• SOME of your readers will know that CADFA (Camden-Abu Dis Friendship Association) has organised women’s exchanges between Camden and Palestine every year since 2006.

This year’s visit runs between March 22 and April 1 and we think that your readers may be interested to come along and meet them.

CADFA often hosts visitors from Palestine: school children, students, women, musicians and others. For the past 10 years these have very often been part of EU-funded youth exchanges.

As part of our work, we often travel with our visitors to towns across the England and Wales.

Numerous councils, of every political hue, have sent their mayors to meet our visitors, but it has been sad that, for years, our own Camden mayor has not met our visitors.

Once again, this year, we are disappointed that the Camden mayor cannot come to any of the local women’s events we are organising or to meet our visitors at any point while they are here.

Camden is the centre of CADFA’s work, of course, and the grass-roots links between Camden and the town of Abu Dis in Palestine are very special.

This visit is partly funded by the hard work of CADFA women’s links who run a stall at the Brunswick Centre every Saturday to sell Palestinian pottery, embroidery, olive oil and speciality foods.

We hope that your readers can come and meet the visitors, though. There are many chances to see and hear our visitors: Hiyam Mousa, director of a women’s and children’s centre in the Old City of Jerusalem and Ruba Imam, a young human rights lawyer from Al Quds university.

We hope that Camden/Islington people will be able to come to one of:

• Tomorrow (Friday March 29 at 1pm at Voluntary Action Camden, Charlie Ratchford Centre, Belmont Street NW1 (a talk with Palestinian food available);

• Tomorrow (Friday) March 29 from 7pm to 9pm at Williamson Street Community Centre, Parkhurst Road, Holloway (talks, food, crafts and oud music);

• CADFA’s International Women’s Day celebration on Saturday March 30 from 7pm at Cafe Palestina in Fortess Road. There will be Palestinian food, music, spoken word, local choir Raised Voices, short women’s films and a chance to hear our speakers. Entrance will be by donation to the charity CADFA (suggested donations: £5, £10).

NANDITA DOWSON
Director, CADFA
Fortess Road, NW5