Six Syrian refugees – all of whom arrived in Ireland in the last year – will today begin a two-week digital media workshop in Trinity.
The six refugees are currently residing in centres in Ballaghaderreen, Co Roscommon and Mosney, Co Meath. Prior to arriving in Ireland, participants came from a range of backgrounds but had their education cut short due to the ongoing war in Syria. Under the Ismani programme, a joint endeavour between CONNECT and online video platform ALTV.com, the participants will learn how to create their own independent content.
Taqwa Alhariry, who will begin the workshop today, was unable to attend university due to the fighting in her home country. After spending two years in Greek and Turkish camps, the workshop will provide an opportunity to upskill. In a press statement, Alhariry said that the “workshop is a great idea. I am interested in making documentaries and I hope this will give me the basic skills that I need”.
Kamel Shaaban had originally wanted to study IT in Damascus but due to the danger of travelling there from his home in Idlib, he was instead forced to study agricultural engineering at the University of Aleppo. In his third year of study, he was forced to stop studying completely.
Shaaban said, in a press statement, that he still has a strong interest in IT and that he hopes to produce comedy videos using the skills he learns over the next two weeks. “I already have some ideas and I would like to explore them during this workshop”, he explained.
One of the other participants, Ghassan Shamet, is interested in working as an actor and has already featured on Irish TV, appearing on TV3’s documentary Ireland’s Refugee Hotel, which looked at how refugees were living in Ballaghaderreen. “I am interested in a career in T.V. and I think the skills I will learn here, especially about camera work, will be very useful”, he said in a press statement.
In a press statement, Mai ElMahdy, the Ismani Project Coordinator and a former volunteer at a Greek refugee camp, said that the workshop “is intended to help them to think of the future and provide an introduction to a new skill which will assist their career development”.
Prof Linda Doyle, Director of CONNECT, said that helping these people harness digital media will “give a voice to those who have a story to tell”. “Video is a powerful medium and I am confident that these skills will be put to good use”, she said.
Correction: 13:34, 13th November, 2017
An earlier version of this article incorrectly referred to Taqwa Alhariry as a “he”. In fact, Alhariry is a woman.
