participatory art to activist protests addressing specific issues. \n \nAN UPDATE FROM LEBANON​\n \n \n RANA ISSA\n Assistant Professor \nRana Issa has been participating in Lebanon protests since the onset of the Lebanese October revolution. She will introduce us to the protesters creative strategies with the major milestones in the revolution drawing on non-violent resistance and inspiration from Sudan and Iraq protests.  \nRECLAIM THE STREETS: AD-BUSTING AS A TOOL FOR CIVIC AGENCY AND EMPOWERMENT​\n \n JAMES FINUCANE​\n Artist \nSubvertising Norway is a non-profit network of artists and activists raising awareness about who has the power to communicate messages and create meaning in public space through acts of creative subversion and art-based activism. Guided by the basic principle that the visual realm in public space belongs to everyone – not only the companies and organisations that can afford to rent our attention – Subvertising Norway provides the tools and know-how for citizens to actively participate in shaping our shared public spaces \n \nSpeakers URL:https://masahat.no/event/the-struggle-for-home-the-question-of-syria-2019/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Litteratur,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/The-Struggle-for-Home-fb.png ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20191102T203000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20191102T213000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20190924T075445Z LAST-MODIFIED:20191025T101747Z UID:2368-1572726600-1572730200@masahat.no SUMMARY:ArabFuturism: Arab Contemporary Art Scene DESCRIPTION:In the aftermath of the Arab Spring\, and in the wake of decisive political junctures\, how can Arab artists\, musicians and authors imagine the future? It is possible to dream of a future that is centered and conceived from and for the people? \nIn a region that is often haunted by worn-out clichés full of exoticism and the continuous association with war\, upheaval and religious conflicts\, it is important to highlight the multifaceted plurality of the Arab world and its contemporary art scene. \nThe talk will be a conversation between artists\, around the possibility of turning dystopian realities into a quest for a utopian present and future. In addition\, we will screen short films made by Arab futurist filmmakers\, curated in collaboration with Khaled Saghieh. \nSPEAKERS\nLiliane Chela is a Lebanese graphic designer and multidisciplinary artist living and working in Beirut\, Chlela also produces music for short films and contemporary dance. She will be performing the same night at the festival as part of the Beirut & Beyond. \n\nHadia Gana\, is a Libyan artist. She was born and bread in Tripoli\, Libya. She graduated from the ceramics and glass department at Tripoli’s university in 1995 and had a masters of ceramic from Cardiff University of Wales in 2005. Along her educational path she worked on her artistic research with ceramics starting with focussing on the aesthetics of shapes and its expressive possibility within restrictions of material and technology. Since the February revolution in Libya\, she decided to start a long planned project. Bayt Ali Gana (cultural centre based on the work of her late father) in Tripoli suburb. She regards the creation of this alternative institution as a work in process proposing workshops and ateliers throughout its creation. The multidisciplinary space will propose different programs depending on the visitors interests in a reverse programming method. \n\nBasma Ghalayini is a Palestinian translator and interpreter. She is the editor of Palestine +100 anthology which poses a question to contemporary Palestinian writers: what might your home city look like in the year 2048 – exactly 100 years after Nakba. \n\nModerator Dalia Al Kury is an award-winning filmmaker and author of 11 documentaries. Her films explore different cultural taboos in the Arab world and have been widely screened on both Arab and European TV channels. Her latest film Privacy of Wounds premiered at IDFA and was nominated for six prestigious awards. Dalia’s upcoming project is a speculative documentary that imagines Palestinians’ future return to Palestine. \nIn collaboration with Oslo World and the Libya: Before and After project. URL:https://masahat.no/event/arabfuturism-arab-contemporary-art-scene/ LOCATION:Kulturhuset\, Youngs gate 6\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0181\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/arabfuturims.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190905T083000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190905T100000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20190829T171150Z LAST-MODIFIED:20190902T164614Z UID:2262-1567672200-1567677600@masahat.no SUMMARY:Frokostseminar: Hva skjer i Idlib? DESCRIPTION:What is happening in Idlib? Who is protecting civilians and civil space – and whose responsibility is it? \nWelcome to a breakfast seminar with Karam Hilly\, a Syrian civil society activist. Karam will give a unique insight into the current situation in Idlib\, including the situation of the local population and the admirable efforts of local civil society actors. \nFollowing the presentation on the developments in Idlib\, Karam will engage the audience\, including Yngvild Berggrav\, Policy Director\, Section for Humanitarian Affairs at the Norwegian MFA\, in a discussion about the responsibility to protect civilians and civil space\, as well as the role of the international community. \nThe discussion will be moderated by Zeina Bali\, co-founder of Syrian Peace Action Centre (SPACE). \nBackground\nSince late April\, Syrian forces backed by Russian airplanes have escalated their bombardment of Idlib\, with more than 500 civilians being killed in the hostilities\, according to the United Nations. Idlib in north-west Syria is home to about 3 million people — half of whom are already internally displaced from other parts of Syria. Nearly a half million people have been displaced since the Syrian offensive began in late April. Many have fled to crowded camps on the Turkish border or are now sleeping out in the open. \n\nKaram Hilly is a Syrian civil society activist and co-founder of Door Beyond War\, a Syrian organization that works with community development and economic empowerment. Based in southern Turkey\, Karam has been traveling frequently to north of Syria working closely with teams and communities there. His work has activated and supported many youth and community initiatives through tailored project management trainings\, coaching and advocacy. Karam holds a Master of Business Administration from Aleppo University. Originally from Idlib\, Karam studied and worked with the UN and various international and national NGOs and agencies before he left to Turkey in 2014. \nThe event picture is taken from the #SaveIdlib campaign of the Ghouta page\, designed by Ammar Bouidani. URL:https://masahat.no/event/frokostseminar-hva-skjer-i-idlib/ LOCATION:Norsk Folkehjelp\, Stortorvet 10\, Oslo\, 0155\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/seminar-idlib.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190323T160000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190323T184500 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20190317T231115Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200925T201457Z UID:2044-1553356800-1553366700@masahat.no SUMMARY:Still Recording DESCRIPTION:I samarbeid med Arabiske filmdager og Norsk PEN inviterer vi til visning av Still Recording + samtale med regissøren på lørdag den 23 mars kl. 16.00. Filmen følger to kunststudenter i Douma\, en forstad som kontrolleres av opprørere mot regimet. I en periode på over fire år følger vi de to vennene og deres omgangskrets og alt de går igjennom: sult\, angrep og beleiring\, men også latter\, fest og en utrettelig tro på det gode i mennesker. Still Recording vant kritikerprisen i Venezia. \nبالتعاون مع مهرجان الفيلم العربي ومنظمة قلم النرويجية، ندعوكم لحضور فيلم لسّه عم تسجّل مع نقاش بعد عرض الفيلم بحضور غياث أيوب، مخرج الفيلم يوم السبت 23 آذار الساعة 4 مساءً. يرصد الفيلم حياة صديقين في دوما المحاصرة الخاضعة لسيطرة المعارضة، حيث أنشأا محطّة راديو محليّة واستوديو تسجيل. ظلّت الكاميرا بين أيديهما يصوّران فيها كلّ شيء إلى أن صورتهما ذات يوم. يروي الفيلم من خلال تصوير أربع سنوات، ماهي الحياة تحت الحرب بما يتخللها من حصار، قصف، ضحك، احتفالات، جوع وكل ما يجعلنا نؤمن بإنسانيتنا. ربح الفيلم جائزة النقاد في مهرجان فينيسيا. \nWe invite you to the screening of the Syrian documentary film Still Recording on Saturday\, March 23rd at 16.00 followed by a discussion with Ghiath Ayoub\, film director and others. Following two art students in the opposition-held Douma for four years the film captures life under war and all it encompasses from hunger\, siege\, laughter\, bombardment\, celebrations\, and the tireless belief in what makes us humans. The film won the critics’ award in Venice film festival. \nPanelists\n– Ghiath Ayoub\, director of Still Recording\n– Mohammed Alayoubi\, journalist og photographer for NRK\n– Murhaf Fares\, SPACE\n– Elisabeth Eide\, Norsk PEN \nStill Recording\nThis film is an observation of what happened for us\, for all my generation – one that believed in the Revolution. A reflection from a calm perspective\, in an attempts to learn lost or forgotten lessons\, pay tribute or make some excuses.  – Saeed Al Batal \nTwo hours of raw footage distilled from 450 that Saeed Al Batal\, Ghiath Ayoub and six other videographers shot between 2011 and 2015\, Still Recording was smuggled out of Syria on hard drives. It is bleak indeed\, but required viewing as a savage critique of man’s inhumanity\, a testimony of horror but also an homage to the filmmakers who have chosen to witness it on our behalf. – The Hollywood Reporter \n  URL:https://masahat.no/event/still-recording/ LOCATION:Vika Kino\, Ruseløkkveien 14\, Oslo\, 0251\, Norway CATEGORIES:Film,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/afd-still-recording.