By: Rachel Casipit and Allyza Platitas
Last November 7, Philippine School Doha (PSD) was invited to showcase the beauty of Filipino culture in the Qatar National Library. The event revolved around the theme “Large World – Small Village” and had shown conformity between different civilizations despite having varied political, religious, and social thinking. This event was organized by Mrs. Shaikha Al Naemi and was funded by Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the very own Emir of Qatar.
In line with the theme and Qatar Vision 2030, which emphasized the co-existence of various cultures, different schools were invited to discuss issues related to the affinity and the importance of having harmony between people. Each school was advised to choose four to five delegates from the secondary level and had their very own country to represent. The countries present at the event were namely the Philippines, Qatar, the United Kingdom, South Africa, South Sudan, Egypt, and India, a total of six countries. The delegates of Philippine School Doha were Allyza Platitas, Kristina Rodriguez, Marwa Sali, Rachel Casipit and lastly, Luis Miraran supervised by Mr. Danilo Keh Jr. and endorsed by Dr. Julius Reyes.
The delegates were strictly open only for women as it was an event that consisted of performances where some ladies had to take off their hijab and it is an act prohibited in the presence of men. The focus of the event required the participants to present the understanding of peace and the necessity of eradicating the concept of cultural segregation. Each school had the chance to display their culture through their souvenirs, food, historical items, and even their traditional costumes. Presentations were done in different forms like speeches, discussions, dances, demonstrations, and role play.
To conclude the program, certificates and plaques were given to the participating school. The delegates also received freebies from other participants and the organizer. The event officially ended with everyone being satisfied and having a better understanding of cultures apart from their own.
Cultural differences can indeed be bridged by tolerance and understanding of one another. PSD truly exhibited its core values of being pro-people and pro-nation through participating in events such as this. PSDians were fortunate to have such opportunities to be educated in combatting social segregation and become aware of various cultures around the world which will shape them to be better members of the global society.