2006-2007 A.M. Qattan Foundation Annual Report by Qattan Foundation

A. M. Qattan Foundation Annual Report 1/4/2006 to 31/3/2007

From the Chairman of the Board of Trustees What is there to say when we look at the disastrous events that are unfolding across the Arab World? What can Palestinians do in the face of infighting, insecurity and the absence of political and community leadership, not to mention the increasing exodus of the young and talented, the collapse in the economy, the breakdown in law and order, and the further disintegration of the the spirit of collective solidarity. At no time in my life, in the forty years in which I have served the Arab and Palestinian public and nongovernmental sectors, did I ever imagine that we could reach such a low point. What can be done in the face of this reality? What can our citizens do when civil war forces libraries, schools and cultural centres to close? On the anniversary of the June 1967 War is it possible that we are becoming ashamed of our just cause and find ourselves forced to justify a situation that is impossible to defend? I am unable to find answers to these painful, shameful questions. Yet despite all the problems of the last disastrous year, the Foundation has not stopped working for a single day because of its firm belief that Arab and Palestinian people can and will rise above the many and increasing problems that beset them... To that end, as the Arab and Palestinian national project has disintegrated, we and a relatively small but nonetheless growing group of other individuals and institutions have continued to plan and implement our projects with an increased determination to strengthen and expand them. While development work in the cultural and educational fields was relatively peripheral in the region ten years ago, it has now become a focus of attention for many wealthy Arab individuals and institutions and there is no doubt that Palestine has played a pioneering role in this, despite its size and the threats hanging over its institutions. However, given the recent political changes in the Occupied Territories, the most urgent question which faces us now is whether we will be able to play the same role in the future, and act in the free, independent and transparent manner that we have insisted upon in the past, despite the constraints of the Israeli occupation. Or will we too become victims of dissension, violence and internal repression? I cannot answer these urgent questions with certainty. But I am convinced that everyone, without exception, who works for the Foundation is committed to developing and persevering in its work for the sake of a fairer, freer and more dignified life. Without such goals, our society will never escape from the insane and suicidal trance into which it has recently fallen.

Abdel Muhsin al-Qattan June 2007

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English cover photo: Film Club in Beit Hanoun School for Girls, sponsored by the Palestinian Audio-visual Project and destroyed by an Israeli bomb, June 2006 3

( Clockwise from top left ) Two photos of the Qattan Centre for the • Child in Gaza Classroom cineclub in Beit Hanoun Girls • School, destroyed by Israeli gunfire Front elevation of Foundation’s new • office in London

Introduction Last year was no ordinary one for Palestine. It witnessed a number of critical events, which affected all sectors of Palestinian society and included the Hamas victory in the legislative elections, and the resulting impact on the political and administrative balance of power, the economic sanctions imposed by the international community, Israeli repression in Gaza and its continuing campaign of aggression and destruction, the Israeli war against Lebanon in 2006, internal unrest, the absence of any semblance of the rule of law, particularly in Gaza, teachers’ strikes, the Mecca Agreement and the National Unity Government. On top of all that, Israel continued to implement its short and long term policies, to deepen the structural collapse of Palestinian society. These events undoubtedly left their mark on the Foundation and its programmes. For example, part of the Qattan Centre for the Child’s summer programme in Gaza had to be cancelled, staff members were unable to get to work because of the bitter internal fighting and transport remained difficult in all parts of the West Bank. These factors all had a negative impact on our ability to perform and carry out our operations. However, in spite of all of that, we did everything possible to fulfil our objectives, carry out our planned programmes, complete work on improving our management structure, and streamline the flow of information internally and externally. Thousands of children benefited from the library services and the cultural, artistic and educational activities, which the Qattan Centre for the Child provided in Gaza; hundreds of teachers participated in training courses organised by the Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development and developed a better knowledge of the research, resources and library services it offered, and tens of young artists and writers benefited from grants and prizes awarded by the Culture and Arts Programme with a large number of people both inside and outside the country enjoying various cultural activities put on with support from the Programme. This year, for the first time, we helped sponsor an artistic residency in India and also witnessed a significant development in the work of artists who took part in residencies in France and Italy. The Palestinian Audio-Visual Project (PAV) managed to complete the third stage of its ambitious training programme in film-making as well as continue to set up ciné-clubs in schools, in spite of the teachers’ strikes. These now number forty-six and stretch from Tamra in Galilee in the north to Rafah in the south. Because of its belief in the importance of music in human development, the Foundation also carried out a survey of the music sector in the Gaza Strip, whose results will provide a framework for future intervention by the Foundation in supporting children’s musical education in the Gaza Strip. Despite everything we have endured, we have made progress and achieved results. None of this would have been possible were it not for the enthusiastic participation of large numbers of teachers, artists and children in our programmes and the determination of all our colleagues at the Foundation as well as the continuing support we have received from members of the Board of Trustees. To them all we owe an enormous debt of gratitude.

