A varied artistic event of the Cultural Center in Adra Central Prison within the celebration of the Syrian Culture Days

Rural Damascus - SANA

The Syrian Culture Days celebration was an opportunity for the Cultural Center of Adra Central Prison to display the various artistic talents of the prison inmates, which it has been keen to develop and develop since its establishment two years ago.

Halls in the prisons for men and women were transformed into galleries of paintings, calligraphy, handicrafts, traditional and wooden antiques, handicrafts and recycling, in which Muhammad Khaled Al-Rahmoun, Minister of Interior, Dr. Labana Al-Mashouh, Minister of Culture, and a number of police officers and directors of cultural institutions visited them.

During their tour, the two ministers inaugurated the Center’s library after expanding to include about six thousand books that were supplied from the publications of the Syrian General Book Organization.

They also viewed the works of decorating the walls of the prison halls with drawings containing national symbols and nature, carried out by inmates from the prison after their participation in an artistic workshop set up by the Ministry of Culture under the supervision of the artist Bashir Bashir.

The attendees continued artistic performances presented by Amal's two groups of musicians in the prisons of men and women, during which they presented patriotic and heritage songs and representative scenes about the importance of the mother in human life and the need for education for women. Which targeted our land and civilization and because culture reflects the progress of society.

Minister Al-Rahmoun confirmed that this event is part of a program implemented by the Ministry of Interior to rehabilitate and reform inmates to be effective for their families and society after their release, indicating that the ministry's role in this regard is carried out through several methods, including public education in cooperation with the Ministry of Education to grant literacy certificates, basic and secondary education, as well as Teaching languages, music, painting, and teaching crafts through workshops such as carpentry and sewing.

The Minister of Culture, Dr. Labana Mashouh, considered that the event, with its components, constitutes a departure from the usual framework of the Ministry's activities and confirms the humane treatment that the inmates receive that respects their abilities and talents. Serving the heritage.

Ibrahim Al-Saeed, Director of Damascus Countryside Culture, said that the event, with its diversity, highlights the artistic talents of the inmates in various forms that deserve this care and attention, as well as the activities carried out by the two cultural centers for men and women in prison, which were created following the memorandum of understanding signed between the Ministries of Culture and Interior.

Inmate Yusef Saleh presented crafts made of beads from wallets, mashables and rosaries with hooks and looms, indicating that he learned this hobby in Adra prison, where he received support from the prison administration and the Prisoners' Welfare Association, which provided him with raw materials and allowed him to develop his talent.

Inmate Ali Moati participated in the paintings of Arabic calligraphy and drawing of landscapes, indicating that he developed this hobby in the belief that human life should not stop despite his circumstances, as he obtained from the authorities responsible for the prison the tools and requirements for drawing.

Inmate Mahmoud Gargour participated in the wooden works he made during his work in the carpentry workshop for candlesticks and bars of clothes and logs of trees in artistic forms, indicating that he benefited from his work as a carpenter and the assistance and support he received from the prison administration to manufacture wood sculptures and antiques.

Resident Israa Moura participated with boxes and tissue boxes that she makes from damaged materials, referring to the role of the Cultural Center in teaching her this profession and providing raw materials, where she feels while she is making it that she is living her normal life, because a person must be armed with hope, whatever his condition.

At the end of the tour, the Minister of Culture presented an honorary certificate to the President of the Cultural Center, in appreciation of her role in training the inmates and her constant interest in supporting their talents.

Samer Al-Shoghry