Photo: IIUM International Students performing the Zapin dance
By Ahmed Wafi Rashid and Shazni Ong
GOMBAK, 24 November 2014: The Cultural Activity Centre (CAC) was the venue for the opening ceremony of the Ummatic Festival 2014, and what a grand opening it was. With more than 25 countries represented in this year’s edition of the festival, you could definitely see the world gathered in one hall.
Students and the rest of the audience arrived at the hall at 8 p.m. and were mingling and getting to know each other before the arrival of the VIPs at 8:40 p.m. Guests of honour included Rector of IIUM, Prof. Dato’ Sri Zaleha Kamaruddin, Deputy Rector (Internationalisation & Industry and Community Relations), Prof. Dr. Abdel Aziz Berghout, and ambassadors and representatives of the embassies in Malaysia. The VIPs were escorted by officers of the Royal Malaysian Police Force who were all dressed in immaculate white and black uniforms.
Anas Yelman and Rawda Salwar were the emcees of the night, hosting the night in English and Arabic respectively. After the arrival of the VIPs, a few verses from the Qur’an was recited followed by a short video showcasing the previous editions of the Ummatic festival and another short video was presented about the struggles faced by the Ummah around the world.
Prof. Dr. Abdel Aziz Berghout then delivered a speech that was both informative and humorous as he welcomed all students, staff and VIPs. He promised a week for all to remember and said that the next year’s edition of the Ummatic festival will try to bring together over 40 countries from the OIC (nearly twice more than this year’s edition) and pledged to make this event as global as possible.
“Move forward as one Ummah and one nation” he urged.
The crowd of over one thousand were then presented with poems written by students of the University which was described as emotional and eye opening as they spoke about racism, gratitude and the strengths and weaknesses that we all have. After which, all attendees were then entertained by a live musical performance which played a song about humanity praying for the day when “people will say we don’t wanna fight no more”. This had the the whole audience in ecstasy as applause and cheers was so loud, you could almost feel the ground shake.
A silat simulation was next on the night’s agenda before a multicultural dance performance consisting of cultures from Malaysia, Syria, Egypt, Palestine, Sudan and others by a group known as the Halal boys. The Rector was so pleased by the performance that she invited them to perform before 30 judges from around the world when they come to visit IIUM next week.
The Rector then took the stage to deliver a speech in which she promised it to be “short and sweet”. Â She spoke of the vision of the University, the strengths and developments of the University and spoke about how far IIUM has come ever since their establishment more than 30 years ago. For those who may not know, Prof. Dato’ Sri Dr. Zaleha has been with IIUM ever since the establishment, more than 30 years ago and has seen the university move from “strength to strength”. She was hoping that “somewhere in the hall tonight would be the future leader of a nation.” In this world, there are only two types of people: problem makers and problem solvers. The choice to become either one is entirely up to you” she said with a wide smile.
After her speech, she invited the other guests of honour to join her on the stage and assist her in the cutting of the ribbon in order to officially open the Ummatic Festival 2014.
Flag bearers of the different countries that are involved in the event then took the stage as the names of their countries were announced and they waved their flags before the crowd of over one thousand with pride and honour. After which, the VIPs  then toured the booths showcasing their respective countries from India to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Somalia to Afghanistan.The VIPs finally left the building at close to 12.00 a.m. but the crowd was still buzzing from all the excitement.
To say that this event was a success would be a huge understatement and this is just the beginning of what’s to come. Be sure to catch Cultural performances, sports, feasts, food fairs and the closing ceremony that will be held throughout the week. If the beginning was already that good, you can expect much more!
“I’m happy to see that they have gone beyond what was shown last year. To me, this is very important because we’re not talking about unity alone but we are acting on it. Many people talk about unity but we do unity. That is the most important message that we are sending to the world”, said the Rector.
Meanwhile, for next year Ummatic Festival, she hopes to see more Malaysians participating. “I hope next year we get more of our Malaysian brothers so that it will be a combination of the locals and our international brothers as well”.***
Photos by Shazni Ong