Ziad Khalaf, Executive Director 4

About the Foundation Founded in 1994, the A.M. QATTAN FOUNDATION is a UK-registered charity with offices both in London, Ramallah and Gaza. Through its work in Palestine and elsewhere, it seeks to invest in people and to provide a fertile cultural soil upon which they can build their lives in order to achieve an effective, meaningful and lasting participation in various aspects of human endeavour. The Foundation believes that the process of human development requires patience, perseverance and continuous nurturing in order to be truly successful. It has therefore chosen to focus on two principal areas, culture and education, which it considers central to any longterm and consistent process of human development. Hence, it established the Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development in order to actively participate in raising the standards of education and teaching in Palestine. The Centre works directly with schoolteachers, endeavouring to develop their skills and to create better learning conditions for Palestinian school-children of all ages. Another of the Foundation’s projects, the Qattan Centre for the Child in Gaza City, which boasts over 95,000 volumes and a variety of other library and information services, was established to compensate for the lack of incentives and opportunities, both socially and in the traditional educational system, for children to nurture their curiosity, expand their knowledge

and facilitate their access to outside cultures. It also aims to cultivate children intellectually, emotionally and socially in order to enable them to become active and effective social beings within the context of an increasingly globalised world. The Foundation is keenly aware of the importance for any society of all forms of originality and creativity. Thus, in 1999, it launched the Culture and Science Programme (renamed the Culture and Arts Programme in early 2006) to provide financial and moral support to talented people in a number of fields of creative endeavour, particularly to the young. The Programme provides incentives for artists and creators to develop their skills and explore new horizons. Through this programme, the Foundation contributes towards the crystallization of these energies and encourages them to seek ever-widening horizons. It also aims to promote Palestinian and Arab culture internationally and to open avenues into the region for international culture and know-how. In recognition of the growing vitality, artistic contribution and economic needs of Palestinian film and television production, the Foundation launched the Palestinian Audio-visual Project in June 2004. This three-year investment programme, cofunded with the European Union, includes a national training programme, a professional database of professionals and their films, a dynamic website, DVD publishing and distribution grants and an extensive School Film Education Programme which has established forty-six ciné-clubs in Palestine’s schools. The Al-Qattan family underwrites the Foundation’s administrative expenses and programme and project costs in order to ensure its independence and the highest level of service.

( Next page, clockwise from left ) Children from Al-Kamandjati Group • Traditional headgear and dress from • Sovereign Threads exhibition in Los Angeles Playwright Betty Shamieh • Detail from The Presence of Absence, • painting by Jawad Al-Malhi, Occupied Space, London

• Board Meetings in Amman, Spring 07

Management News 1. Palestine This year, the Foundation worked to strengthen links between its various programmes which had been made more tenuous by the diverse geographical locations of its operations, the lack of access between Gaza and the West Bank (and the rest of Palestine and the region) and the difficult political and security situation. The administration and Management Committee (composed of all members of staff at Director level) made strenuous efforts to address this by encouraging shared activities between the programmes and holding regular discussions about the vision of the Foundation, its strategies, work practices and policies. The Management Committee thus met three times during the year and twice with the Board of Trustees to oversee the Foundation’s programmes and address problems and new challenges. On an international level, there was a notable increase in the number of new projects involving other Arab and non-Arab organisations and projects, some of which are in the process of being set up and which will be jointly funded with external sources. The Foundation signed an agreement with the Götebog University in Sweden to carry out a survey of the music sector in the Gaza Strip, which will look at ways of developing music education among children there; it is also working with the Pan-Hellenic Foundation for 6

Shamia for a reading of her new play at the Royal Court Theatre in London and helped sponsor the visit by the Choir of London as part of the Palestine Mozart Festival which took place in towns across the West Bank in spring 2007.

Teaching Drama in Greece, the National Foundation for Teaching Drama in the UK, al-Balad Theatre and the Arab Education Forum in Jordan, on a project to hold an international summer school on drama in education; with the British Council on an English language teaching conference; with the British Council and the Royal Court Theatre (London) on setting up a playwriting residency in Britain and with Belgian organisations on a summer workshop in the performing arts. In addition, it is exploring ways of collaborating with the Ford Foundation and the Hani Qaddoumi Foundation over the coming year. The Foundation is also an active member of the Arab Foundations Forum which aims to improve networking and the transfer of know-how between Arab foundations and to promote their role in social development.

The Foundation has moved into temporary offices in London while its new building undergoes renovation. The new building at number 227 Cromwell Road in West London, will become its permanent headquarters in Britain. It will house the Foundation’s administrative offices as well as provide exhibition space and room for other, small-scale cultural activities. The remaining office space will be rented out.

One of the most significant decisions taken this year was to relocate the Foundation’s Ramallah office to a new building on a four-acre site in al-Tira district. Until the new building is completed, the QCERD library will move to an adjacent building to our current Ramallah main offices, which will increase the amount of office space required to meet our expanding needs. Human Resources The Foundation currently employs sixty-nine people, sixty-five of whom work in Palestine, and four outside. The breakdown per programme is as follows: Administration, eight; Culture and Arts Programme, two; Qattan Centre for the Child, thirty; Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development, Ramallah, sixteen of whom five are part time; with six full-timers and three part-timers in its Gaza office; and two in PAV, in addition to two administrative staff in London. This year has also seen a significant increase in the number of colleagues attending training and development programmes locally and internationally. 2. London The London office supported a number of local and international activities, which included Sovereign Threads at the Craft and Folk Art Museum in Los Angeles, USA and Occupied Space, in London. This exhibition, which was organised jointly with the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, assembled the work of more than thirty artists from all over the world. Proceeds from the exhibition went to support the Campaign. The London office also hosted the American Palestinian writer Betty

Revenues and Expenditures The total revenues of the Foundation for the year amounted to US$2,348,859. US$2,111,000 of this amount was underwritten by the al-Qattan Charitable Trust which is supervised and run by the al-Qattan family. The Palestinian Audio-Visual Project (PAV) which is jointly funded by the European Union, received an additional US$196,958 from this source and a further US$41,901 came from other external sources for other activities. Total expenditure amounted to US$2,413,963, of which US$166,345 dollars were of a capital nature, and US$2,247,618 went on funding programmes and administration. Net Assets The net balance of unrestricted assets at the end of the current year came to US$4,428, 236, an increase of 2.3% over the previous year. The Foundation’s accounts have been audited by Ernst & Young in Palestine and Saffery Champness in the United Kingdom.