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190301T200000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190301T223000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20190301T190000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200925T201437Z UID:1903-1551470400-1551479400@masahat.no SUMMARY:The Silence of Others - No Peace without Justice DESCRIPTION:In collaboration with HUMAN International Documentary Film Festival and Nobel Peace Center \nThe Silence of Others\nA shocking history about how the lack of justice after the dictatorship of Franco’s regime in Spain has forced hundreds of thousands of victims and their families to stay silent about their suffering\, even today. A turning point came in 2010\, when a group of courageous survivors and their families circumvented the Spanish justice system\, with aid from an Argentinian court\, where they accused former people of power for crimes against humanity. Through six nerve-wracking years we follow the court and a growing number of plaintiffs who dare to step forward. \n \nFrom Franco to Assad: No Peace without Justice\nTalk following the screening of The Silence of Others \nIn Syria\, hundreds of thousands have been arbitrary detained and forcibly disappeared\, the vast majority at the hands of the Assad regime. Driven by an uncompromising belief in human rights\, Syrians are organizing to find\, free and demand justice for their loved ones. Inspired by the many justice seekers before them from Argentina to Bosnia and Spain\, Syrians recognize that this is a lifelong struggle. \nForty years after the end of Franco’s dictatorship\, Spaniards continue to fight for justice. They find no peace in the silence of others and still navigate painful pathways to reconcile with the horrors of the past and the state-imposed amnesia of the present. \nThis panel addresses questions on confronting the past\, dealing with inter-generational trauma and reckoning with the legacy of ruthless dictators and their regimes. \nSpeakers: \nDr. Hale Hilal\, member of Families for Freedom\nAlmudena Carracedo co-director of The Silence of Others.\nModerator: Pardis Shafafi\, applied anthropologist on political violence and enduring trauma. URL:https://masahat.no/event/the-silence-of-others-no-peace-without-justice/ LOCATION:Cinemateket\, Dronningens gate 16\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0105\, Norway CATEGORIES:Film,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/no-peace-without-justice-e1549456890917.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190226T180000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20190226T210000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20190226T170000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200925T201244Z UID:1936-1551204000-1551214800@masahat.no SUMMARY:Privacy of Wounds DESCRIPTION:Hasan\, Mazen\, and Khaldoon are former prisoners of conscience from some of Syria’s most notorious prisons. Convinced that the three strangers will communicate openly and honestly with each other\, the director observes them from the outside of a simulated prison cell in Oslo\, using three remote-controlled cameras. \nDespite the horrors they experienced in captivity in Syria\, these men never gave up hope for a brighter future. Dalia Kury’s documentary raises awareness about how the three men apprehend their own state of being\, and what type of psychological challenges they have to deal with. Their dialogue and reflections about the war in Syria invites the audience into a soulful journey\, highlighting what life is really about. \nPrivacy of Wounds is about what survivors tell themselves to conquer their ghosts from the past. \nDiscussion after the screening\nFollowing the screening\, two of the former prisoners of conscience\, Mazen Esmaiel and Khaldoon Hawaley\, will take part in a conversation about life in and after prison\, and what it means to be a political prisoner in Syria\, together with director Dalia Kury\, and moderated by Zeina Bali. \nThis event is part of the HUMAN International Film Festival\, in collaboration with  SPACE – Syrian Peace Action Centre and Fritt Ord. URL:https://masahat.no/event/privacy-of-wounds/ LOCATION:Cinemateket\, Dronningens gate 16\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0105\, Norway CATEGORIES:Film,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Credit-UPNORTH-FILM-3-e1550689501612.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20181103T140000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20181103T160000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20181103T130000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20190227T205535Z UID:1806-1541253600-1541260800@masahat.no SUMMARY:Freedom to Remember/Create - Oslo World Seminars DESCRIPTION:Syrian artists Khaled Barakeh and Diala Brisly will discuss their artistic practices and processes\, what it means to create within contexts of oppression and exile; physically dispersed yet under a shared collective experience. They will also discuss contemporary artistic expression by other Syrian artists in the Middle East\, across the diaspora and from those who have recently relocated to new realities. How do the arts preserve cultural heritage? What narratives do they create? How do the arts and creative sector contribute to healing and rebuilding a nation? \nPanel:\nKhaled Barakeh: Born in 1976 in Damascus and currently based in Berlin\, Khaled Barakeh studied art at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Damascus and continued his education at the Funen Art Academy in Odense\, Denmark and the Städelschule Art Academy in Frankfurt\, Germany. Moving from Syria to Europe resulted in major changes in his approach towards his work – originally trained as a painter\, Khaled has developed a stronger concentration in conceptual art practices. His work can be characterized as cultural hacking\, revolving around both personal and social narratives\, it often transforms pre-existing materials\, objects and data in order to change their contexts through repetitive acts of transformation. His work is exhibited in institutions\, fairs and galleries worldwide. \nDiala Brisly: Born in Kuwait to Syrian parents in 1980. Her career began as a cartoonist and gradually expanded into other media and capacities\, including graphic design\, animation\, concept art\, painting\, comic books and character design. Her artwork on the Adra Women’s Prison hunger strike campaign helped secure the release of 23 women prisoners. Currently\, Diala’s work focuses on drawing attention to the educational situation of Syrian kids\, and refugees in general. \nNabil Canaan (moderator): Born in Beirut\, Lebanon in 1972\, Lebanese-Swiss filmmaker\, cultural producer and curator Nabil Canaan is the founder of STATION art platform and initiator of the NextStop project. After an earlier career in international marketing and new media communication\, Nabil’s work for the past fifteen years has been driven by a documentary impulse and concern for the human condition. With a BA in Sociology and an MA in Documentary Film and Journalism from New York University\, he has created documentaries for the New York Times\, developed multimedia content and strategies for the UN/NGO sector\, ran a film production and post-production studio in Switzerland and since 2013\, co-founder and director of STATION’s venue in Beirut and it’s international art projects. \nThis seminar is a part of Oslo World & Station Beirut: NextStopDamascus\, a Syrian takeover at Kulturhuset\, during Oslo World. \nOrganized in collaboration with Oslo World Music and Station Beirut URL:https://masahat.no/event/freedom-to-remember-create-oslo-world-seminars/ LOCATION:Kulturhuset\, Youngs gate 6\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0181\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/freedom-to-create.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20181011T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20181012T200000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20181011T150000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20211123T152605Z UID:1839-1539277200-1539374400@masahat.no SUMMARY:The Question of Syria - Doomed by Hope DESCRIPTION:For the fourth year in a row\, SPACE welcomes you to the annual conference The Question of Syria. During two days of talks\, panel discussions and short film screenings\, activists\, academics\, artists and writers will share their reflections on everyday hope as practiced and lived by ordinary people with focus on Syrians and Palestinians. \nThe Question of Syria 2018 – Doomed by Hope takes its cue from the famous last line of Saadallah Wannous’ speech on World Theater Day (1996): “we are doomed by hope\, and what happens today cannot be the end of history.” \nThe full program is available on this page\nProgram\nDay one: Thursday\, October 11\n17:00 – 18:30: Trajectory of Hope \nSpeakers: Wendy Pearlman (Associate Professor of Political Science at Northwestern University)\, Nadim Khoury (Associate Professor II at Bjørknes University College) and Golan Haji (Syrian Kurdish poet and translator). \n19:00 – 20:00: Cultivating Hope: Tribute to Ghouta\nSpeakers: Zoé Beau (co-founder of Buzuruna Juzuruna organic farm)\, Lubna Al-Kanawati (Women Now for Development) and Mahmoud Bwedany (activist and student). \nDay two: Friday\, October 12\n17:00 – 18:30: Solidarity Reading Circle\nThis reading circle will discuss the concept of solidarity\, its form\, and practices taking Syria and Palestine as a case study. Moderated by Ingeborg Moa \n19:00 – 20:00: Stranger Times: Everyday Criticality and the Fight for Life in Syrian Film\nRana Issa (Assistant Professor at the American University of Beirut) \n21:00: Concert with Simona Abdallah – Doomed by Hope in Melahuset URL:https://masahat.no/event/the-question-of-syria-doomed-by-hope/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:open forum,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Doomed-by-hope.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20180908T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20180910T190000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20180908T150000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200925T201209Z UID:1729-1536426000-1536606000@masahat.no SUMMARY:Syrian Doc Days - Oslo DESCRIPTION:Syrian Doc Days – Oslo\nWhat Syria Was and What it Must Not Be\nIn this first ever Syrian Doc Days in Oslo we will take a deep look into the Syrian society under the authoritarian rule of the Baath party and the Assad regime. \nThrough documentary films and discussions we will examine the relationship between the Syrian state and its citizens and how Syrians under the one-party rule were subjected to systematic censorship and institutionalized humiliation. \nOn the last day we will look at how Syrians in exile\, fleeing the war\, are forced into new hierarchies of oppression. \nProgram \nSaturday Sept. 8th:\n17:00 – 17:30: Introduction by Kjetil Selvik and Zeina Bali\n17:30 – 18:20: A Flood in Baath Country (2003) by Omar Amiralay\n18:20 – 18:45: Step by Step (1978) by Ossama Mohammed\n19:00 – 20:00: Talk with Ossama Mohammed \nSunday Sept. 9th:\n14:00 – 14:10: Introduction\n14:15 – 15:00: Talk with Faraj Bayrakdar and Elena Chiti\n15:00 – 16:45: Tadmor (2016)\, 103 min\n16:45 – 17:00: Tadmor’s director Monika Borgmann in conversation with Dalia Al Kury \nMonday Sept. 10th:\n17:00 – 17:15: Introduction\n17:15 – 18:40: Taste of Cement (2017) by Ziad Kalthoum \n\nTickets can be bought on cinemateket.no.  \n  \nDay 1: Saturday Sept 8th. 17:00 – 20:00\nPublic Theaters of Humiliation. The film A Flood in Baath Country from 2003 zooms in on a Syrian village that represents a microcosm of the Baath party and their rule. The leaders promised socialism but instead introduced a strict autocracy that forced people into submission through brutal force\, indoctrination and systematic humiliation that started in primary schools. Step by Step is an experimental documentary film from 1978\, by Osama Mohammed\, that shows the harsh reality of the dictatorship and the consequences for people and society. \nBetween and after the films\, Syrian filmmaker Ossama Mohammed\, director of Step by Step\, and Kjetil Selvik will talk about the Syrian society and how it is to make films under a dictatorship. \nGuests: Ossama Mohammed\, award-winning film director\, and senior researcher at NUPI Kjetil Selvik. Zeina Bali from SPACE will introduce and host the event. \n  \nDay 2: Sunday Sept 9th. 14:00 – 17:00\nFrom Schools to Prisons. Tadmor from 2016 reconstructs the infamous Tadmor torture prison in Palmyra in Syria. The film is an attempt by former prisoners to come to terms with the incomprehensible brutality and humiliation they were subjected to over years. Tens of thousands of people have died in state run prisons as a result of torture or starvation. \nGuests: Syrian poet and former prisoner in Tadmor\, Faraj Baraykdar and film director Monika Borgmann will talk before and after the screening of the documentary film Tadmor. \nDay 3: Monday Sept 10th. 17:00 – 19:00\nIn Exile. Taste of Cement from 2017 shows how Syrian workers in exile are exposed to new types of oppression. In this visually beautiful\, stylized documentary Syrian refugees in Beirut are working on the reconstruction of a city that was destroyed not that long ago\, in contrast to their own country which is being destroyed\, exposing the meaningless cycles of destruction and construction that war feeds. \n  \nDalia Al-Kury \nDalia Al Kury is a Jordanian-Palestinian filmmaker. She she graduated from the Goldsmiths University in the UK in 2007 with an MA in Screen Documentary. Documentaries she has directed include “Possessed by Djinn”\, “Arabizi” and “Smile\, You Are in South Lebanon.” Her work has been broadcast on MBC Arabia\, Al Jazeera\, and Al Arabiya and has been screened at international film festivals. \n\nFaraj Bayrakdar \nFaraj Bayrakdar is a Syrian writer and award-winning poet. He was imprisoned by the Hafez al-Assad regime in 1987 on suspicion of belonging to the Communist Action Party. He was released 14 years later. Bayrakdar is author of more than six books of poetry and prose\, including “Mirrors of Absence” which taps into how the poet survives under tyrannical regimes\, the notions of “imprisonment” and identity\, and the concept of freedom. \n\nKjetil Selvik \nKjetil Selvik is Senior Researcher in NUPI’s Research Group on Peace\, Conflict and Development. He holds a PhD in political science from Sciences Po in Paris and works on struggles over states and regimes in the Middle East. Selvik har previously worked as researcher at Fafo and at the Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) and been Adjunct Associate Professor at the Department of Comparative Politics\, University of Bergen\, and at the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Language\, University of Oslo. \n\nMonika Borgmann \nMonika Borgmann is a filmmaker and co-director of NGO UMAM Documentation & Research. She studied Arabic and Political Sciences in Bonn and Damascus. She worked as freelance journalist in the Middle East and North Africa for over a decade. Since 2001\, she lives in Beirut where she co-founded the NGO UMAM Documentation & Research and the online archive Memory at Work. \n\nOssama Mohammed \nOssama Mohammed is a Syrian screenwriter\, cinematographer and film director. He graduated from VGIK in 1979\, where he studied at the Laboratory of Igor Talankin. His diploma film was the short documentary Step by Step. He completed his first fiction feature Stars in Broad Daylight in 1988. The title refers to Igor Talankin’s film with the same title. Deemed to be the most scathing critique of contemporary Syrian society trapped in the iron grip of the Baath regime\, the film has never been allowed a public screening in Syria. Internationally it earned the filmmaker great critical praise. His films\, Sacrifices (2002) and Silvered Water (2014) were shown at Cannes Film Festival. \n\nZeina Bali \nZeina Bali is one of the founders of SPACE (Syrian Peace Action Centre). Bali has worked and done research with several NGOs and non-profits in Syria\, Turkey\, and Norway on education and youth engagement. \n  \n\nThis event is partly funded by Stiftelsen Fritt Ord URL:https://masahat.no/event/syrian-doc-days-oslo/ LOCATION:Cinemateket\, Dronningens gate 16\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0105\, Norway CATEGORIES:Film,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/syrian-doc-days-1.png ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20180312T110000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20180312T123000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20180312T100000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250312T200143Z UID:1553-1520852400-1520857800@masahat.no SUMMARY:Reconstructing Syria: Towards Establishing Rights-based Guiding Principles DESCRIPTION:Welcome to a lunch seminar co-hosted by the Syrian Peace Action Centre (SPACE) and PRIO\, on establishing rights-based guiding principles to discuss reconstructing Syria. \n​Background\nThe war in Syria is far from over. The recent escalation by the Syrian regime and its ally\, Russia\, against civilians in Eastern Ghouta\, and the Turkish military offensive against Kurdish-held Afrin in the north\, has engendered more suffering and destruction in an increasingly entangled matrix of regional and international players. What does it mean to engage in discussions about reconstruction while civilians populations are being bombed? \nStarting in 2017\, the international community has begun to tackle the issue of reconstruction in Syria while grappling with the difficult question of how this conversation should play out. In April\, the EU will host its second ‘Supporting the future of Syria and the region’ conference . Reconstruction will be on the agenda. \nInternational organizations such as the UNHCR\, the UNDP and UNESCO\, have already partnered with the Syrian government on several projects of rehabilitation   of civilian infrastructure and the removal of debris and solid waste in areas where the regime has regained control like Homs and Eastern Aleppo. These projects have been criticized by civil society actors for contributing to demographic changes by preventing people from returning to their homes and claiming their property rights. \nDiscussing reconstruction before the end of a conflict is a morally and conceptually difficult endeavor. The twofold objective of this seminar  is to problematize the approach of the international community\, while acknowledging gaps in the current dominant conversation\, but also to  reflect on the ethical issues raised by activist and academic participation in policy discussions on Syrian reconstruction. The seminar aims to address the following questions: \n\nWhen is the good time to start discussing reconstruction?\nWhy should Norway\, the EU and the international community help rebuild Syria\, if at all?\nHow can we ensure a reconstruction process that preserves the property rights and cultural heritage of the displaced and returnees?\nWho should be involved and consulted in the process?\nHow can the post-conflict reconstruction be established on premises of accountability and social justice?\nWhat are the right questions to ask to which stakeholders and who should assume the role of watchdog?\nWhat is the role of academics\, researchers\, and policy makers in this discussion?\n\nPanelists\n\nAlHakam Shaar\, Academic and writer from Aleppo\, fellow of the Aleppo Project\nSamer Frangie\, Assistant Professor in Political Studies\, American University of Beirut\nKristin Bergtora Sandvik\, Research professor in Humanitarian Studies\, PRIO\, Professor of Sociology of Law\, University of Oslo URL:https://masahat.no/event/reconstructing-syria-towards-establishing-rights-based-guiding-principles/ LOCATION:PRIO\, Hausmanns gate 3 \, Oslo\, 0186\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Azaz-Syria.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171014T190000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171014T203000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20171003T121354Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250312T200000Z UID:15681-1508007600-1508013000@masahat.no SUMMARY:Aleppo: The Fall DESCRIPTION:  \nLast year\, one of the worst human tragedies took place in Aleppo. After a few months of siege and indiscriminate shelling\, tens of thousands of people were evicted from the city. \nBeyond the horrific scenes of bombardment and forced mass eviction\, little reflection has followed on how and why these violations happened and what the implications are for the present and future Syria. \nWhy did Aleppo fall? Who is responsible and how to be held accountable? What was the role of the local armed factions in Aleppo? Who was negotiating on behalf of the civilians? Who was forced to leave eastern Aleppo and who was allowed to return after the fall? What is happening in Aleppo today? What are the protection needs of civilians living in Aleppo under Assad? \nLina Shamy will give a personal testimony of living under Aleppo’s siege before she was forced to leave with the last buses in December 2016. Dr. Mohamad Katoub will address the inhumane situation under the siege and put it into context with the use of siege as a war tactic against civilians in many other locations around Syria. Finally\, Karam Nachar will reflect on the meaning and implications of Aleppo’s catastrophe ending with an outlook on the near future of an increasingly fragmented country. \n  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nKaram Nachar\n\n\nKaram Nachar is the Executive Director of AlJumhuriya.net\, an online journal that covers Syrian politics and culture\, and a Lecturer at Isik University\, Istanbul. Nachar completed his PhD in Modern History at Princeton University in 2014\, with focus on Cultural and Intellectual History of Modern Syria and Lebanon. Nachar holds a Masters in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from Oxford University. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMohamad Katoub\n\n\nMohamad Katoub is a dentist and medical worker from Douma\, in Eastern Ghouta. He’s an advocacy manager for the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS)\, a humanitarian organization harnessing the talents of Syrian-American health care professionals to provide medical relief. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nKristin Bergtora Sandvik\n\n\nKristin Bergtora Sandvik (moderator) is a Research Professor in Humanitarian Studies at Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) and a professor of sociology of law at the University of Oslo. Sandvik obtained her doctorate from Harvard Law School in 2008\, and she is the Co-Founder and former Director of the Norwegian Center for Humanitarian Studies. URL:https://masahat.no/event/aleppo-the-fall/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/guernica.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171014T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171014T181500 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20171002T111607Z LAST-MODIFIED:20211029T074905Z UID:15678-1508000400-1508004900@masahat.no SUMMARY:Aleppo: Revolutionary Culture DESCRIPTION:Long before March 2011\, Syria was known as the “kingdom of silence”. All forms of artistic and public expression were controlled by the regime\, only those who mastered the regime’s censorship rule-book managed to sneak in their subtle message through the many red lines. From the outset of the uprising against tyranny in 2011\, public expression and art became a daily practice. Self-expression has been\, in essence\, the motor of the uprising; the creative spirit of the Syrian people was unleashed by the wave of protests around the country popularizing art and culture to become a defining face of the protest movement. But where are we today? With the population facing endless repression and the world seeming increasingly indifferent\, is art still a powerful tool for Syrians? \n  \nSpanish-Syrian professor and activist Leila Nachawati Rego will reflect on culture and communication in times of repression\, revolution and war\, with a special focus on Aleppo\, “the Syrian Gernika”. \n  \n \nLeila Nachawati is a Spanish-Syrian writer and storyteller. She is a Professor of Communications at Madrid’s Carlos III University. She is co-founder of the news portal on Syrian civil society SyriaUntold and has just published her first novel on citizen mobilisations and the Arab Spring\, Cuando la revolución termine. \n\n  \n  \n \nMarius Von Der Fehr is a Norwegian artist and writer based in Norway and Spain. He works with socially and politically engaged practices. He runs the international event series New Frontiers/Nuevas Fronteras. One of his last works\, the controversial National Apology (in cooperation with Pia Maria Roll) confronted the use of culture as a tool for whitewashing Israel’s violent policies. \n\n  \n  \nEvent picture: Dancing in the Streets of Death by Wissam al-Jazairy URL:https://masahat.no/event/aleppo-revolutionary-culture/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale,Visuell kunst ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/dancing-wissam.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171013T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171014T203000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20171013T150000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20211130T144513Z UID:1376-1507914000-1508013000@masahat.no SUMMARY:The Story of Aleppo DESCRIPTION:The Story of Aleppo\n  \nAt the beginning of the Syrian uprising\, Aleppo symbolized dissent to Assad rule culturally\, with its unique plethora of artistic\, cultural and civil society initiatives. The very same city that once represented hope is now the site of violence and despair. \n  \nThe story of Aleppo needs to be told. Only by making sense of what happened to Aleppo and its people can we make sense of the lasting impact this loss for civilization will have in the world. \n  \nIn our troubled world where extremism and populism are on the rise\, we need to rethink the impact of the destruction of the concept of the city that we witness in Syria will have around the world. We can achieve this by amplifying the voice of Syrians and listening to their stories.  We will once again use culture and art as our beautiful means to amplify these voices. \n  \nThe Question of Syria this year aims to address all the meanings and experiences that Aleppo embodies; from the lawless war and the Geneva Conventions\, to Aleppo’s cultural heritage\, passing by the heroic efforts of the first responders\, medics and the civil society. \n  \nOver two days\, we will break away from the mystical orientalist view of Aleppo to learn more about the social and economic divisions and contradictions that define the city. We will revisit the outburst of artistic and cultural forms of expression and resistance in the city and the country as a whole. Finally\, for the sake of the future of Syria\, and the world\, we will retrospectively analyze what happened in 2016. \n  \nMore information please see the Story of Aleppo page: https://masahat.no/story-of-aleppo \n  \nSupported by: \n \n\n\nIn partnership with: \n \n \n \n  \n  \n  \n  URL:https://masahat.no/event/the-story-of-aleppo/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/TheStoryofAleppo.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171013T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171013T200000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20171002T113005Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250312T195858Z UID:15679-1507914000-1507924800@masahat.no SUMMARY:Aleppo: The City DESCRIPTION:My Aleppo: When Memory Becomes Resistance – Lina Sergie Attar\n \nYou know Aleppo as a vast landscape of bombed and burning historic buildings\, cratered streets\, and endless lines of fleeing\, destitute families. But I will tell you about a time when things were different — when Aleppo was my home. \nSince 2011\, Syrians witnessed firsthand the simultaneous rebirth and destruction of their country on every scale: from home to nation. How does one express the collective and personal losses\, hopes\, regrets that have directly affected every Syrian? How does one absorb the traumatic everyday events devouring a country\, preserve memories of the past\, and look towards the future all at once? How do we reexamine the theories of urban trauma and national identity\, collective memory and constructed memorial\, heritage and reconstruction\, under the harsh reality of ongoing war and global mass displacement? Let us begin\, with a map of my Aleppo. \nAleppo City Market: Defining Space and Time – Annika Rabo\n \nAuthor of A shop of one’s own\, Independence and Reputation among Traders in Aleppo\, Rabo will share insights from her fieldwork during 1997-2002 in Souk al-Medina (the city’s market) as one of Aleppo’s key social urban institutions. As a site for social interaction and formative human experiences\, how do traders and customers interact and define time and space around them in the market? What does this tell us about the multi-faceted relationship between the state\, the people and the economy? \nSnapshots of Aleppo’s Social Urban History- Karam Nachar\n \nFrom the sixteenth to the eighteenth century\, Aleppo was the most important city in the Ottoman empire boasting an extremely rich and complex history. By universalizing the discussions of Aleppo\, Nachar will undo nostalgic historical accounts and demystify the charming discourse of the ancient oriental city. Like any other city\, Aleppo has its entangled worlds and complex class struggles. Karam Nachar will take us in a journey through the last four hundred years which gave rise to Aleppo as a world trade center. We will hear about the class- and sect-related tensions that this rise engendered in the city and continued to inform its social politics until our present day. URL:https://masahat.no/event/aleppo-the-city/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/aleppo-the-city.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171004T180000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20171004T210000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20171004T160000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20210227T233501Z UID:1393-1507140000-1507150800@masahat.no SUMMARY:Syria's Disappeared: The Case Against Assad DESCRIPTION:SPACE\, Oslo Dokumentarkino and FN-sambandet invite you to a screening of Syria’s Disappeared: The Case Against Assad followed by a panel discussion about the prospects of prosecuting war crime committed in Syria in Norwegian courts. \nAbout the film\nThis documentary tells the hidden story of tens of thousands of men\, women and children forcibly disappeared by the regime of Bashar al Assad into a network of clandestine detention centres. \nWith unprecedented access\, we follow survivors of detention\, families of detainees\, regime defectors and international war crimes investigators as they fight to bring the perpetrators to justice and desperately campaign for the release of the disappeared. \nThe film’s director Sara Afshar will introduce the film and participate in the discussion after the screening. \nAbout the panel discussion\nNorway and Germany are the only two European countries with pure universal jurisdiction over war crimes\, crimes against humanity\, and genocide – meaning that the law does not require any connection between Norway and the relevant grave international crimes committed abroad. In this panel debate we will examine the legal avenues to investigate the serious crimes committed in Syria and to prosecute the perpetrators. \n  \nAnwar al-Bunni is a Syrian human rights lawyer. He is one of the founders of the Syrian Human Rights Association and of a centre for the defence of journalists and political prisoners. As a lawyer\, al-Bunni was particularly involved in defending people who were prosecuted for expressing their opinions in non-violent ways. Al-Bunni spent five years (2006-2011) in the Syrian regime’s prisons after signing a declaration calling for democratic reform. Al-Bunni left Syria in 2014 and is now based in Berlin where he is working to build cases against war criminals in Syria and achieve transitional justice. \n\n  \nGro Nystuen is a lawyer and expert in international law. From 2005 she was Associate Professor of International Humanitarian Law/the Law on Armed Conflict at the University of Oslo and from 2008 also Associate Professor at the Defence Staff University College in Oslo. She has also worked in the Norwegian Ministry for Foreign Affairs from 1991 to 2005. \n\n  \nSara Afshar is a journalist and filmmaker. She is the director of “Syria’s Disappeared: The Case Against Assad”. She worked for the BBC for 16 years on its current affairs programmes\, Newsnight and Panorama. \n\n  \n  \nStephanie Barbour is a lawyer and senior adviser at the Commission for International Justice and Accountability. She has served as Amnesty’s International representative to the International Criminal Court and other international tribunals in The Hague. She has also worked on cases related to crimes against humanity\, in particular enforced disappearances and sexual violence\, in relation to the 1996 to 2006 conflict in Nepal\, intercommunal violence in India in 2001 and the Rwandan genocide in 1994. \n\n  \nMark Taylor (moderator) is a Senior Researcher at the Fafo research foundation. For two decades\, Mark has worked on legal and policy frameworks applicable to conflict and human rights\, writing and advising on regulatory responses to economic dimensions of armed conflict and business and human rights. \n\n  \n  URL:https://masahat.no/event/syrias-disappeared-the-case-against-assad/ LOCATION:Cinemateket\, Dronningens gate 16\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0105\, Norway CATEGORIES:Film,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Facebook-Promotin-Banner.