Festival of Friendship Refugee Week Events

Festival of Friendship Refugee Week Event 2014

2014 saw us farewell the Festival of Friendship event. These annual events brought together the community to enjoy great food, photography exhibitions, music, forums and films. We are grateful to the many supporters and contributors to these events.

Program:

  • Photography Exhibition: Families Interrupted
  • Stalls
  • Music
  • Book Signing: Leila Yusaf Chung Chasing Shadows
  • Forum: “Restoring hope through international law – is the right of return for Palestinian refugees necessary for peace?”
  • Film: The Village Under the Forest

Funds raised supported all our kindergarten projects  at Umm al Khair, at Khashem al Daraj and  Tel Rumeida, as well as our newly identified project in the community of Dkaika, in the Southern tip of the West Bank.

Festival of Friendship Refugee Week Event 2012

Our event celebrates the sumud (steadfastness) of the people of Hebron with a full day of fabulous activities in Leichhardt Town Hall.

Program:

  • Fashion Parade
  • Photography Exhibition: Sumud
  • Stalls
  • Forum: Hebron: A microcosm of Israeli apartheid
  • Film: Roadmap to Apartheid.

Images for the exhibition were taken by volunteers on the Ecumenical Accompaniment Program in Palestine and Israel during their three month posting from February – May, 2012.

Funds raised supplemented the contribution from 2011 to build a new learning centre in the South Hebron Hills, in the village of Khasam Al Daraj.

Festival of Friendship Refugee Week Event 2011

Back by popular demand Friends of Hebron hosted their second refugee week event. A full day of activities and packed hall to listen to the forum.

Program:

  • Photography Exhibition: Palestine to Remember
  • Stalls
  • Music
  • Forum: Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (You can listen to the MP3 recordings of the contributions to this forum here.)
  • Film: Return to Gaza

Funds raised contributed to the building of a new learning centre in the South Hebron Hills, in the village of Khasam Al Daraj.

Festival of Friendship Refugee Week Event 2010

The first Festival of Friendship event was developed in response to the cancellation of a photography exhibition that was due to open in the Leichhardt local library. It became a great opportunity to host more than a photography exhibition; it brought together a wonderful array of contributors to highlight the issues faced by Palestinians under occupation.

Program:

  • All day photography exhibition
  • Stalls
  • Forum: Censorship of the Palestinian Story
  • Film: Welcome to Hebron

 Funds raised were used to rehabilitate a structure in the village of Umm Al Khair to open an early learning centre for this highly vulnerable community.