Programme expenditure for the year ending 31st March 2007 (US$) Administration

Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development

Qattan Centre for the Child

Culture and Arts Programme

Palestinian Audio-Visual Total Expenditure Project

248,976

600,580

835,562

354,229

208,271

Culture and Arts Programme 16%

2,247,618

11% Administration

27% Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development Palestinian Audio Visual Project 9% 37% Qattan Centre for the Child

Pie-chart showing in-house loans according to age group

A few days ago, my son Ussama phoned me at work and asked permission to go to the Qattan Centre for the Child...What a difference between my asking him to go somewhere and him actually asking to go! Father of Ussama Mohammed I wish to thank all of you. You have helped me read, love, care and respect books and increase my knowledge... Books are truly Man’s best friend! Ramadan Rashid (15 years old)

Carers and people working with children 1% Children under 6 17% Employees of the Centre 1%

Children between the ages of 12-15 31%

Children between the ages of 7-11 50%

When I first visited the Centre, I was amazed. I hadn’t imagined it would be so fantastic, when I heard about it from the mobile library which was visiting our school in Rafah. I have gained a lot from it. Mahmoud al-Afifi (14 years old) The Centre fulfils all my hopes and dreams when I go and read stories there, or do research and extract information from the books... Marwa Rahma (10 years old) Close to al-Wahda Street in the heart of Gaza City, there is a luminous beacon of culture, which radiates science, refinement, education, order, politeness, respect, cleanliness and efficiency. It enfolds the children of Gaza in its wings, and takes them on a journey to the heart of knowledge and progress, where their dreams and wishes are fulfilled . Ahmed Abu Saloum, director of Sanabil Theatre

The Qattan Centre for the Child By the end of this reporting period, the Centre will have been open for a year and a half. During this time it has faced many challenges yet despite the difficulties caused by the security situation, it continued to serve many children and their families. The Centre continues to provide an open space where children can express themselves freely, give free rein to their imagination, be creative and overcome the difficult circumstances which they and the Gaza Strip are living through. The most significant feature of the Centre’s first year of operations has been the large numbers of children who have visited the library or attended its cultural activities and art exhibitions. The Centre has also been able to reach a large number of children who live far away through its outreach services programme. The Library The resources of the library have continued to grow and its collection now reaches a total of 96,543 items including books, videos, cassettes, CDs and material for special needs. There were 86,327 external loans and 97,592 internal loans. By the end of March, 3,461 children had enrolled as members. An average of 242 children a day visited the Centre during this period, to read, borrow books or take part in activities, with the total visits over the year reaching 66,000. 8

Library Activities To promote use of the library and encourage reading, the librarians held a series of cultural activities which aimed to raise awareness of library resources among children. These included competitions such as Read and Distinguish, I Think, I Search, I Profit and Treasures of Knowledge and other activities such as storytelling, My Favourite Read, Stars in the Firmament of Knowledge, and Amazing Facts. 11,286 children and members of their families took part in and benefited from three hundred and sixty seven activities. Arts Programme The Centre has widened the scope of its activities and besides its book-lending, now provides an arts programme which covers plastic arts, drama, cinema and other recreational activities. During the year, it presented 1,232 activities around these topics, which were attended by 36,094 children and members of their families. It also instituted a special programme of activities for children from schools, nurseries and other organisations, who visited the Centre. 12,297 children benefited from this programme. Among the most popular shows put on by the Centre and attended by children and their families were the plays Hamada and the Genie, The Brown Flea, and Divide but Don’t Choose, and concerts which included a solo performance on the guitar and piano by Usama Issa, a musical evening of French and Arab folkloric music by La Machine with Abd al-Munim Adwan, and a classical concert by al-Kamandjati. Other shows attended by large numbers of children and their families included performances by The Haifa Group and the Hulm Group. Around seven art exhibitions were held in addition to the exhibition of work on permanent display. These included a display of works by children entitled, Creativity and Nature, Blossoms of Music by photographer Peter Damman, exhibitions of work produced during courses and activities in summer 2006 and winter 2007, and an exhibition of work held to mark Mother’s Day. The Centre celebrated a number of special occasions, including World Book Day, Day of the Child and the first anniversary of the opening of the Centre. Courses The Centre held thirty eight courses for children, the majority of which were in the summer and winter vacations. These included courses on the plastic arts, drawing, woodwork, printing, handicrafts and aspects of drama and music and were

attended by 478 children. In addition three courses were held which were aimed specifically at families. The technical services unit devised a series of professional training courses under the title Modern Directions in Library Management which were attended by sixteen librarians. In conjunction with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, it also held five courses on Activating Libraries in Schools, which were attended by eighty school librarians. The Unit also distributed a further one hundred and twenty seven copies of the

Winisys library management software and provided technical support to libraries using it. Outreach Services Programme During the year, the Centre worked energetically to reach a greater number of children in more remote areas of the Gaza Strip, especially those with no library services of their own, by providing them with a mobile library service and accompanying cultural and entertainment activities. The programme was implemented in conjunction with fourteen schools and twenty one organisations throughout the Gaza Strip; 11,396 children benefited from this programme. Information Technology Over the year, the IT Unit held forty nine courses and computer activities, in which 774 children took part, and an additional seven courses aimed at their families. The Unit also set up and ran the Qattan Club for Web Page Design which was attended by twelve boys and girls. It has also set up a computerised information database on the activities of the centre, which will be helpful in compiling reports and useful statistics.