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20170530T180000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20170530T193000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20170530T160000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T094018Z UID:1318-1496167200-1496172600@masahat.no SUMMARY:Talk with Bashshar Haydar | حوار مع بشار حيدر DESCRIPTION:Syria\, Palestine\, Lebanon\, Iraq: Spotlights on the Present and Insights into the Future\nWith Donald Trump’s recent visit to the Middle East\, the people of the region are facing an even bleaker future than before. The sectarian narrative of Shia/Sunni hatred is becoming more dominant. Daily killings in Iraq and Syria are diminishing hopes for accountability for crimes against humanity in the future. Israel is pitted to gain most from these developments. Only Lebanon and Jordan seem to have a semblance of a peaceful public sphere\, although it does not take too long to identify the devastating violence that these two nations are also undergoing.\nThe Syrian Peace Action Centre (SPACE) invites you to a talk with Bashshar Haydar\, a professor of philosophy at the American University of Beirut. He will bring his own perspectives to the recent developments\, and will help us think through some of the entanglements that make the region so difficult to comprehend.\nThe talk will take place in English and Arabic\, depending on the audience. The event is free and open to all. \nحوار مع بشار حيدر\nسوريا، فلسطين، لبنان، العراق: إضاءات على واقعنا ونظرة للمستقبل \nمع التطورات الأخيرة التي رافقت زيارة ترامب إلى منطقة الشرق الأوسط، يبدو واقعنا شديد القتامة. تخنقنا السردية الطائفية، تستمر حكاية القتل والقهر اليومي في سوريا والعراق وتكاد تنعدم أفق تحقيق العدالة المنتظرة. يضيق الحصار على فلسطين من كل الجهات وتبدو إسرائيل المستفيدة الوحيدة في المشهد. تعيش لبنان والأردن حياة أقرب إلى الطبيعية، ولكن لا يصعب علينا رؤية ديناميات العنف الكامنة في البلدين. \nيدعوكم المركز السوري للعمل من أجل السلام (ٍسبيس) إلى حوار مفتوح مع بشار حيدر، أستاذ علم فلسفة السياسة والأخلاق في الجامعة الأميركية في بيروت، سيتم من خلاله تسليط الضوء على آخر الأحداث من المنطقة لمساعدتنا على فهم الواقع وتحليل العواقب ودورنا المشترك في تحقيق مستقبل أفضل لمنطقتنا. \nسيتم الحوار باللغة الإنكليزية والعربية، وذلك حسب الجمهور. الدعوة عامة ومجانية. URL:https://masahat.no/event/talk-with-bashshar-haydar-%d8%ad%d9%88%d8%a7%d8%b1-%d9%85%d8%b9-%d8%a8%d8%b4%d8%a7%d8%b1-%d8%ad%d9%8a%d8%af%d8%b1/ LOCATION:Oslo CATEGORIES:Samtale,عربي ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/bashar_talk.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20170219T183000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20170219T193000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20170219T173000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20210227T212836Z UID:1057-1487529000-1487532600@masahat.no SUMMARY:The Warriors of Hope: Syria’s New Civil Society DESCRIPTION:The only positive that has come out of the horrific Syrian war is a new and vibrant civil society. Under Assad’s regime there were no independent organisations or political parties. The hope for a better future is to be found in a strong civil society that can keep its government in check\, and stop it from regressing to the police state it has been under Assad’s rule. \nWhat is the civil society in Syria today? Who are the teachers who keep the schools going\, who the doctors in the hospitals\, and who makes decisions on behalf of the community? How can organisations and institutions shape a future for Syrians\, and how can we and the international community support them? \nPanel: \nRula Asad\, co-founder and the executive director of the Syrian Female Journalists’ Network (SFJN). Founded in 2012\, the SFJN is a non-profit initiative that trains Syrian female journalists and promotes their role in the region’s media.\nAmund Bakke Foss\, journalist in VG\nZeina Bali\, SPACE – Syrian Peace Action Centre URL:https://masahat.no/event/the-warriors-of-hope-syrias-new-civil-society/ LOCATION:Cinemateket\, Dronningens gate 16\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0105\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/url.jpeg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20161001T180000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20161001T220000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20161001T160000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20211130T135442Z UID:978-1475344800-1475359200@masahat.no SUMMARY:A space to think and imagine Syria DESCRIPTION:Kvelden begynner med såkalte lynforedrag – «lightning talks» om arbeidet\, lidenskapene og aktivismen til de syriske gjestene våre. Formålet med disse foredragene er å vekke fantasien vår og inspirere oss – kan vi forestille oss et annet Syria? Publikum er invitert til å bruke kvelden og det åpne rommet til å bli kjent med talerne våre\, til å ikke bare stille spørsmål\, men også diskutere\, dele historier og opplevelser og se for seg nye muligheter. Etterpå vil den syriske billedkunstneren Razan Sabbagh holde en visuell kunstperformance til Qanun-spilleren Ziad Khawam’s musikk. Interaksjon gjennom delte betraktninger\, samtaler og livemusikk skaper et åpent og levende rom. Velkommen!\n\n\n\nThe evening will open by so-called “lightning talks” by the different speakers about their work\, passion and activism. These talks are meant to inspire us to imagine Syria differently. The audience is invited to use the open space to engage with the speakers\, not only to ask questions\, but also to debate\, tell stories and identify new possibilities. Syrian artist\, Razan Sabbagh will afterwards have a visual arts performance with some action painting\, fused to the music of the Qanun player Ziad Khawam. The vibrant space counts on your interaction through shared reflections\, conversations and live music.\n  \n18:30: Lightning talks: Five short talks by: Karam Nachar\, Marcell Shehwaro\, Iyad El-Baghdadi\, Mohammad Al Saud and Bissan Fakih\n19:30: Poetry reading in Russian by Ivo Spira: Extract from “Requiem” by Anna Andreevna Akhmatova\n20:00 – 20:30 Live drawing by Razan Sabbagh and music by Ziad Khawam \nThis event is part of The Question of Syria 2016 – Syria are… URL:https://masahat.no/event/a-space-to-think-and-imagine-syria/ LOCATION:Ingensteds\, Brenneriveien 9 \, Oslo\, 0182\, Norway CATEGORIES:Musikk,Samtale,Visuell kunst ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/ingensteds.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160930T183000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160930T200000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20160930T163000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T093617Z UID:908-1475260200-1475265600@masahat.no SUMMARY:The Syrian International DESCRIPTION:The idea of a Syria International intends to refocus attention on the agency of Syrians in their struggle and consequently to demand international solidarity and acknowledgement of their rightful and just cause. \nThis panel assesses the isolation of Syrian civilians by identifying those who neglect them\, as well as those rare people who are determined to support them. The intent is on identifying the possibilities for building on existing Syria International solidarity movements around the world\, as well as on questioning the extent to which humanitarian and political efforts to support Syria’s civilian population can be improved and augmented. \nWhy should the world be interested in Syria at all? Is the world interested\, at what level? What are the existing internationalist networks that work with and for Syrians today\, and how effective are they? How can Syria inform a radical critique of classical forms of postcolonial\, anti-imperialist\, and left-wing oppositional movements? \n \nBendik Sørvig is the author of a book on the Syrian uprising which will be published in Norwegian in early 2017. His professional experience covers journalism\, development work and humanitarian aid in Syria and the Middle East throughout the last two decades. \n\n \nRobin Yassin-Kassab is co-author of ‘Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War’ and author of the novel ‘The Road from Damascus’. His journalism and book reviews are collected at www.qunfuz.com \n\n \nLeila Al Shami is a blogger and activist who has worked with the human rights movement in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East. She was a founding member of Tahrir­ICN\, a network that connects anti­-authoritarian struggles across the Middle East\, North Africa and Europe. Leila is the co­-author of Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War. \nThe panel is moderated by Bissan Fakih. \n \nBissan Fakih is the Deputy Campaign Director of The Syria Campaign where she runs campaigns related to the protection of civilians in Syria. Her work has focused on breaking the sieges\, supporting the White Helmets and elevating the voices of civilians in Syria trapped between Isis and Assad. \nFor more information on “The Question of Syria – Syria Are…”\, please visit this page. URL:https://masahat.no/event/the-syrian-international/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Syria-International.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160930T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160930T181500 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20160930T150000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20211130T140634Z UID:902-1475254800-1475259300@masahat.no SUMMARY:Keynote Speech by Mazen Darwish DESCRIPTION:Mazen Darwish\, one of Syria’s most prominent human rights activists\, will give a speech about his experience in Syria before and after the revolution as a human rights advocate. Afterwards\, Darwish will be interviewed by the Norwegian journalist and author Åsne Seierstad. \n  \n \nMazen Darwish is a Syrian lawyer and free speech advocate\, and the president of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression\, founded in 2004. In 2011. News organizations\, including Reuters and the Associated Press\, have described Darwish as one of Syria’s most prominent activists. Mr Darwish was imprisoned by the Syrian regime from February 2012 to August 2015. He was awarded the 2014 PEN International Pinter prize and the 2015 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on World Press Freedom Day. \n  \nFor more information on “The Question of Syria – Syria Are…”\, please visit this page. URL:https://masahat.no/event/keynote-speech-by-mazen-darwish/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/mazen-010.