"Cartooning for Peace" is a thrilling exhibition and seminar currently on show in Brussels, that extends from 3 May to 1 July and brings together the talents of cartoonists from several countries. The exhibit underscores the fact that cartoonism, can, while entertaining, also be a very effective means of tackling major social and political issues, and address international crises. The exhibition features nine international cartoonists, many of whom have turned their critical talents towards their own governments: Plantu from France's Le Monde, Danziger from the United States, Kroll from Belgium, Brown from Denmark, who denounced the humiliating cartoons of his colleagues against the Prophet Mohamed, Rita from Lebanon, Kichka from Israel, Dileime from Algeria, Kash from Congo, and Al-Ahram Weekly 's very own and gifted cartoonist Georges Bahgory. "Cartooning for Peace" was a great success. The participating cartoonists met in a roundtable hosted by the United Nations in Brussels. They also met members of the European parliament, who were all eager to have their portraits drawn by the galaxy of world-renowned cartoonists. Interestingly enough, the idea of the exhibition and its theme was first founded by Plantu, who travelled years ago to the United Nations in New York and met its former secretary-general Kofi Annan. The then secretary-general asked him to resume his mission of gathering cartoonists from all over the world, in order to present their drawings and sarcastic caricatures on a larger scale. Al-Sawy Culture Wheel has designated May as the Month of Environmental Issues and Rights. To mark the month, the centre has planned an environmental rights seminar entitled "We will not allow the pollution of our planet" on the evening of 7 May 2007. The seminar was held at Al-Kalima Hall, and comprised a screening of "Inconvenient Truth" written by former US vice-president Al Gore. This was followed by comments on the film by US Ambassador Francis Ricciardone. UN Resident Coordinator James Rawley, the renowned environmentalist Mustafa Kamal Tolba of the International Centre of Environment and Development, and Salah Arafa, AUC physics professor who is highly active in environmental affairs, presented their remarks, followed by a question and answer session. At En Vogue's 17th graduation ceremony, Shirley Shalaby celebrated the graduation of 200 dancers, ballerinas and models at the Heliopolis Al-Sawy Culture Wheel. Students graced the public with a "Beauties Around the World" classical ballet presentation, jazz, rap, Latino and a "Gown and Grace" show by Nada Zananiri. The performance was wrapped up with a candle-lit dance, accompanied by a performance of Ave Maria. In cooperation with the Frères Association for Society Developing at Khronfosh, Terre des hommes organised a visit to Al-Ahram Weekly within the framework of "Scream" programme, which aims at tackling the issue of child labour. The visit was a step towards enabling those children and youngsters to express themselves in the media. Three ambitious children, Ahmed Farag, Bishoy Nashaat and Morqos Waheeb, talked about their futures, and their conviction that it is only through knowledge and will power that their difficult current circumstances can be changed. The meeting was attended by Narouz Gamal, an activist at the association, and our very own colleague, the Weekly's Nader Habib, who talked about the ethics of journalism, and the important role played by the press in defending the rights of the helpless, and making their voices heard. photo: Sherif Sonbol Celebrating the 800th anniversary of the Sufi mystic Jalaleddin Al-Rumi -- which lasted for four days at the Cairo and Alexandria opera houses, AUC and Samaa Khan close to Ibn Tulun Mosque -- the Turkish Military Musical troupe opened the festival by performing their famous music. Under the auspices of the British Ambassador to Egypt Sir Derek Plumbly, the Breast Cancer Foundation of Egypt (BCFE) celebrated its first steps to build the first medical charity centre for the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. The event was attended by a galaxy of public figures, all accompanied by their spouses. These included Secretary-General of the Cabinet Sami Saad Zaghloul, Minister of Health Hatem El-Gabali, and Ambassador of Norway to Egypt Lasse Seim. Present as well were the chairman of Telecom Egypt Aqil Bashir and his wife, and head of the Education Committee at the NDP's Policies Committee Hossam Badrawi. The Secretary-General of Wafd Party and member of the National Council for Human Rights Mounir Fakhri Abdel-Nour was also in attendance, as well as veteran writer and member of the Supreme Advisory Committee of the National Council for Motherhood and Childhood Neam El-Baz. The event was graced with the presence of actor and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Khaled Abul-Naga, actress Gihan Qamari, veteran TV presenter and president of Nile TV drama Suheir Shalabi, and renowned fashion designer Hani El-Beheiri. Members of the foreign communities in Egypt also attended. Abul-Naga delivered a message of support to the foundation. This was followed by a speech by Sir Plumbly and head of BCFE Mohamed Shaalan, who expressed his sincere gratitude to all who supported the foundation, and pointed out that the coming phase will witness a breakthrough in the treatment of breast diseases. Our very own author Youssef Rakha, the editor of Al-Ahram Weekly 's Culture section, and young novelist I brahim Farghali, who writes in Al-Ahram 's literary section were guests of an interesting seminar held last week at the Goethe Cultural Centre. The theme was a comparative in-depth look at the cities of Cairo, Berlin and Stuttgart. Professor of German literature Tarek Abdel-Bari moderated the talk. As could be gleaned from the photographs displayed, for Rakha, the city is a place where you can hide from people and find your own space. Scenes included a vacant seat, a garage, and flying birds -- images that can be seen in any city, yet are rarely captured by on camera. photo: Ayman Barayez German fashion designer Barbe Swedan organised a fashion show at the Grand Hyatt Hotel last week. She showed her recent creations of evening gowns and wedding dresses for Summer 2007. The event was attended by media figures and fashion designers.