Pie-chart showing in-house loans according to content

Fiction ......................................................................................................................... 57% Theoretical sciences ..................................................................................................7% General knowledge ...................................................................................................7% History, geography and biology ............................................................................5% References ....................................................................................................................4% Arts .................................................................................................................................4% Literature.......................................................................................................................4% Applied sciences .........................................................................................................4% Religion ........................................................................................................ 3% Social sciences ............................................................................................................3% Philosophy and psychology ....................................................................................1% Languages ....................................................................................................................1%

57%

7% 1%

3% 3%

1% 7% 5%

( Next page, clockwise from left ) ( from left to right ) • Photograph from Homeland Lost, an exhibition of photographs by Alan Gignoux, shown in Alexandria, Amman, Beirut and Cairo • Members of the jury of the Young Artist Award for 2006 evaluating Salma and Saleem’s No Redemption • Painting by Ussama Dia from his work Room, Damascus

Pianist Dina Shilleh • A painting by Mohammad Fadel from • his work Square Sky Turab Group performing as part of the • 2006 Fête de la musique Rap Group DAM • Photograph from State of Waiting by • Yazan Khalili and Muhannad Yacoubi’s entry in the 2006 Young Artist Award

Culture and Arts Programme In spite of the difficult circumstances which Palestinians have been living under for the past year and are continuing to live under today, the Culture and Arts Programme has seen a steady rise in the number of people who have benefited directly and indirectly from its work and in the extent and range of cultural and artistic activities which it has organised or supported either on its own or in conjunction with others, in Palestine and abroad. The Programme has endeavoured to develop new initiatives and methods of working in order to strengthen its influence in certain areas, in particular in the field of the performing arts, through its support for young and new talent and its encouragement of works and projects of artistic excellence in this field. The Programme is also working on setting up various partnerships which will contribute to realising this goal. Music The Programme awarded fifteen music scholarships to students attending specialist academies in and outside Palestine. For the second year in a row, it funded the workshop held by the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music, for the Palestine Youth Orchestra, and also financed a music teaching project, organised by the al-Kamandjati Association in camps, villages and towns across the country. For the sixth consecutive year, the Programme also contributed the first 10

prize at the annual piano competition, organised by the Magnificat Institute in Jerusalem. Theatre and the Performing Arts The Programme helped sponsor three new productions: Gravediggers by the Popular Theatre Group of al-Am’ari Camp; Divide or Choose, a play for children by Fursan al-Arab Theatre Group, Gaza; and Memory for Forgetfulness by al-Hakawati Theatre Company Jerusalem. With the Jerusalem Studies Centre, it is co-sponsoring a production of Iphigenia at Aulis by al-Hakawati Theatre Company, which will be performed in the autumn of 2007. This year, the Programme also established six new student bursaries for students studying theatre and the performing arts in colleges and universities in historical Palestine, Egypt and the United States as well as supporting thirty-three theatrical and literary performances in towns, villages and camps throughout Palestine as well as abroad. Young Writer of the Year Award 2006 The jury did not award a first prize in the Young Writer of the Year Award in the Poetry category but instead selected four collections for commendation awards. The panel also decided that the first prize in the Short Story category should be divided between ‘Asma’ al-Ghoul from Gaza for her collection of short stories Desertion on a Black Board and Other Stories and to Sana’ Sha’alan from Jordan, for her collection of stories entitled, Khader’s Eyes. Young Artist of the Year Award 2006 As part of the competition for Young Artist of the Year, the fourth such event to be organised by the Programme, ten exhibitions were held in seven different locations in El-Bireh and Ramallah, showcasing work by twelve artists, whose projects had been selected from among forty seven entries for the competition. The exhibitions were curated by British artist, Nicola Gray, with the help of Misbah Abu Dib. The panel of international judges chose not to award a first prize this year but instead presented joint second prize to Shadi Habib Allah for his installation An Ongoing Tale and to Mohammed Fadel for his series of paintings, Square Sky. The third prize went to Wafa al-Hourani for Photolife. Publications The Programme published Preoccupying Zones, the third in a series of catalogues featuring the work of the ten finalists of the Young Artist of the

Year Award. The catalogue; which is in English and Arabic; covers the 2004 competition; work is currently taking place on the 2006 catalogue. In addition, the Programme helped fund seven other books and magazines and also brought out a coloured brochure illustrating its 2007 programme. Artistic and Literary Residencies The Programme helped fund residencies for seven artists in, among other places, Cité des Arts, Paris, Town House Gallery, Cairo, the Pistoletto Foundation’s University of Ideas, Biella, Italy, Braziers International Workshop, England, and Bangalore, India, the latter in cooperation with the Aarau City Foundation, Switzerland. The Programme also awarded ten travel scholarships to artists taking part in activities and workshops abroad. Destinations included France, Italy, Germany, Britain, China, Lebanon and Belgium. Guest House During the period under review, the Foundation hosted fourteen visitors in its guest house, the majority of whom were artists undertaking projects with the local community. They included: photographer Mary Fitzpatrick and artist Anna Lucas, from Britain, Francois and Sophie Margera from the National School of Circus Arts in France, French- Lebanese novelist,