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160930T120000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160930T140000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20160930T100000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T093205Z UID:920-1475236800-1475244000@masahat.no SUMMARY:Roundtable: Politics of Humanitarian Aid in Syria DESCRIPTION:On September 30\, the Syrian Peace Action Centre (SPACE)\, the Norwegian Centre for Humanitarian Studies (NCHS) and Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) will host a roundtable discussion on the Politics of Humanitarian Aid in Syria. This event is for invited guests. \nBackground\nDelivering humanitarian aid in conflict situations has always been difficult. Syria is proving to be no exception. This panel aims to examine the contesting reality of politics and humanitarian principles with regards to aid distribution in Syria. \nDespite their remarkable resilience and determination\, Syrian aid workers are often criticized by international actors for lack of compliance with humanitarian principles — specifically for mixing politics with humanitarian work. Additionally\, Syrian aid organizations are perceived to be lacking the institutional capacity\, skills and operational standards to respond to such complex humanitarian emergencies. Against the changing battle lines and shifting alliances on the ground and between external powers\, UN agencies and international NGOs are faced with a difficult task as they start to establish and expand their partnership with local actors operating in areas where international staff has no access. \nConversely\, Syrian civil society groups have repeatedly expressed skepticism and mistrust towards some international aid organizations\, especially the UN agencies\, for the way they are implementing humanitarian principles. This criticism has materialized into a report published by the advocacy group The Syrian Campaign in June 2016\, as well as a comprehensive investigation by The Guardian published in August 2016. The report accuses the UN of jeopardizing their impartiality\, neutrality and independence by working closely with the Syrian government and concentrating their largest humanitarian efforts in the government-controlled areas. \nNotwithstanding the Syrian cross-border response’s heavy dependence on local aid groups\, Syrians deplore being used as subcontractors rather than equal partners\, bearing an unfair share of risks and lacking contextualized and flexible funding approaches adopted by donors. \nIn the conflicting perceptions about the possibilities and limits of humanitarian aid\, local Syrian discourse remains disconnected from its international counterparts. Such a disconnect has a negative impact on the civilian population and fosters mutual distrust among key humanitarian actors. This has culminated in 73 Syrian aid groups announcing the suspension of cooperation with the UN on 8 September\, 2016. \nNorway has been at the forefront to both provide and politically coordinate humanitarian assistance for Syria. Moreover\, its principled and trust-based approach enables the Norwegian donor community to mediate between actors representing the different sides of the debate\, and to leverage accountability of all relevant stakeholders. \nThe roundtable panel will try to address these questions: \n\nHow is it possible to maintain a neutral and impartial space for humanitarian aid in Syria?\nHow do politics influence the priorities of the largest UN assistance operation in decades? Whose responsibility is it to enforce and adhere to the humanitarian principles?\nWhat role can Norwegian donors and organizations play to restore the trust between Syrian aid organizations and UN agencies?\nHow can Norwegian donors and organizations strike the balance between strengthening and institutionalizing their Syrian local partners to fulfil their (often politically-loaded) vision\, while ensuring adherence to international humanitarian standards?\n\nProgramme\nPresentation: Bissan Fakih (The Syria Campaign) \nPresentation: Reinoud Leenders (King’s College London) \nPresentation: Marcell Shehwaro (Kesh Malek) \nComments: Kathrine Raadim (Norwegian People’s Aid) \nComments: MFA representative (tba) \nChair: Marte Heian-Engdal (PRIO) \nNote: Participation in this event will be by invitation only.\n\nSpeakers\n \nBissan Fakih (Deputy Director\, The Syria Campaign) runs campaigns related to the protection of civilians in Syria. Her work is focused on breaking the sieges\, supporting the White Helmets and elevating the voices of civilians in Syria trapped between ISIS and Assad government forces. She is the author of the report accusing the UN of taking sides inside Syria\, which involved dozens of interviews with current and former UN staff and humanitarian workers inside Syria. \n  \n \nReinoud Leenders (PhD\, SOAS) is Reader in International Politics and Middle East Studies in the War Studies Department at King’s College London. His work deals with the political economy of corruption\, authoritarian governance\, refugee issues\, and conflict in the Middle East including Syria. He has been studying the UN’s handling of money and local partnerships in Syria. Leenders contributed to The Guardian’s recent investigation about the tens of millions of US dollars funneled by the UN to companies and agencies owned by or directly linked to Syrian regime officials. \n  \n \nMarcell Shehwaro (Director\, Kesh Malek) manages Kesh Malek\, a Gaziantep-based Syrian organization with over 300 staff members inside Syria\, running advocacy and educational projects in Aleppo and Idlib. Shehwaro participated in many regional and international conferences and panel discussions about education\, activism and the Syrian civil society\, including the NGO conference that preceded the Supporting Syria London conference in February 2016. URL:https://masahat.no/event/roundtable-politics-of-humanitarian-aid-in-syria/ LOCATION:PRIO\, Hausmanns gate 3 \, Oslo\, 0186\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/politics-hum-aid.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160929T183000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160929T200000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20160929T163000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20211130T140421Z UID:890-1475173800-1475179200@masahat.no SUMMARY:Misreading Syria: Sectarian Secularism DESCRIPTION:Persistent claims that the Syrian regime is “non-sectarian” result from a failure to distinguish between sectarianism as an explicit ideology\, and sectarianism as an often unspoken technique of power. Whereas the Assad family has generally purported to act in the name of “national unity”\, and accordingly minimised discursive expressions of sectarianism\, its actual practices throughout the last five decades have consisted in the systematic manipulation of sectarian divides for the purpose of regime survival. \nThis panel will discuss sectarianism and secularism in Syria by revisiting the nature and policies of the Syrian regime pre-2011 as well as the trajectory of the Syrian revolution from day until the present day. The panel will also reflect on the discourse and ideologies of the different political and armed groups involved in the conflict. \n  \n \n  \nBjørn Olav Utvik is Professor of Middle East Studies and Head of the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages at the University of Oslo. \n  \n  \n\n  \nMarcell Shehwaro is Director of Kesh Malek; a Syrian grassroots organization. The organization has over 300 staff working in northern Syria. Marcell is a renowned activist who was at the forefront of the peaceful protests since the outbreak of the uprising in 2011. She lived in the opposition-controlled Aleppo neighborhoods for almost two years before she had to flee to Turkey. Based in Gaziantep\, she keeps a strong contact with the activists and aid workers who are still in her home city\, Aleppo. Shehwaro has participated in various key conferences about civil society\, justice and activism in Syria. \n  \n\n  \nThomas Pierret is a Lecturer in Contemporary Islam at the University of Edinburgh.  He earned his PhD in Political sciences at Sciences Po Paris and the University of Louvain\, and he occupied postdoctoral positions at Princeton University and the Zentrum Moderner Orient\, Berlin.  He is the author of Religion and State in Syria. The Sunni Ulama from Coup to Revolution (Cambridge University Press\, 2013). \n  \n  \n\n  \nThe panel will be moderated by Bendik Sørvig. \n \nBendik Sørvig is the author of a book on the Syrian uprising which will be published in Norwegian in early 2017. His professional experience covers journalism\, development work and humanitarian aid in Syria and the Middle East throughout the last two decades. \n  \n  \n  \n  \nFor more information on “The Question of Syria – Syria Are…”\, please visit this page. URL:https://masahat.no/event/misreading-syria-sectarian-secularism/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/assad-praying.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160929T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160929T180000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20160929T150000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T092944Z UID:880-1475168400-1475172000@masahat.no SUMMARY:Syria: between political catastrophe and cultural resilience DESCRIPTION:While the Syrian war seems to embody all that is complex\, alien\, and thus incomprehensible about the Middle East\, the five-year-old brutal conflict can in fact be explained through a set of global historical factors that emanate from the world made by Europe in the wake of World War One. This talk will shed light on some of these global factors and their local manifestations\, all while emphasising their inherently contradictory nature: destabilising Syrian politics to the point of disaster\, while generating much cultural angst and productivity. \n  \nKaram S. Nachar is the executive director of AlJumhuriya.net\, an online magazine that covers Syrian politics and culture. He is also a Lecturer at the Department of International Relations at Isik University\, Istanbul. Prior to assuming these two positions\, Nachar worked on a PhD in Modern History at Princeton University\, with focus on Cultural and Intellectual History of Modern Syria and Lebanon. He also holds in a Masters in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from Oxford University\, and B.A. in Political Science from the American University of Beirut. \nModerated by Rana Issa \n  Rana Issa is a literary historian focusing on Levantine and translated literatures. She is interested in the relationship between literature and power. Rana is based in Oslo and is a co-founder of SPACE. \nFor more information on “The Question of Syria – Syria Are…”\, please visit this page. URL:https://masahat.no/event/syria-between-political-catastrophe-and-cultural-resilience/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/cinema-1950s.