About ten days ago, the Winnipeg Jewish Review wrote to the University of Winnipeg to find out whether they were planning a week relating to exploring the Middle East as a way of encouraging balanced respectful and contructive dialogue, as oppossed to Israeli Apartheid Week, which is a one sided attempt to deamonize Israel.
Last year, the University of Winnipeg's stance made international news in an article we wrote published in the Jerusalem Post, which can be accessed here: http://www.winnipegjewishreview.com/article_detail.cfm?id=873&sec=2.
On Monday of this week, we received a letter by Diane Poulin, a U of W communications with a " schedule of events" stating "the University of Winnipeg is planning to encourage respectful dialogue and a deeper understanding of contemporary Middle East issues. This is similar to what we did last year which was well attended and well received by students, faculty and the broader community."
The University of Winnipeg hosts two weeks of lectures and dialogue from February 28 – March 9, 2012, on a range of issues featuring the Middle East shedding light on the past, to understand the present Spring and conflict that is occurring across this region. Everyone is welcome and the lectures are free.
Note, however, that Israel Apartheid Week is still scheduled to take place this year as it did last year on U of W campus.
HERE IS THE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
WINNIPEG, MB –For millenia, the Middle East has been the cradle of civilization encompassing a cross section of Western Asia and Northern Africa. Centuries later, it remains an epicenter for international trade. It is also an area known for conflict.
“The intention is to provide a respectful and engaging space for relevant dialogue and learning about this region of the world,” expressed UWinnipeg President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Lloyd Axworthy. “We have an opportunity to shine a light on current events such as the Arab Spring, while encouraging greater understanding and appreciation around complex debates in the Middle East, many of which have global implications.”
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
The Arab Spring: Syrian Version by Dr. Rais Khan,
UWinnipeg United College Fellow & retired professor
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Convocation Hall, 515 Portage Ave
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
What was behind the Egyptian Revolution and what lies ahead? by Dr. Salah Hathout,
Senior Professor at UWinnipeg
12:30 pm – 1:20 pm, Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall, 515 Portage Ave
Thursday, March 1, 2012
The Responsibility to Protect and the Arab Spring by Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, UWinnipeg President & Vice-Chancellor
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Convocation Hall, 515 Portage Ave
Friday, March 2, 2012
“Bearing Faithful Witness” so "That We May Know One Another:" A Jew, a Christian and a Muslim in Dialogue with Dr. James Christie- Professor of Dialogue Theology, Faculty of Theology, and Director of the Ridd Institute for Religion and Global Policy of the Global College, UWinnipeg - Ms. Belle Millo, Chair of the Freeman Family Foundation Holocaust Education Centre of the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada - Dr. Ahmet Seyhun, Assistant Professor of Islamic/Middle Eastern History, History Department, UWinnipeg.
12:30 pm – 1:20 pm, Convocation Hall, 515 Portage Ave
Monday, March 5, 2012
Building Bridges through Dialogue: A Panel Discussion
with Members of the Arab-Jewish Dialogue Group of Winnipeg
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Convocation Hall, 515 Portage Ave
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Competing ideologies and the transformation of the Middle East in the early twentieth century: Ottomanism, Islamism, Arabism and Zionism by Dr. Ahmet Seyhun, Assistant Professor of Islamic/Middle Eastern History, History Department, UWinnipeg.
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, Convocation Hall, 515 Portage Ave
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Education Under Fire: Iran denies their Baha’i citizens the right to post-secondary Education! byDr. Redwan Moqbel, Professor and Head, Department of Immunology University of Manitoba
12:30 pm – 1:20 pm, Convocation Hall, 515 Portage Ave
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Film – Turkish Passport
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm, Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall, 515 Portage Ave.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Israel, Iran and the Arab Spring – A Coming Storm? by Dr. Yoram Peri, Director of the New Joseph and Alma Gildenhorn Institute for Israel Studies at the University of Maryland
12:30 pm – 1:20 pm, Convocation Hall, 515 Portage Ave