The participants of the “With Dialogue We Endure and Rise” camp, implemented by Masarat Foundation for Cultural and Media Development in partnership with KAICIID and the House of Coexistence, visited Basra Satellite Channel.
They were received by Mr. Raad Al-Sudani, Deputy Director of Sawt Al-Basra Radio, who expressed his happiness at meeting the youth and their enthusiasm for promoting dialogue and learning about the diverse cultures of their society. He also expressed his admiration for their determination to visit Basra during the summer and endure the hardship of travel.
During the visit, the participants discussed with the Deputy Director the vital role of media in fostering dialogue among the different segments of society and in highlighting diversity as a source of richness for pluralistic communities.
Mr. Al-Sudani delivered a detailed report on the most important programs offered by the media institution in Basra, which aim to introduce citizens to the city’s religious, ethnic, and cultural components that have shaped Basra’s identity since its establishment, emphasizing the importance of protecting this diversity as a safeguard for the city’s cultural identity.
The attendees also discussed several radio and television programs produced by the official media institution in Basra, with the participation of journalist Osama Majeed, who prepares and presents one of these programs.
At the end of the meeting, Mr. Al-Sudani presented the camp members with copies of the Basra Tourism Guide, which includes illustrated descriptions of the city’s most prominent historical, religious, and recreational sites.
In turn, the youth participants from Sinjar presented their host with a stone from Mount Sinjar as a token of appreciation, symbolizing their pride in this mountain, which represents a symbol of Yazidi resilience, attachment to land, country, and identity.
It is worth noting that the #With_Dialogue_We_Endure_and_Rise camp was launched in Baghdad with the participation of youth from Sinjar, later joined by youth from Baghdad in its first phase, and then continued to Basra, where young men and women from the city joined the team. The program will soon continue its journey across other Iraqi cities, aiming to promote dialogue as a mechanism for peacebuilding among followers of different religions and for rejecting hate speech.
