Sharjah Ruler to establish General Union of Arab Writers headquarters

H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, has announced that he establish a permanent headquarters for the General Union of Arab Writers to serve as a venue for its cultural activities and to support its literary career and cultural production.

H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed made the announcement during a meeting held at the Dr. Sultan Al Qasimi Centre of Gulf Studies with members of the General Union of Arab Writers.

His Highness, the Ruler of Sharjah, welcomed the writers and expressed his happiness at this meeting, which stimulates the continuation of cultural and literary work.

During the meeting, His Highness announced he would allocate an additional consignment to support Arab writers and help them continue with the cultural issues, emphasising the importance of sustaining cultural activities to enable it to confront the harsh anti-thought campaigns launched against the Arab Nation and its culture.

H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan also directed the establishment of the Arab and World Literary Conference, to meet every two years to discuss developments in cultural and literary works held in different countries of the Arab world so that writers can familiarise themselves with the levels of progress, and contribute to motivating everyone to continue to support the path of cultural ambition.

His Highness highlighted the importance of holding such a conference to communicate with the Western world through cultural exchange, highlighting, in this context, communication efforts between Moroccan writers with a number of European countries.

His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah also touched on the importance of the historic Arab-African relations, pointing out that an Institute of African Studies similar to that in Khartoum, will be inaugurated in Sharjah. The institute will offer scholarships for Africans abroad. He also said that the African Hall founded in 1976 by Arab-African cooperation would be reopened.

His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah also highlighted Sharjah's diverse cultural journey, which started with many cultural fields such as poetry, theatre, and publishing among others.

Answering a question about his attachment to the cultural field in light of changing conditions, His Highness resembled himself to a person standing on the edge of a river that sweeps away every good and bad, and that he holds onto the trunk of a large tree called the Arab nation.

The Secretary-General and members of the General Union of Arab Writers commended the initiatives of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah in serving the cultural and literary fields, establishing a headquarters for the Union and allocating an additional consignment to support writers and to provide them with a motivating environment for cultural production and continuity.

Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Owais, Chairman of the Sharjah Department of Culture and Information; Mohammed Obaid Salem Al Zaabi, Director of the Sharjah Department of Protocol and Guesthouses; Ali Al Marri, Head of Dr. Sultan Al Qasimi Centre for Gulf Studies, Dara; Mohammed Hassan Khalaf, Director General of Sharjah Media Corporation; and Habib Al Sayegh, Secretary-General of the Arab Writers Union were present at the meeting and during the tour.