On Wednesday, September 11, 2024, the Master’s Program in Middle Eastern Cultural Studies in collaboration with the Bachelor’s Program in Arabic Literature at Universitas Gadjah Mada held a National Seminar on the theme of Palestine: From Nakba to Tufan Al-Aqsa at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM. The event invited experts in Arabic literature and culture, namely Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum. and Prof. Dr. Fadlil Munawwar Manshur, M.S., from Gadjah Mada University and Dr. Uki Sukiman, M.Ag. from UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta. The three speakers discussed the history of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict from 1948 and the struggle of the Palestinian people to gain state sovereignty.

In the first session, Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum. raised the hot issue of the Palestinian people who on Wednesday, May 15, 2024 yesterday, commemorated 76 years of Nakba (the day of catastrophe or the day of disaster) which as is known that May 15, 1948 was the day of the outbreak of the first Arab-Israeli war. The first Arab-Israeli war in 1948 lasted for approximately 10 months until it ended in March 1949, with Arab defeat. The Gaza War or Operation Tufan Al-Aqsa, which erupted on October 7, 2023, deserves to be called the second Nakba because this operation was the largest Palestinian resistance attack against Israel launched by the resistance faction in Gaza, Hamas, against the Israeli side in Palestine. This operation revealed a large number of depravity and rottenness of the Zionist government and its Western allies, as well as the breakdown of the justice system and global ethical and moral standards.

The second session of the seminar was continued by Prof. Dr. Fadlil Munawwar Manshur, M.S. who focused on the discussion related to the struggle of Palestinian Arab writers in literary works, both poetry and novels. Prof. Fadlil said that the Nakba tragedy had given birth to literary works in the form of Arabic poetry and short stories containing the resistance of the Palestinian people against Israel. The poems and short stories use the iltizam language style, which is a language style that contains the resistance of the Palestinian people against the Israeli occupation. The advantage of this iltizam language style lies in the ability of poets and short stories in describing the cultural conflict between Arab-Palestinian culture and Jewish-Israeli culture.

One of the Palestinian Arab writers who continues to produce literary works of resistance is Mahmoed Darwish. Entering the third discussion, Dr. Uki Sukiman revealed the role of the United States and Israel in Mahmoed Darwisy’s prose. He explained that the Palestinians must be freed from the political commodities of the United States. So far, the United States has used the Palestinian issue as a “line” to defend its interests in the region. According to Dr. Uki, stronger pressure is needed from the international community to Israel on the basis of respect for the universal principles of relations between countries that are anti-oppression, anti-colonialism and against all forms of colonialism. This pressure is expected to condemn and urge Israel to withdraw from Palestinian land.

The Master’s Program in Middle Eastern Cultural Studies in collaboration with the Bachelor of Arabic Literature Program at Gadjah Mada University held a National Seminar in order to Mangayubagya the retirement of Dr. Hindun, M.Hum with the theme Palestine: From Nakbah to Tufan Al-Aqsa on Wednesday, September 11, 2024 in Room 709, Soegondo Building, Faculty of Cultural Sciences. The event was attended by the deans of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, namely Dr. Nur Saktiningrum, M.Hum. (Vice Dean for Academic and Student Affairs), Mimi Savitri, M.A., Ph.D (Vice Dean for Research, Community Service, Cooperation and Alumni), Suray Agung Nugroho, S.S., M.A. (Vice Dean for Finance, Assets and Human Resources), retired lecturers, alumni and students from the Master of Middle Eastern Cultural Studies and Arabic Literature. The event opened with remarks from representatives of the dean of FIB UGM and continued with giving impressions and messages from representatives of lecturers, alumni, and students from both study programs.

Dr. Hindun is a lecturer in the Intercultural department with expertise in Arabic literature, especially in the poetry of Resistance literature (Adabul Muqawamah). She studied Arabic literature from bachelor to doctoral degree and has served for 40 years at Universitas Gadjah Mada. She has pursued the study of Arab resistance literature, especially Palestine, which until now is still being fought against Israeli occupation. In her speech, Mrs. Hindun said that the struggle for Palestinian independence will never end. She appealed to the invited guests that it is not only the Palestinians who are struggling, but all people of the world who have a humanitarian spirit. Therefore, this seminar certainly provides a deeper insight into the history of the Palestinian conflict to the latest information in the area. For the younger generation, it is hoped that they can continue the relay of this struggle to defend Palestine.

