Tonight - Wednesday 21 July  - UNISON office Galway House - An audience with Palestinian Guests. 7pm

As part of UNISON's ongoing campaigning on the issue of Palestine - A unique opportunity to talk with seven Palestinian visitors (on tour in Ireland for Anti Racism World Cup 2010) about the situation in Palestine at present.

Speakers include:

Suheir Tanous

I was born in Ramallah in 1987 to refugee parents from Lod.  I graduated in 2009 from Birzeit University majoring in psychology and I currently work with kids with special needs at the Friends High School. My dream is to work with children in refugee camps all over Palestine to empower them and create a healthy future for Palestine. When dealing with children in general, and with special needs especially, we encourage them to participate in various sports to broaden their perspectives and create a healthy team building environment.

Hanna Qassis

My name is Hanna Qassis, I am 27 years old and from the town of Birzeit, Palestine. I finished my bachelors degree in business administration from Birzeit University and am currently working on my masters degree in internationals relations also from BZU. I currently work as a Project coordinator with relief international on “Access to Justice for Poor Women” project. I also am the vice president of the Birzeit athletic, social and cultural club where I get to be extremely active in my community and raise awareness regarding the occupation’s practices and the daily injustice we face.

Ramie Abu-Zahra

My name is Ramie Abu-Zahra. My family is from Nablus, Palestine, and I was born and raised in Michigan. I went to the University of Michigan to study mechanical and industrial engineering. I'm now working in Virginia for Capital One Bank as an operations analyst. I was involved in Pro-Palestinian student groups during my education and am working to start some activities in Richmond, Virginia. I've been back to Palestine several times to visit my family and friends in Palestine. Every time I go, part of me feels like I'm returning home, even though I've never actually lived there. I struggle as a Palestinian-American trying to balance both identities and especially in dialogue with people about the conflict. With the US being an influential player in the situation, it is disheartening to see how biased our media channels are, and how much that influences popular opinion.

Raya Ziadeh

My name is Raya Zaideh and I was born in 1983. My dad is a refugee from the village of Falojeh and my mom is from Hebron. I finished my BA in marketing from the Arab American University of Jenin, and currently I am doing my masters degree in global politics at London School of Economics. I have previously participated in the European Voluntary Service, where I got to work with marginalized children in France; thus enriching my understanding of justice and equality in the world. As a result, I decided to apply for the Global Politics program at LSE to be able to understand more the current world system, which requires a wide and profound knowledge to extend my abilities to be capable of thinking broadly when analyzing the political world around me, and thereby strengthen any future role I’ll be having in this field. Coming from a family that has a history with struggle and fighting the occupation, I feel more compelled to find ways to be part of the Palestinian struggle whether by seeking higher education, painting or playing sports. 

Nadim Daibes

My name is Nadim Daibes, I was born in 1992 in. I just graduated from High School this year and I am hoping to study physical therapy in the next upcoming year. I have been interested in football for a long time now, and it is a big part of my daily basis. However, living in Palestine makes it harder to be able to play football on a professional level because of the hard political situation we are going through. I do aspire to play football on a more international level; thus having the chance to participate in the Anti Racism World Cup is a great opportunity that I cannot wait for!

Halla Shoaibi

My name is Halla Shoaibi and I was born in 1986 in Jerusalem. I graduated with a Law degree from Birzeit University and went on to study Women’s Rights and International Law. I now work with a law firm in Ramallah and as well intern with Human Rights Watch, the Women Rights’ Division. I have been part of various youth and women groups and have always believed in youth’s role in overcoming the occupation and as being an integral part of the resolution. I believe that Art and Sports are major means to fight racism in the world and to spread awareness. Since I was a child, I searched for means to fight occupation and every time I come to the conclusion that we as Palestinians should be part of the international community and spread our cause to people in all sectors of the world. I am looking forward to be part of the Anti-Racism World Cup this year and to represent Palestine both on the field and outside the field.  

Christina Nijim

My name is Christina Nijim, I am 21 years old and I am from Jerusalem. I will be graduating in June 2010 from the Media School where I majored in Radio and Television. My passion in life is playing football; I have been playing football for 8 years now as I am a member of AL Sereyeh club's football team. I dream of becoming a professional player but it is extremely difficult since I live in an occupied country and we cannot get the proper funding to reach the level of professional leagues. As a Palestinian female athlete, I do believe that Palestine is full of young worthy talents but they never get the proper attention. Additionally, in the media we are portrayed as terrorists and attackers instead of victims and hard working people. I do believe that we need to raise awareness regarding the athletic abilities that Palestine has in order to show people around the world that we are human beings with skills and dreams but we only need someone to reach out to see the truth.