Najwa Barakat, and Belgian writer Sus van Elzen and his wife, photographer Maria Fialho. Other Activities The Programme organised or jointly organised more than sixty activities, either at the Foundation in Ramallah or elsewhere in Palestine and in cities in Europe and the Arab World. There were thirty-one art exhibitions, including Sea Scapes by Jamil Daraghma, Objection by Majdi Hadid, Qajar by Iranian artist, Shadi Ghadirian which was jointly organised by al-Ma’mal Foundation for Contemporary Art, Homeland Lost, which was also exhibited in Amman, Cairo, Beirut and Alexandria, and a joint exhibition of work by Hazim Harb and Mohammed Juha in the Luigi Pigorini Ethnographic Museum, Rome. As well as its support for various literary events, the Programme also sponsored four music, song and dance festivals, which included the Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival, the Masahat Contemporary Dance Network in Ramallah, Beirut and Amman and the Autumn Rhythms Festival, which took place in various towns in Palestine. The Programme sponsored or co-sponsored seventeen concerts by young musicians including Dina al-Shilleh (Ramallah) and Nizar al-Khater (Lydda), Lu’ay Khleifi (Nazareth), Mohsen Subhi (Ramallah), and Issa Murad (Bethlehem) as well as by the Michel Sajrawi Trio, Simon Shahin, Qantara and other groups. The Programme also sponsored or co-sponsored five workshops on music, puppetry/ puppet making, theatre and video art in Ramallah, Jenin and Qalqilya, which were given by local and foreign artists. The Qattan Distiction Award The second Qattan Distiction Award for Excellence in a Cultural Work went to Dam, the Palestinian rap group from Lydda, which was awarded specifically for their new album, Dedication. Programme Evaluation The Foundation appointed an independent group of assessors to evaluate the Programme and its performance over the six years since it was established, and develop new strategies for implementing its work and strengthening its impact in the various fields in which it is involved.

( clockwise from left ) DVD cover of Goaaaaaal! • by Maya Sanbar Stills from films by Abdel- • Salam Shehadeh Still from Palestine Blues by • Nida Sinnokrot and portrait of the director

Your generous support has also brought my film to cinema clubs across Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Whenever I receive an email from someone in the Middle East thanking me for my work after having seen the film, I remember your support and encouragement... Nida Sinnokrot, director of Palestine Blues Deeply devoted to giving filmmakers skills and resources, the Palestinian Audio-Visual Project widely opens doors to aspiring directors. Every person I met at A.M. Qattan Foundation did everything they said they would do to help me in a timely, precise manner. From Michel Khleifi and Omar Al-Qattan, I learned that even if I make my film under occupation, and therefore in difficult circumstances, it has to be well-crafted, well-planned, and with the highest production values possible. Suzan Yousef, Filmmaker from Lebanon/USA working on a project in Palestine

The Palestinian Audio Visual Project (PAV) Introduction In the period under review, PAV entered its third and final year; and while it was expected to complete its work on 21 June 2007, the political upheavals and instability have put back that date to the end of 2007, in agreement with the European Union, on condition that the Foundation meets any additional costs incurred by the delay.

for best scenario for a short feature and documentary, in the third stage of the training programme; nine of these were chosen for further development under the supervision of Michel Khleifi and four were finally selected for the production phase in the spring and summer of 2007. In March 2007, a workshop was held with the four successful writers during which the student directors were charged with putting together a small production team made up, for the most part, of students who had taken part in the training programme. The team will commence filming and aim to complete production by July 2007. In May and June 2007, several students also took part in the filming of a new feature-length film by PalestinianAmerican director, Annemarie Jacir, at her request.

Among the most difficult challenges faced by the project this year were the teachers’ strikes, which hampered the School Film Education programme, and the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip, which made it impossible to get equipment into schools in the Gaza Strip on time.

Sadly students from Gaza and Jordan were unable to take part in this stage of the programme, making it necessary for us to organise a separate activity for them at a later date.

In addition, Michel Khleifi, supervisor of the training programme, was confined to bed for four months with injuries sustained in a road accident, and Israel’s war on Lebanon also disrupted our summer programme, especially in the Galilee. As a result, the final stage of the training programme was delayed for a year to summer 2007. Lastly, the director of the project, Omar al-Qattan was refused entry to the country on the 26th December 2006, and compelled to seek legal advice in order to obtain entry (this happened subsequently on the 26th March 2007). Training Programme Nineteen scripts (by seventeen writers) were entered in the competition 12

workshop for teachers from the 1948 areas. The Project distributed six hundred and ten DVDs of twenty-five Arab and international films to sixteen schools on the West Bank, five schools in the 1948 areas and eight schools in the Gaza Strip.

In the period under review, four training workshops were organised for teachers on the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and the 1948 territories, but strikes by teachers in government schools had a direct affect on the project and meant that its activities were delayed until the beginning of January 2007.

Summer Cinéclubs in Schools in the West Bank and Gaza Despite the Israeli war on Lebanon, a summer cinema club was organised in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with the help of students from the training programme. These included May Odeh, Georgina ‘Asfour and Aarda Aghazarian on the West Bank and Ghassan Abu Libda and ‘Awatif al-Judaili in Gaza. More than three hundred students from selected schools took part in this activity, which looked at the history of cinema, as well as aspects of filmmaking such as directing, production and script writing. A number of films were screened and analysed as part of the club. Unfortunately, strikes at the beginning of the school year meant that we were unable to hold a planned competition for best written critique of the films shown, though we hope to do so at a later date.