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160218T180000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20160218T190000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20160218T170000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200925T204039Z UID:447-1455818400-1455822000@masahat.no SUMMARY:Why is Russia Bombing Syrians? - HRHW 2016 DESCRIPTION:The Syrian sky is crowded with jet fighters from different corners of the world. While none of these is contributing to solving the Syrian conflict\, Russia has been specifically accused by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch of targeting civilians\, using cluster bombs and committing atrocities that amount to war crimes. \nIn September 2015 Russia started its military intervention in Syria to allegedly fight ISIS\, but numerous reports suggest otherwise. Who is Russia targeting in Syria? How is the Russian intervention shaping the humanitarian and political scene in Syria? What are the implications of Russia’s support of Assad on stability in Syria\, the region and Europe? Can stability and security be established without committing to accountability and justice and safeguarding the basic rights of the Syrian people? What guarantees a lasting peace in Syria? \nPanellists: \n\nKai Kverme: Former researcher at the Center for Islamic and Middle East Studies\, University of Oslo\nIbrahim Olabi: Founder of the Syrian Legal Development Programme (SLDP)\, an organisation engaging with actors in Syria to promote compliance with International Humanitarian Law\nJohn Peder Egenæs: Secretary General of Amnesty International Norway\n\nThe panel will be moderated by Tine Gade\, Senior Lecturer in Middle East Studies at the University of Oslo. \nSee the full program of Human Rights Human Wrongs Film Festival on www.hrhw.no URL:https://masahat.no/event/why-is-russia-bombing-syrians/ LOCATION:Cinemateket\, Dronningens gate 16\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0105\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Russia-panel-e1454508721888.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150926T183000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150926T193000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20150926T163000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T092907Z UID:154-1443292200-1443295800@masahat.no SUMMARY:Performing Democracy: Syrian Art Practices Today DESCRIPTION:Even before the revolution broke out\, but certainly after it\, artistic practices in Syria often centered around democratizing the access to performative and artistic spaces. In the face of collective political calamity\, a “democratization” of images takes place. This democratization\, as Susan Sontag argued\, turns the Event or calamity into an object that can be possessed. Indeed this is the case\, however the unprecedented scale of the democratization of artistic space in Syria forces us to reflect further on the function of this objectification of the Event. To reflect on this issue\, this panel invites the writer and theater practitioner Mohammad Al Attar and film critic Zaher Omareen to discuss the role of aesthetics in the political struggle in Syria. As Omareen will discuss through his work with “filmer cinema\,” the small mobile film documentaries that are being produced in Syria today shown a remarkable vitality in aesthetic form that puts to question our most basic assumptions about aesthetic value.  Whereas Omareen calls them filmer image makers\, Al Attar subverts the entire theatrical structure by rearranging the relationship between the audience and the actors. As theater becomes democratized to allow the performances of the public at large\, Al Attar reflects on the role of theater in the defiance of despair and in the work of building testimonies. Through their different media and production techniques\, Omareen and Al Attar will reflect on how democracy is performed in Syria today\, and together with them we expect to question such stable constellations as artist\, spectator\, and stage. This line of questioning will bring us closer to Syrian artistic expression and will allow us to reflect on basic\, and enduring concepts about the relationship of art to politics. \n  \nMohammad Al Attar (Damascus\, 1980) is a Syrian playwright and dramaturge. His theatrical works like: ‘Withdrawal’ \, ‘Samah’ \, ‘Online’\, ‘Could You Please Look into the Camera?’\, ‘A Chance Encounter’\, and ‘Antigone of Syria’ \, have been performed in Damascus\, London\, New York\, Seoul\, Berlin\, Brussels\, Edinburgh\, Tunisia\, Athens\, Beirut\, and elsewhere. He has written for numerous magazines and newspapers\, with a special focus recently on the Syrian Revolution. \nZaher Omareen is a Syrian documentarist and researcher\, recently featured in the Victoria and Albert’s exhibition Disobedient Objects and in the British Council – London’s Third Space exhibition. He is co-editor of Syria Speaks: Art and Culture from the Frontline (Saqi Books\, 2014)\, and his articles and short stories have been published in English and Arabic. He curated several exhibitions of Syrian uprising art in Amsterdam\, Copenhagen and London. He is a PhD candidate in contemporary documentary cinema and new media at Goldsmiths College\, London. \nThe panel is moderated by Rana Issa URL:https://masahat.no/event/performing-democracy-syrian-art-practices-today/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/11948002_10152987089081502_408818771_n.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150926T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150926T180000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20150926T150000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T092806Z UID:153-1443286800-1443290400@masahat.no SUMMARY:The Creative Memory of the Syrian Revolution DESCRIPTION:“There is no political power without control of the archive\, if not of memory. Effective democratization can always be measured by this essential criterion: the participation in and the access to the archive\, its constitution\, and its interpretation” Jacques Derrida \nSince March 2011\, Syria has witnessed deep cultural mutation; forms of expressions have evolved trying to respond to the eventful Syrian uprising. Artistic and cultural production have been a vital tool of political resistance\, and so is archiving this production. \nWhat is the Creative Memory of the Syrian Revolution? What are the characteristics of ‘expression’ in times of tyranny and freedom? How do socio-political and cultural factors affect ‘expression’? How do we see the change on people’s ‘expression’ and behaviour since 2011?  What would be the role of memory in the future? What is the link between justice and memory? \n  \n  \nSana Yazigi is a graphic designer graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts at Damascus University. She founded the bilingual monthly cultural magazine “The Cultural Diary”\, covering the cultural scene in Damascus and other Syrian cities between 2007 and 2012. She is the founder and editor-in-chief of the website The Creative Memory of the Syrian Revolution since 2013. She is also the initiator of ALWAN art therapy initiative for Syrian refugee children in Beirut-Lebanon since 2013. URL:https://masahat.no/event/the-creative-memory-of-the-syrian-revolution/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/creative-memory-conference1.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150925T190000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150925T200000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20150925T170000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T093059Z UID:151-1443207600-1443211200@masahat.no SUMMARY:Narratives of Survival DESCRIPTION:One of the most important formative experiences for the Syrian youth in the past four years is the emergence of an active civil society. The concept of civil society in Syria was virtually nonexistent before 2011 under the Assad’s dictatorship. But as the Syrian uprising started\, the explosion of self-expression mediums turned with time into a multitude of active\, cross-cutting grassroots groups that sprung up throughout Syria. Faced with an increasingly complex reality\, these groups had to change their proactive course to reactive in response to the pressing humanitarian needs of the local communities while having to survive Assad’s bombs from the sky and extremists’ threats on the ground. All of this means that Syrians have gained\, and are still gaining\, a significant experience that is worth sharing\, developing and supporting\, and that the active civil society is yet another manifestation of the on-going uprising. \nThis panel provides a general snapshot on life at the local level during the conflict in Syria. In between state-failure\, war economy and a “conflict society”\, triggered by the country’s dire humanitarian crisis\, multiple actors have stepped in to fill in the void. These include Youth Networks\, civil society organisations\, Local Councils\, Sharia-based institutions\, Muslim Brotherhood affiliates\, Turkish Kurdistan Workers’ Party structures\, and the jihadist groups\, Jabhat al-Nusra and Daesh (the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria – ISIS). The discussion will build on a case study of civil society activism and local governance dynamics in Aleppo from years 2011-2014. In particular\, the experience of a grassroots Syrian organization\, “Kesh Malek” will be highlighted as an example of the coping strategies and changed strategic directions that the Syrian civil society actors were forced to adopt in light of the rapidly changing context in Syria. \n  \n \nMarcell Shehwaro is an activist and blogger from Aleppo and the Executive Manager of Kesh Malek Organization. Through her organization\, Shehwaro is working on promoting children’s rights in the seven schools that the organization runs in Aleppo. She initiated with other activists the coalition of “Shamel” for Syrian civil society organizations. Shehwaro has a bachelor’s degree in Dentistry\, and a master’s degree in Human Rights and Cultural Diversity from the University of Essex\, UK. Shehwaro has published a series of blogs on Global Voices capturing her life in Aleppo after the revolution and until she became exiled in Turkey. \n  \nRana Khalaf is independent researcher and consultant. She is also a research fellow with the Centre for Syrian Studies at the University of Saint Andrews. Her current research focuses on conflict\, governance\, civil-society\, youth and the neoliberal peace; it geographically concentrates on the non-government controlled parts of Syria. The co-founder of two civil society movements\, Rana has been heavily involved in grassroots work. This has supported her authorship of several key publications on Syria that seek to bridge the gap between academia and the world of civil society\, activism and policy-making. For more information\, visit her Academia Page. \nThe panel is moderated by Christian Ruge. URL:https://masahat.no/event/narratives-of-survival/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/11401040_967709173264009_835688962141622203_n.