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delegation 001
Thursday, 23 June 2011 14:20 | 
Author: Administrator | 
A Growing Friendship Thursday, 21 October 2010 21:54 | Author: Administrator |
Dear friends,  A few years ago, an idea to form a friendship exchange project between the city of Duluth MN and Rania city in the Kurdish north of Iraq was born. Last year, 6 citizens of Duluth spent 8 days visiting Rania learning about Kurdish society, culture, language, art, music, dance, education, politics and more. Getting into the Kurdish north was a fairly easy endeavor. One flies into the Suleimaniya International Airport, presents a passport and gets a 10 day tourist visa usually without a problem. A welcoming committee was there to pick up the Duluth group and rooms in a brand new modern hotel were prepared for us. At least 200 people from Rania formed a receiving line to greet the Duluth delegation and there must have been 15 different media representatives for the arrival press conference. I knew that the arrival of the Duluth delegation was a big thing for Rania and that this project, this possibility or forming a lasting friendship and exchange, meant a lot to them. I had heard the Kurdish people say many times that the only friend to the Kurds was the mountains. This was the place that protected them, nourished them, and saved them during the many genocidal attacks they have experienced throughout their history. With this exchange project, a new friendship was born.  The Duluthians returned home after 8 days filled by this rich experience and a deepened desire to keep this friendship alive. We began to make preparations to receive a group from Rania in Duluth. This took the better part of one year. It's not easy for the ordinary citizen of Iraqi Kurdistan to travel internationally. The 5 that came, 2 women and 3 men were 2 university professors, one high school teacher, a civil engineer, and a youth center director. 3 of them had never been in a plane or traveled outside of Iraq. The Prime Minister of the Kurdish Regional Government, Dr. Barham Salih, paid for their flight. These 5 came, not for themselves, but they came representing their entire city and the Kurdish people. They came not for the good of the individual, but for the good of the whole society. It was no easy task getting them into the US. First they had to fill out many forms in English only. One form had to be completed on line and sent to the US Embassy in Baghdad. Then they had to go to Baghdad for an interview. Then they had to wait. Despite an invitation from Duluth Mayor Don Ness, support from the office of Congressman Jim Oberstar, and personal recommendations from Duluth citizens, it took 4 months for their visas to be processed after a rigorous security background check. Our government doesn't make it so easy to be friends. On September 25, the Rania delegation arrived in the Minneapolis/St Paul airport. A welcoming committee picked them up and made the 4 hour drive to Duluth. Rooms in a hotel right on Lake Superior were prepared for them. They got to Duluth at 1AM and at 6AM one of the 5 stood on the shore of the lake and marveled at its beauty.  From there began 8 days of exploration and discovery. The world had opened up and Duluth embraced them in friendship. They were greeted by the Mayor and the Congressman's office. They visited the public library, 2 universities, 2 high schools and 1 primary school. They toured our waste management plant and a construction project. They toured a hospital and rehabilitation center. They had lunch with the Rotary Club. They visited the Boys and Girls Club, the food shelf and the Damiano human services building. They met with the staff of our internationally renowned domestic abuse prevention program at the Center for Nonviolence. They spent a morning at the Fond-du-Lac Reservation where they discovered a deep affinity with Native Americans. They walked the Lakewalk and went on a drive up the north shore right at the height of the fall colors. They were received at a public reception and concert given by the Echoes of Peace Choir. They sang 2 of their traditional songs in Kurdish at the concert. Less than 2 decades ago, the author of one of the songs was killed for singing it publicly in Iraq. Every night they shared a meal at the home of new-found friends. Their send off meal was a pot luck dinner at UCC Peace Church.. They were amazed that not everyone brought the same or even similar dishes. It was a Midwest pot luck at its finest although nobody brought jello with marshmallows. I've been working with the people in the Kurdish north of Iraq for 4 years. I've spent 4 to 5 months each year working there with Christian Peacemaker Teams, a violence reduction, human rights organization. I've learned quite a bit about the Kurds but every time I'm with them I learn something new with a deeper level of understanding. I've known that they were a closed society ostracized from the world not by their choice but by the rule of one dictatorship, or occupation after another. They are the largest ethnic group of people without their own homeland. Actually, they had their own Kurdish state for about 4 months after WWI. After a deal gone bad, 40 million Kurds were divided up into 4 countries; Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria. In each country, they were forced to give up their ethnic identity, their language, dress, customs, history etc. In 3 of the 4 countries this reality remains. In 1991, under the direction of the French ambassador, the UN established a no-fly zone over the Kurdish north of Iraq. They were free to be Kurds. In 2003 with the fall of the Ba'ath Party, they felt as if they were reborn.  I knew all of this, but to see their faces and their eyes light up as they traveled around Duluth, I understood at a deeper level what it felt like to be recognized as a member of the human family for who you are. The enormity of that will take a while to sink in. Both Duluth and Rania will be forever richer for this experience.Neither city is stopping here. Duluthians are already preparing for the next delegation to go to Rania and Ranians are already preparing to receive us. The ripple effect from this exchange is already going far and wide and "love is the measure". If you want to know more more about the Duluth-Rania Friendship Exchange Project or see pictures of these exchanges, please visit our website: www.duluth-rania.org. Thank you. Peace, Michele Naar-Obed Last Updated (Friday, 22 October 2010 10:36) Rania Delegates Thursday, 09 September 2010 09:39 | Author: Administrator |
Shirwan :He is 31 years old. He is married and has a daughter. He has BA in English language. He has been teaching English language in "5th Azar High School" in Rania for 9 years. He participated in most of the courses of Ministry of Education. He finished a course of English language in American University in Slemani( AUI-S). He taught English in several courses for learning English in Rania Youth Activities Centre.
Hiwa :He is 45 years old. He is married and he has three sons. He has diploma in music. He was head of music department in Rania Fine Arts Institutes for several years. Now he is manager of Art Activities in schools in Rania Education Directorate. He is supervisor of Rania Music Group.
Khaled :He is 38 years old. He is married. He is manager of Rania Youth Activities Centre. He is an active member in Kurdistan Journalist Syndicate and editor of Ledwan newspaper and Ledwan website. He has been manager of Rania Youth Activities Centre for 9 years. He finished a course about the young leading in South Korean. He is active in the young fields and civilian society organizations.
Hero : She is 37 and she is single. She lives in Rania. She has BA in civil engineering in the roads and building fields in Rania Constructions Directorate . She supervised many projects of roads, buildings, and reconstruction in Rania.
Khunaw :She is 43 years old and she is single. She has MA in English language and she is teacher in Koya University , College of Education. She is active in the women fields and civilian society organizations. She took part in most of the courses of Ministry of Education. Last Updated (Thursday, 21 October 2010 21:11) |