The Project also organised a film-screening day during the teachers’ strike, for about twenty students from the Beit Sahour School for Girls as well as teachers from the south of the West Bank participating in the programme. Wasim al Kurdi and Omar al-Qattan held three two and three-day training workshops for teachers from Gaza and the West Bank while George Khleifi held a similar

DVD Publishing and Distribution The Project awarded two types of grants to films with a connection to Palestine, the first enabling DVD publishing and the second distribution. The following

A number of student films from the first and second stages were shown at the Filmer à Tout Prix Festival in Brussels, Belgium, which was attended by Michel Khleifi and student ‘Urwa Musawara. The Sottodiciotto Festival in Turin, Italy dedicated a whole evening to PAV, during which Michel Khleifi and Omar al-Qattan addressed a press conference. This was followed by a showing of several of the students’ films as well as Khleifi’s Tale of the Three Jewels. School Film Education Programme PAV has now set up cinéclubs in 46 schools as part of its film education programme. There are distributed as follows: ten in Gaza, thirty-one on the West Bank, and five in schools inside the 1948 areas. In June 2006, the Beit Hanoun School for Girls in the Gaza Strip lost its cinéclub equipment when the school came under Israeli fire, but this has now been replaced by the Project.

films were awarded a publishing grant: the four medium-format documentaries Little Hands (1996); The Cane (2000) Debris (2001) and Rainbow (2005) by Abdel Salam Shehadeh (Gaza); The Colour of Olives (2006) by Carolina Rivas (Mexico); Asurot (2000) by Anat Even (Tel Aviv); Izkor - Slaves of Memory by Eyal Sivan (Paris); Shadi and the Beautiful Well and Hamoudi and Emil by Mahdi Fleifel (Ain Helweh Camp/Denmark/London). These two short films will form part of a collection of new short films about Palestine on one DVD. Grants were also awarded to Palestine Blues (2006) by Nida Sinnokrot (USA); A Personal Enquiry (2003) by Ula Tabari (Nazareth/Paris); Sense of Need (2005) by Shady Srour (Nazareth); and Since You Left (2006) by Mohammad Bakri (al-Bina, Galilee). The following films were awarded a distribution grant: Women in Struggle by Butheina Canaan Khoury, Arna’s Children by Juliano Mer-Khamis, and Goal Dreams (or Gooooal!) by Maya Sanbar (London). The third and final group of films chosen to receive a grant will be announced in April 2007. An agreement has been concluded with filmmaker Mai Masri, to purchase copies of her films Frontier of Dreams and Fears and Children of Fire for distribution as part of the School Film Education Programme. Fifty copies of This Is Not a Weapon by Pierre-Nicolas Durand et Hélèna Cotinier, which tells the story of the founding of al-Kamandjati Musical Association, will also be distributed. We are still working with a number of local and international organisations to obtain publishing and distribution rights for a number of films from the PLO and SAMED archives. The Project in Numbers (until March 31 2007) 29 Students trained in the foundations of filmmaking (Part 1) 19 Students received further training in different audio-visual disciplines (Part 2) 17 New screenwriters submitted entries to screenwriting competition; 9 finalists attend writing workshop (Part 3) 46 Cinéclubs established in Palestinian schools, including in the 1948 Areas 23 Films with a Palestinian theme receive publishing or distribution grant 26 New members join Network of Arab Cinéclubs in four different countries 13

• ( top row ) A selection of PAV DVD covers • ( bottom row, left to right) Omar Al-Qattan and George Khleifi giving teacher seminars; Michel Khleifi with screenwriting students

Classics of World Cinema The project has also acquired translation rights into Arabic and for DVD publication and distribution for the following films: M by Fritz Lang, Los Olvidados by Luis Buñuel, La Strada by Federico Fellini, Belissima and La Terra Trema by Luchino Visconti, La Notte di San Lorenzo by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, Le Mani sulla Città by Francesco Rosi, and Mother by Vsevolod Pudovkin.

The Project distributes DVD copies of films free of charge to the twenty six clubs which are now part of the network and provides information and details about the film through the internet and newspapers, in addition to publishing articles about each film before it is shown. The Network now has its own website as well as an electronic chat room (see http://www.cineshabaka.net). The first film to be shown as part of the Network, Palestine Blues by Nida Sinnokrot, screened on Land Day and was watched by more than eleven hundred people. Film Library Thirteen books on cinema and seventy-seven new films were added to the library at the Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development (Ramallah) this year, and a viewing corner equipped with screen and DVD recorder was set up. A major expansion of this service is planned for the coming year.

The Network of Arab Cinéclubs The Project completed the setting up of the Network of Arab Cinéclubs, which aims to enrich local and Arab film culture and take film distribution beyond schools to the wider community. The distribution network has now grown and includes clubs outside Palestine, in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. At the same time, the Project is also publishing a number of international Arab films for distribution in Palestine and other Arab countries.

This project is funded by the European Union-Partnership for Peace Programme and the A.M. Qattan Foundation. The project is the sole responsibility of the A.M. Qattan Foundation and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development An Overview On a visionary, practical and constructive level, the Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development continues to strengthen the knowledge base, vision, concepts and procedures for use as theoretical tools in the production of knowledge and action management. Palestinian teachers remain the primary focus of its work and it continues to support them in two areas by providing: 1. Scientific research as a creative reflective practice for knowledgebuilding. 2. Cultural development as a way of constructing an individual identity and providing an entry point into the field of social culture. The Centre regards its role as complementing that of the official and civil institutions, which are actively involved in educational development, planning educational policies and modernising procedures. The Centre provides the means whereby researchers and teachers involved in its activities and forums can try out various tools to acquire and reflect upon class room experience; such tools include video documentation, oral and written presentation, team work and pupil involvement and their observations and impressions; these tools allow teachers to monitor their own experience by looking at and analysing it, from a cultural and cognitive point of view which makes the daily experience and reflection highly important in structuring logicality and providing a means for self

development and professional practice. This approach which is based on on-going work with teachers and a clear-minded concentration on their experiments and experience, has in turn produced courses and writing, which are more grounded in reality and more closely connected to the work that has gone into developing them; courses and workshops on professional development, the construction of meaning, educational projects and school experiments, something which will be transferred to study days, demonstrations of classroom experiments and research ideas.

