Refugee Week 2005
Refugee Week is a participatory festival which takes place across the UK every year in June, to coincide with the annual World Refugee Day on 20 June. In Scotland, Refugee Week is co-ordinated by the Scottish Refugee Council.
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During Refugee Week in Scotland, events organised by refugee and local community groups reveal what it means to seek asylum as well as the talents that people seeking asylum can bring. The people who have organised the events in this programme represent a cross-section of Scottish society which is working to build a better Scotland. They are offering the traditional ‘Hundred Thousand Welcomes’ to all. By accepting their invitation people can see what can be achieved with a little hope, a little compassion and a lot of creativity. |
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Refugee Week was first held in 1998. What started as a few community events has evolved into a vibrant, exciting festival that is representative of the positive contribution new communities bring. |
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Refugee Week in Scotland aims to deliver positive educational messages that counter fear, ignorance and negative stereotypes of refugees through arts, cultural, sports and educational events. These events celebrate the contribution refugees make to the UK and promote understanding about the reasons why people seek sanctuary.
In Edinburgh, exhibitions included Amnesty International - 'Celebrating Sanctuary, Celebrating Success’ and ‘What’s your top line on asylum?' and Artists-in-Exile - ‘Welcome to the Asylum’. In Glasgow, the photographic exhibition ‘Archive’ examined some social, political and cultural events from Glasgow’s recent history.
Artists-in-Exile member Shahin Memishi has worked with the local community in Lincoln Avenue, Knightswood, Glasgow towards their new community mural and garden. Together they have created a positive and empowering representation of life in Lincoln Avenue.
The National Museum of Scotland and Scottish Refugee Council have worked in partnership towards the Stuff exhibition. This multimedia exhibition created by refugees and their host communities in Glasgow looks at the meaning of personal objects and aims to raise awareness about why people seek asylum. On Sunday 26 June the exhibition featured performances by powerful Palestinian poet Ghazi Hussein and Iraqi musicians led by M.N. Muhammad.
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Scottish Refugee Council was founded in 1985 to provide advice and assistance to individuals who are forced to leave their own country and seek protection in Scotland. It has evolved over the last 18 years and is the only independent professional agency in Scotland dedicated to refugee and asylum issues.
Find out more online. |
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All images courtesy Scottish Refugee Council.
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The Scottish Arts Council has supported Palestinian poet and author Ghazi Hussein through our Literature and Cultural Diversity funds. Find out more about Ghazi.
Read a profile on Sana Bilgrami, whose films exploring themes of migration, community, and identity, were shown at the Filmhouse Cinema in Ednburgh as part of Refugee Week.
Scottish PEN and Artists in Exile Glasgow undertook a series of workshops for mutual translation between writers using different languages, from January to March 2004. Read about the resulting work, 'exile', which was published by Survivors' Press in 2004. | Refugee Week in Scotland is supported by the National Lottery through the Scottish Arts Council. |