Rabia Mayet | rabiamayet@radioislam.co.za

03 October 2024

3-minute read

Creating awareness around the issues of Palestine, the Al-Aqsa Poetry competition, organized by the Global Association of Islamic Studies, saw the participation of 11 countries with 180 entries, with the largest number of participants coming from Pakistan and then South Africa. South Africa scooped all three positions in the competition, with Amani Omar from Tshwane Muslim School in first place, Shuaib Abdul Majeed from Orient in Durban taking second place and Rushda Suliman, also a TMS student, in third place.

Amaani explained that she had heard of the competition through her English teacher at school, and her hobby composing poetry, as well as “the plight of the Palestinians,” inspired her to participate in the competition. The theme of her poem was the metaphor of the wind implying the growing strength of the Palestinians as they move from “despair to resilience”. The message she conveyed in it was that as the wind intensifies, it brings strength to the suffering child and so lifts the entire nation to resist. Amaani plans to continue writing poetry as it is a powerful manner to express emotions in an everlasting way. Identity, freedom and justice are some of the topics the would like to explore further.

Rushda Suliman stated that the metaphor she used in her poem was that of the olive tree; the tree that is native to Palestine and can survive in all conditions. Olive trees are “strong and known to live forever” and as the Palestinians continue their struggle, they will always have that hope and strength and resilience to draw on. Rushda cited that it is easier to convey feelings and messages through poetry and that what is happening to the Palestinians should not be “normalized”. She said that she felt “very honoured” to be representing South Africa, especially since South Africa was the only country to go to the ICJ against Israel.

Shuaib’s intention in composing his poem was to make the plight of the Palestinians more personal and relatable instead of just focusing on the broader aspects of war. “Just as the people around the world live, and love, and grow, so too do the people of Gaza”, he said. Shuaib’s aim was to capture the “shared humanity” we have as humans. He hopes that his poem will help people understand that the war on Gaza affects its people at a much deeper level and that the world will truly begin to empathize with the pain and suffering, and the shattered dreams of the Palestinians. Shuaib plans to continue writing poetry in order to keep the voices of the oppressed people “empowered”.

Listen to the full interview on Sabahul Muslim.