First: Educational Research The work carried out by the researchers is based on applied thinking. It can either be a collaborative exercise between researchers and teachers or take the form of suggestions offered by the researchers to the teachers who then try them out. This year the focus has been on professional teacher development. In a series of interlinked meetings on the curriculum, a group of teachers have served in the dual role of researchers and participants. A. Curriculum Research (work in progress) This year, researchers at the Centre carried out studies in the following fields: image – cultural semiotic research, evaluation of history text books, the novel as a medium for self teaching and learning, the inclusive curriculum and comprehensive education, questioning levels in school text books, integrating emotional intelligence into the curriculum, analysis and assessment of new books in the Palestinian curriculum; English language, Arabic language, mathematics, science and social science. B. Teachers as Researchers The Centre worked on applied practical research with teachers, which was based on raising professional awareness and the functional role of teachers through the course of their work in classrooms; the research covered the following areas: ‘On-going professional development: an experiment in practice, presentation and reflection’, practice-led research and the teachers as researchers programme: a reflection on practical methods. C. Collaborative Research Collaborative research projects, involving a team of teachers working with researchers from the Centre covered the following areas: the culture of mathematics, problem solving, and emotional intelligence. 15

Comparative graph showing 2006 library acquisitions as a percentage of library acquisitions as a whole

The Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development’s general conference, which I attended, proved to be a special experience, which I have relived many times since. It gave me what I was looking for and I returned home with higher aspirations and a determination to keep in touch with new ideas. Noura Saleh (Teacher) Few words, a lot of movement, drama, drawing, writing, educational ideas, various organised activities around personality and the search for professional identity: i.e. be a teacher, with your own particular identity, don’t carry an ID card which is the same as everyone else’s apart from its name and photograph, make your professionalism a badge of honour that belongs to you alone, be different to be better. May Khatib, workshop participant (Teachers and Their Masks)

isual Audio-v ls materia

ls eriodica

Books

• Library holdings in the period up to the writing of this report • Acquisitions for the year 2006

Second: Teacher Development The Centre continued to offer professional development courses, which were held in Hebron (summer), Jericho (winter) and Ramallah, (through the year). Guest researchers and researchers from the Centre participated in and presented courses in the following topics: fostering the teaching of thinking skills; conceptual mathematics; an introduction to drama as a tool for training; the poetic experience: presentation, writing and identity; emotional intelligence in the educational context; drama, writing, story and reflection: tools for analysing practice and building awareness; multimedia–producing educational packages, exploring the nature of science through hands on activities and interactive experience on the internet; interaction with special needs students and those with learning difficulties in the classroom context; ongoing professional development: an exercise in practice, presentation and reflection; methods of developing theatrical work and the mechanics of promoting Palestinian theatre; expression and writing in a narrative context with entry-level teachers; drama and movement therapy; methods of teaching English; creative reading skills; scientific culture in the curriculum; producing training lessons and enriching materials.

Thank you for your efforts in serving and developing education, in Palestine in particular and the Arab world in general. Ru’a Tarbawiyeh has become a fundamental reference for teachers and those interested in the educational field. I am honoured to be able to contribute an academic paper to it and would like to point out that I have written this article especially for it and have not sent it to any other publication. Dr. Mustafa al-Ouriaghli al-Abdelawi Tangiers, Morocco

A. Forums The Centre continued to provide intellectual and material support to teacher forums, which were set up following teacher initiatives in the following West Bank cities and towns: Idna, Doura’, Halhoul, al-Thahiriya, Jericho, Hebron, Bethlehem, Tul Karem and Ramallah. Work is currently taking place on developing new forums in Qabatiya, Toubas, Yaabid, Safa and Ramallah. The Centre helped arrange study days in Ramallah and Hebron to this end, as well as providing a suitable environment for discussion groups for teachers through their monthly forums in Gaza. B. Schools The Centre carried out a series of activities with pupils and teachers in several different areas. These included reading promotion and discovering narrative, linguistic and kinetic interpretation, cinematic culture, and proper methods of evaluation. The Centre also worked with school heads and supervisors in the field of school management, communications, the active school and training development management.