On Tuesday, August 6, 2024, the Master of Arabic Language Education (PBA) of Universitas Darussalam Gontor visited the Master of Middle Eastern Cultural Studies (KBTT) of Universitas Gadjah Mada for a comparative study at the Auditorium of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Soegondo Building 7th Floor. This activity was attended by the Professor of Arabic Linguistics, Prof. Dr. Syamsul Hadi, S.U., Chairperson of the Department of Intercultural Studies UGM, Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum., Secretary of the Department of Intercultural Studies UGM, Dr. Mahmudah M.Hum., Chairperson of the Master of Arabic Language Education Study Program of Universitas Darussalam Gontor, Dr. Agus Yasin, M.Pd.I. and involved 100 students from both study programs. In his speech, Prof. Sangidu said that UGM and Unida have a long-standing kinship. This cooperation can be utilized to support the tri dharma of higher education, namely education and teaching, research and community service.

The event continued with curriculum presentation from both study programs. The KBTT Master’s curriculum was presented by Dr. Mahmudah M.Hum., while Unida’s PBA Master was represented by Dr. Agus Yasin, M.Pd.I. The Chairperson of Unida’s PBA Study Program said that the vision of the PBA Master is “To become a Master of Arabic Language Education study program with national and international reputation in the development of Arabic language learning methodologies based on the Islamization of knowledge with the pesantren college system”. This presentation opened insights and active discussions between students, as evidenced by the enthusiasm of the event participants. The visit ended with a lecture by Unida students taught by Prof. Dr. Syamsul Hadi, S.U., in Arabic Language and Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum. in Arabic Literature.

On Monday, August 12, 2024, the Master of Middle Eastern Cultural Studies Study Program has carried out the activity “Welcoming New KBTT Students for the Even Period of 2023/2024”. This activity was attended by lecturers in the Master of Middle Eastern Cultural Studies Program, namely Prof. Dr. Lasiyo, M.A., Prof. Dr. Fadlil Munawwar Manshur, M.S., Dr. Hindun, M.Hum., Dr. Nur Saktiningrum, M.Hum., Dr. Zulfa Purnamawati, M.A., Dr. Mahmudah, M.Hum., Dr. Arief Ma’nawi, M.Hum., and Dr. Imam Wicaksono, M.Hum. The event was opened by the Head of the Department of Intercultural Studies, Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum. Prof. Sangidu emphasized that the admission of new students for the odd period is a concrete effort made by the Faculty of Cultural Sciences to provide opportunities for scholars to deepen their knowledge in the realm of the Middle East.

Acara dilanjutkan dengan pemaparan kurikulum oleh Sekretaris Departemen Antarbudaya FIB UGM, Dr. Mahmudah, M.Hum. Kurikulum merumuskan bahwa profil Alumni KBTT memiliki kesempatan besar dalam pekerjaan, mulai dari akademisi, peneliti, dan diplomat. Demi mencapai profil lulusan yang berkualitas, dibutuhkan kerja keras dari mahasiswa untuk mengembangkan keilmuan dengan riset dan menarasikannya dalam publikasi karya Ilmiah. Dr. Mahmudah mengatakan “Magister Kajian Budaya Timur Tengah merupakan prodi kajian antarbudaya yang cakupannya luas. Penelitian dengan objek antar negara, baik dalam ranah sastra, bahasa, dan sosial, dapat dilakukan dengan catatan menjadikan ketiganya sebagai “jendela”. Penelitian ini diharapkan dapat dikembangkan dan dipublikasikan dalam jurnal bereputasi agar bisa dimanfaatkan oleh masyarakat”.

Professor of the Middle Eastern Cultural Studies Master’s Program at UGM, Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum., was invited as a guest lecturer and dissertation examiner as well as the promoter for an Egyptian student, Kristena Lateef Nazmy, in the Community and Humanities Studies Program, Department of Social and Psychological Research and Studies, Suez Canal University. The dissertation defense was held on Saturday, June 1, 2024, at the Central Office of the Institute of Afro-Asian Studies, Suez Canal University – Egypt, with the dissertation titled ‘Mechanisms of Confronting Publishing Crimes Committed through Electronic Means: A Comparative Field Study between Egypt and Indonesia’.

This exchange of promoters and examiners is part of the cooperation between Universitas Gadjah Mada and Suez Canal University. It should be noted that Universitas Gadjah Mada and Suez Canal University have been cooperating since 2005. This collaboration was initiated by Middle Eastern Cultural Studies lecturers, Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum., and Prof. Syamsul Hadi, S.U, who was then the Dean of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada. The realization of cooperation between the two universities in the implementation of the Tri Dharma of Higher Education (Education, Research, and Community Service) has been extensive, including the Indonesia-Egypt Student Exchange Program, Public Lectures in the fields of Arabic Language, Literature, and Culture, Collaborative Research and Community Service, and the establishment of the Middle Eastern Cultural Studies Program in 2019. It is hoped that this ongoing cooperation will optimize the long-term positive contributions between both parties.