DOHA: Qatar’s first National Identity Seminar, which started yesterday, stressed the importance of preserving national identity and cultural heritage amid globalisation.
“In Qatar, we aim at turning our culture into a platform to reinforce identity, citizenship and national pride, and we seek to preserve our cultural heritage, which starts at the core of the Qatari family.
“The family lies at the heart of the Qatari community, and one of the main goals of our National Development Plan 2011-2016 is to enable Qatari families financially, as a way to hold family ties, and reinforce our commitment to our identity and values,” the Minister of Development Planning and Statistics H E Dr Saleh Mohammed Al Nabit told the opening ceremony.
Under the patronage of the Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, the two-day seminar at Sharq Village and Spa is organised by Qatar Heritage and Identity Centre and sponsored by Vodafone.
Among the topics were Qatari identity as a priority within the Qatar National Vision 2030, family and identity, demographical effect on identity, the role of population dynamics, and the media’s take on identity.
In his keynote speech, Dr Khalid Youssuf Al Mulla, Executive Director, Qatar Heritage and Identity Centre said: “Addressing national identity is our call to preserve a valuable asset, and an invitation to build a communication bridge between Qatari culture and other cultures. We aim to apply a modern lifestyle without losing the shape and form of our identity and values.”
Mohammed Al Yami, Director, External Affairs, Vodafone Qatar, said, “Our exclusive sponsorship of Qatar’s first National Identity Seminar originates from our deep realisation of the importance of the Qatari identity and the necessity that we preserve it lest it should dissolve into the multitude of other identities in the age of globalisation with the world turning into a small village.”
On family and identity, Dr Maysara Taher, Manager, Beit Al Mashoora Psychological Consultancy, said, “We appreciate efforts of Qatar Heritage and Identity Centre to examine the histories of other nations, as they aim to shed the light on the importance of history and its influence on identity.
“Understanding our history enables us to realise the philosophy behind it, where we can learn lessons that family was and still is the core of preserving identity among nations.”
Dr Kaltham Al Ghanem, Manager, Human and Social Sciences Centre, spoke about the impact of demographics on national identity.
The seminar also featured two case studies presented by TV personality, Mariko Mikami, from Japan and Cultural Expert from Oman, Ahmed Khamis Bou Safi, who shared successful examples on methods adopted in their countries to preserve national identity.
The seminar continues today with former Kuwaiti minister of information, Dr Saad bin Tefla speaking on the effect of traditional and modern media on identity.
Dr Fatima Al Suweidy, Deputy Chief, Arabic Language Department, Qatar University, will talk about identity and the Arabic language and Mohammed Ali Abdullah, expert in cultural architecture, on identity through architecture in Qatar.
The Peninsula
