Kuwait's 47th International Book Fair has devoted a seminar on the Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding (SHATIU) as one of the foremost awards supporting cultural dialogue and knowledge-sharing among peoples.
The seminar was held at the fair's cultural pavilion to shine a spotlight on the SHATIU, which was established by Qatar.
The event featured interviews with past winners, along with snapshots and video clips showcasing the milestones of the SHATIU's curators who traversed the world.
Moderated by Nasser al-Haybah, SHATIU spokesperson Dr Hanan al-Fayyad and SHATIU media team member Dr Imtinan al-Samadi, addressed the event, with Dr al-Fayyad underscoring that translation has been the broadest means of dispelling ignorance about the nature of “the other”, exploring human essence, and investing in culture, thought, and awareness to serve the humanity.
She highlighted that translation has the potential to be a path to untangle the conflicts of this world, replace violence with peace, and establish balanced openness in place of isolation and racism.
Dr al-Fayyad added that the SHATIU was established in 2015 to promote rapprochement among humans in light of conflicts that have been engulfing the world, and stems from Qatar's deep awareness of the pivotal role of translation in advancing Arab nations throughout history.
The Qatar initiative primarily aims to honoru translators, back efforts that forge cultural and civilisational understanding among nations, encourage translation to and from Arab languages, and highlight the significance of translation in the humanitarian space.
Dr al-Fayyad said that the award underpins three criteria: transparency, quality and diversity.
She stressed the importance of linguistic diversity, which is highlighted each season, and emphasised that the professionalism and transparency of the SHATIU committee have given the award significant credibility in global cultural circles.
