Believing in the importance of conserving our national heritage and culture, RHU hosted the coronation and closing ceremony of the Zajal competition entitled “Your Heritage Your Identity” organized by the Union of Zajal Poets in Lebanon under the auspices of the Lebanese Ministry of Culture on April 25, 2018.
Coordinated by RHU College of Arts, the event took place in RHU main theatre in the presence of the representative of the Minister of Culture, Dr. Ghattas Khoury, Professor Naim Talhouk, RHU President Dr. Ahmed Smaili, the President of the Union of Zajal Poets in Lebanon, poet Georges Abu Antoun, heads of municipalities, a number of Lebanese poets, the participating schools and students.
The event began with a word from the poet Fadi Fayyad in which he thanked RHU for hosting the event and the participating students and schools.
RHU President, Dr. Ahmad Smaili, indicated in his word of welcome that part of the answer to conserving our national heritage lies in the role we play, stressing the importance of the Lebanese “Zajal” as an integral part of our culture and traditions. Dr. Smaili congratulated the participating students for their active roles in protecting the customs of our homeland and the Union for organizing this event.
Then poet George Abu Anton gave a zealous poem that presented sincere wishes to the outstanding students and tips of wisdom to assist them in continuing their path of excellence and creativity.
The second stage of Zajal then began. The participating students competed in bilateral dialogues of famous well-known poets. After deliberation, the committee issued the results and the winners were awarded gold, silver and bronze medals and a set of valuable Zajal books.