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150925T170000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150925T183000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20150925T150000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T092634Z UID:150-1443200400-1443205800@masahat.no SUMMARY:What Kind of Support Do Syrians Want? DESCRIPTION:The picture in Syria today looks increasingly gloomy\, especially for those watching from afar. What was widely recognized as an uprising for shared humanitarian values\, is no longer seen as such. As the situation became intractably complicated\, faulty generalizations and simplifications emerged\, and the gloomy picture was\, consequently\, obscured. Nonetheless\, many Syrians still believe in the revolution and ask for support from their counterparts around the world. \nHow would we define the situation in Syria today? Are there still any revolutionary characteristics in the middle of the ongoing war and all regional and international interventions? Did the revolution manage to change something in the society? Can we talk about positive change when we are faced with the destruction we see in Syria today on all levels? What kind of support do Syrians living inside Syria\, in refugee camps and in exile\, want? \n  \nMohammad Al Attar (Damascus\, 1980) is a Syrian playwright and dramaturge. His theatrical works like: ‘Withdrawal’ \, ‘Samah’ \, ‘Online’\, ‘Could You Please Look into the Camera?’\, ‘A Chance Encounter’\, and ‘Antigone of Syria’ \, have been performed in Damascus\, London\, New York\, Seoul\, Berlin\, Brussels\, Edinburgh\, Tunisia\, Athens\, Beirut\, and elsewhere. He has written for numerous magazines and newspapers\, with a special focus recently on the Syrian Revolution. \n\n\nRana Khalaf  is independent researcher and consultant. She is also a research fellow with the Centre for Syrian Studies at the University of Saint Andrews. Her current research focuses on conflict\, governance\, civil-society\, youth and the neoliberal peace; it geographically concentrates on the non-government controlled parts of Syria. The co-founder of two civil society movements\, Rana has been heavily involved in grassroots work. This has supported her authorship of several key publications on Syria that seek to bridge the gap between academia and the world of civil society\, activism and policy-making. For more information\, visit her Academia Page. \n\n  \n\nYassin al-Haj Saleh   is one of Syria’s most prominent intellectuals and political dissidents. In 1980\, while studying medicine in Aleppo University\, he was arrested by Hafez al-Assad regime because of his political activism. He remained in prison for 16 years (1980–1996). He returned to medical school upon his release\, graduated in 2000\, but never practiced medicine\, instead he turned to writing. Yassin al-Haj Saleh writes on political\, social and cultural subjects relating to Syria and the Arab world. He has authored and edited five books about Syria. He is a co-founder of the Syrian online periodical “al-Jumhuriya” and the Syrian Cultural House in Istanbul “Hamisch”. He is a recipient of the Prince Claus Award for 2012. \n\nThe panel is moderated by Ziad Majed. URL:https://masahat.no/event/what-kind-of-support-do-syrians-want/ LOCATION:Litteraturhuset\, Wergelandsveien 29\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0167\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/CKbS-sjW8AAfnZb.jpglarge.jpeg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150924T173000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150924T204500 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20150924T153000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T094205Z UID:136-1443115800-1443127500@masahat.no SUMMARY:Palestinization of Syrian Refugees - Panel and film DESCRIPTION:The situation for the refugees has become increasingly present in the Norwegian and European media over the last weeks and months. However\, the debate about the refugees is still being repeatedly depoliticized and reduced into a question of numbers only.\nIn this debate we will take as a point of departure the assertion that the influx of refugees is not the core of the problem; rather it is the outcome of a distorted world order.\nWe want to approach the discussion about the refugees by posing critical political and moral questions about the current global state of affairs\, immigration laws and the grave injustices that contribute to worsening the crisis\, with a special focus on the Syrian refugees’ case and the European and Norwegian response to these questions.\nWhy is the metaphor Palestinization of Syrian refugees relevant? What are the historical commonalities between the Palestinian refugees and Syrian refugees today? How do the refugee laws in neighboring countries affect the living conditions of Syrian refugees? How is the political debate in Norway framing the issue of Syrian refugees? These are some of the questions that will be addressed in the panel. \nHanne Heszlein-Lossius Medical doctor currently an intern doctor at Haraldsplass sykehus in Bergen. Henne also has a bachelor in journalism. She was part of a group of health care workers who started “Helsehjelp for papirløse” i Bergen\, a medical centre that provides medical care for immigrants in Bergen (papirløse innvandrere)\, also working there as a volunteer doctor. She started the Facebook page “Har du plass til en ekstra i hjemmet ditt” in May 2015 as a response to the ongoing debate on how Norway should help Syrian refugees. \n\n\nLine Khateeb is a Norwegian-Palestinian and was in the period 2008-2012 head of the Palestine Committee of Norway. The last three years she has been working in the Norwegian Organisation for Asylum seekers (NOAS)\, giving legal assistance and guidance to asylum seekers and doing policy work. She has a master in Middle Eastern studies from the University of Oslo. \n\n\nŞenay Özden is a cultural anthropologist and a researcher from Turkey. Her research areas include international migration\, refugees\, Turkish state’s refugee policies\, politics of humanitarian aid. She has numerous articles and reports published on Syrian refugees in Turkey. She is one of the founders of the Syrian Cultural House in Istanbul\, “Hamisch”. \n\nYassin al-Haj Saleh is one of Syria’s most prominent intellectuals and political dissidents. In 1980\, while studying medicine in Aleppo University\, he was arrested by Hafez al-Assad regime because of his political activism. He remained in prison for 16 years (1980–1996). Yassin al-Haj Saleh writes on political\, social and cultural subjects relating to Syria and the Arab world. He has authored and edited five books about Syria. He is a co-founder of the Syrian online periodical “al-Jumhuriya” and the Syrian Cultural House in Istanbul “Hamisch”. He is a recipient of the Prince Claus Award for 2012. \n\nThe panel will be moderated by Jørgen Jensehaugen. \n\n\nThe panel is followed by a screening of On the Bride’s SideA Palestinian poet and an Italian journalist meet five Palestinians and Syrians in Milan who entered Europe via the Italian island of Lampedusa after fleeing the war in Syria. They decide to help them complete their journey to Sweden – and hopefully avoid getting themselves arrested as traffickers – by faking a wedding. With a Palestinian friend dressed up as the bride and a dozen or so Italian and Syrian friends as wedding guests\, they cross halfway over Europe on a four-day journey of three thousand kilometres. This emotionally charged journey not only brings out the stories and hopes and dreams of the five Palestinians and Syrians and their rather special traffickers\, but also reveals an unknown side of Europe – a transnational\, supportive and irreverent Europe that ridicules the laws and restrictions of the Fortress in a kind of masquerade which is no other than the direct filming of something that really took place on the road from Milan to Stockholm from the 14th to the 18th of November 2013. URL:https://masahat.no/event/palestinization-of-syrian-refugees-debate-and-film/ LOCATION:Cinemateket\, Dronningens gate 16\, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0105\, Norway CATEGORIES:Film,Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/2014-09-04-bride-590.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150924T123000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/Oslo:20150924T140000 DTSTAMP:20260602T120840 CREATED:20150924T103000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250308T094055Z UID:130-1443097800-1443103200@masahat.no SUMMARY:Assad’s Jihadist Allies DESCRIPTION:While Media and western observers have mainly focused on the Sunni Jihadists moving to Syria to fight Assad or to join the “Islamic State” and fight Syrian opposition factions\, other Jihadists – Shi’a ones – have been deploying in larger numbers in the country to defend Assad and “protect” his regime.\nWhether from Iraq\, from Afghanistan and Pakistan\, or from the well-trained and equipped Hezbollah of Lebanon\, the Shi’a fighters were mobilized by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and sent to fight in most strategic battles around Damascus the capital\, in Deraa in the South and in Aleppo in the North.\nWho are those “Shi’a Jihadists”? Why do they fight to defend the Assad regime? What are the ideological and political justifications for their fight? How does Iran recruit them? And What are the consequences of their “presence in Syria”? \n\n\nZiad Majed is an associate professor of Middle East Studies and Comparative Politics at the American University of Paris. He is the author of “Syria\, the orphaned revolution” (2013 in Arabic and 2014 in French). \n\n \nFacebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/928071150573226/ URL:https://masahat.no/event/assads-jihadist-allies-panel/ LOCATION:University of Oslo\, Eilert Sundts hus Blindern \, Oslo\, Oslo\, 0316\, Norway CATEGORIES:Samtale ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://masahat.no/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/unnamed.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="masahat":MAILTO:info@masahat.no END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR