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Communities unite for refugee festival

June 20 2005

Refugees from across the world will come together for a weekend of sport, arts activities and exhibitions in Liverpool as part of Refugee Week.

The Afro Kensington Festival will see football tournaments, DJ workshops, hair braiding, badminton exhibitions, fashion shows and much more taking place over Saturday June 25th and Sunday June 26th.

A photographic exhibition entitled ‘A place of Sanctuary’ will feature images from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kosovo, Kurdistan, Sudan and Sri Lanka. Children’s activities will include break-dancing, silky skills (football) and dance workshops.

On Saturday evening a South African author will speak about his experiences of being imprisoned in his country, and a number of exiled journalists will spark lively debates about media coverage of asylum and refugee issues.

Lee Omar, community development officer for Refugee Action Liverpool, said: “This is a fantastic example of many disparate communities coming together, which is a first for the Kensington area of Liverpool where many newly dispersed asylum seekers and refugees are settled. We want to welcome everyone to the event so that we can celebrate the cultural contribution of refugees to our city.

“The social event on Saturday evening, which has been organised in conjunction with Liverpool Refugee Media Network will also promote lively debate about issues surrounding refugees and the media and everyone is welcome to come along.”

The event has been organised by Liverpool Refugee Community Organisations with support from Refugee Action and Kensington Regeneration. The sporting tournaments will take place in the Kensington Sports Centre, while other events , including the evening presentation, will take place at the Life Bank Centre.

For more information call Lee Omar on 0151 702 6307.

ENDS

If you would like further information or would like to arrange a photograph or an interview with an organiser please contact Julia Ravenscroft, press officer at Refugee Action, on 0161 233 1956 or juliar@refugee-action.org.uk.

Notes to editors:

National Refugee Week is a UK wide festival that celebrates the enormous contribution made by refugees to UK life. Every year hundreds of arts, cultural and educational events are organised across the UK.
Refugee Action is an independent, national charity working to enable refugees to build new lives in the UK. We provide practical advice and assistance for newly arrived asylum seekers and long-term commitment to their settlement through community development work, and received 30,000 visits from asylum seekers last year. As one of the country’s leading agencies in the field, Refugee Action has 24 years’ experience in pioneering innovative work in partnership with refugees.

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