Third: Resources a. Ru’a Tarbawiyeh In the year under review, the Centre published three issues of Ru’a Tarbawiyeh, (numbers 21, 22 and 23), which included supplements on the following subjects: the interconnectedness of knowledge, education and art, and education and drama. The print run was extended from three to four thousand copies. The magazine is distributed free of charge to teachers and is also available on the internet. b. Research Studies During the year, researchers at the Centre conducted studies on the following subjects: 1. Life-based education ..obstacles to learning (in press) 2. Emotional intelligence 3. The culture of mathematics – conceptual mathematics (in press) 4. The drama of life - a collection of translations on the use of drama in education. 5. Series of research papers: a. Ethnographic research: an analysis of pedagogic discourse. b. Information and communication technology and education in Palestine c. The Library The library, through its branches in Ramallah and Gaza specialises in education and social sciences and its collection of books, specialist periodicals and technological media continues to expand. The number of its materials has increased significantly over the past year and it offers a varied resource to teachers, researches and

Teacher Participation by Activity Courses: 894 teachers Summer courses: 277 (107 in Hebron and Ramallah, and 170 in Gaza.) Winter courses: 244 (71 in Jericho, 42 Ramallah and 131 in Gaza) Courses throughout the year: 373 (272 in Ramallah and 101 in Gaza)

• Teachers and QCERD researchers during drama and other workshops

students of higher education, who use the library. 1499 new titles were purchased for the library in Ramallah and 1751 for the library in Gaza. These included books, periodicals and audio-visual material. Book fairs such as Sharja’a, Cairo and Abu Dhabi were a primary source for new material. d. Multimedia A multimedia unit has been set up which will work for the Foundation in general and the Centre in particular, and perform documentation and archival work, classification, and retrieval, and production and design work using a variety of technologies; this year the unit helped prepare a detailed and fair record of each programme and its activities, which will form the basis for a specific database, which researchers from the Centre and others will benefit from.

Fourth: Relations with Local and International Bodies This year, members of the Centre attended conferences on Educational Research in the Public Interest in San Francisco, USA, (the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association), Rethinking Educational Changes in Ifrane, Morocco and a Conference on Nationality and Identity in the Palestinian Curriculum.

Study Days: 462 teachers - Study day on teacher experiences – 60 teachers - Study day on teacher forums – 80 teachers - Study day on Ru’a Tarbawiyeh – 100 teachers - Study day on the Centre’s achievements in Gaza – 103 teachers and educational professionals - Study day on the Palestinian curriculum – 119 teachers Workshops and meetings: 115 teachers - Workshop on drama and interpreting and exploring stories – 75 teachers from schools in Jerusalem - The Centre held 50 work shops on lesson preparation analysis and application attended by 10 teachers on a regular basis - Teachers in Gaza held 46 discussion groups, which were attended by 10 teachers on a regular basis. - 20 teachers continued to attend meetings for the monthly teacher forums at the Centre in Gaza totalling 59 meetings in all. There were 9 meetings for directors and supervisors of the forums. Publications - Let’s Open a Door to Music (by Nancy Evans) - Series of Research Papers: a.Ethnographic Research: An Analysis of Pedagogical Discourse (Nader Wahba and Wa’il Kashek) b.Information Technology, Communications and Education in Palestine (Nader Wahba) - Fostering Emotional Intelligence (translated by Maha Quran) - The Drama of Life -Translations (Miscellaneous authors) Books in Press 1. The Culture of Mathematics – Conceptual Mathematics (Wa’il Kashak and Liana Jabr) 2. Using Drama in an Educational Context (Wassim al-Kurdi) 3. Emotional Intelligence (Liana Jabr and Maha Quran) 4. Education in the Context of life Obstacles to Learning Process after life and before Obstacles (Wa’il Kashek and Du’a Jabr) 5. Package Evaluating Difficulties and Problems in teaching Arabic by Nay Shomar 6. Drama and Theatre in Verbal and Non-Verbal Expression in School Text Books (Wasim al-Kurdi) 7. Issues 21, 22 and 23 of Ru’a Tarbawiyeh, of which 1500 were distributed on the West Bank, 500 in Gaza and 500 through the Centre’s libraries and activities. Translation 12 copies of articles and chapters from books were translated from several languages, for use in Ru’a Tarbawiyeh. Some of these have already appeared and the remaining material will be published in coming issues of the magazine.

Contact information Palestine PO Box 2276, Ramallah Tel: 00970 2 296 0544 Fax: 00970 2 298 4886 United Kingdom 79 Knightsbridge 4th Floor London SW1X 7RB, UK Tel: 00 44 207 5818774 Fax: 00 44 207 8232973

email: info@qattanfoundation.org http://www.qattanfoundation.org A. M. Qattan Foundation is a British registered charity (no. 1029450) and is a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales No. 2171893. Registered address at 79 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7RB. Its registered no in Palestine is QR-0035-F

• Group picture of Members of the Board of Trustees and of the Management Committee at the home of Abdel Muhsin and Leila Al-Qattan, Amman Spring 07 front row (left to right): Mahmoud Abu Hashhash; Wasim Kurdi; Manal Issa; Leila Al-Qattan; Abdel Muhsin al-Qattan; Reem Abu Jaber; Imad Nasrallah back row (left to right): Dr Fouad Moghrabi; Bashar Idkaidek; Julia Helou; Ziad Khalaf; Dr Mohammad Abu Mallouh; Omar al-Qattan • The Choir of London performing in the Palestine Mozart Festival

Board of Trustees Abdel Muhsin al-Qattan - Chairman Leila al-Qattan Najwa al-Qattan Lina al-Qattan Omar al-Qattan – Secretary

Management Palestine

United Kingdom

Ziad Khalaf, Executive Director Manal Issa, Administrative Director Bashar Idkaidek, Director of Finance Reem Abu Jaber, Director Qattan Centre for the Child, Gaza Mahmoud Abu Hashhash, Director, Culture and Arts Programme Dr. Fouad Moughrabi, General Director, Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development (nonremunerated) Wasim Kurdi, Acting Director of the Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development Dr. Mohammed Abu Mallouh, Director, Qattan Centre for Educational Research and Development, Gaza

Omar al-Qattan, Director, Palestinian Audio-Visual Project (non-remunerated) Julia Helou, Administrative Director