Shabab Diaries: Discovering Opportunities to Make Change
8 Jan 2008 in Civic Participation
Abdullah Al Thawr is the Youth Programs Officer for the Democracy School, San'na, Yemen and the MEYI Youth Ambassador.
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In the upcoming weeks, I will write about my personal journeys and thoughts. The idea is to introduce how I became involved in an NGO, youth work and volunteerism and how this work shapes my views about what is happening to youth and their communities in Yemen.
Previously posted in part one of my diaries: I describe how I heard about the "Children Parliament" at my school and how my initial feelings of disinterest undermined such activities.
Memory Two: March, 2006: (Children Parliament Meeting, Sana'a)
I got invited to attend a day of the Children Parliament National Meeting that was conducted in one of the meeting rooms of the Yemeni Parliament Council.
The Children Parliament is composed of about 30-40 members (aged 14-16) who are elected from different schools that are selected every two years from the different governorates of Yemen. The members meet every three months in the capital city Sana'a.
The meeting I attended was the last day of the meeting for the final round of the parliament, as these members will be replaced by new members in the upcoming elections. Of course, I arrived late by an hour, thinking that I will leave early. Since the day on which I went was the last day of the one-week meeting session, the organization was discussing with the Children Parliament members the financial reports of all the activities and events as part of the organization's policy to be transparent with the children in all matters including the funds and financial reports.
To be honest, I felt glad when I saw for the first time in my life a "kid" questioning an adult (the organization manager) about where exactly a particular amount of money was spent. I was dazzled with the negotiation and conversation skills these young people possessed. They then went on talking about human rights, and using complex terms that I thought only existed in the world of adults. Only at the moment, I felt shy; my confidence in myself was shattered into pieces when I realized that I have been prevented to know about a whole new world of opportunities and about a whole new life of ideas and work. Who prevented me? No one did. Only I can push myself towards this kind of field, or pull myself back. But who do I blame?? I blame my community for not giving this opportunity to us earlier.
Instead of leaving early, I spent the whole day there, and ended having lunch with the "kids" … sorry I mean the young leaders of the Children Parliament. I discussed the possibility of volunteering at the organization after my examinations, and ended up with an agreement to come at the first day in the summer holiday.
I sometimes wonder if youth always blame the community and society for preventing them from opportunities rather than we being proactive in seeking out opportunities ourselves. How can we provide young people like myself with opportunities to engage in this world of volunteering and service so we can become active players in changing the world?
To be continued ….
