Hasan Ahmed Daqrouq This is Me

Education

 Web References

1. 1. IHT: A 'Super Star' shines for adoring Palestinians

   www.iht.com/articles/535419.ht - [Cached]

   Published on: 8/24/2004   Last Visited: 8/24/2004

   Hasan's father, Hasan Ahmed Daqrouq, 63, just out of the hospital for a heart tremor and sitting in a small room festooned with posters and photos of his son, is overwhelmed with pride. His mother, Itidal, watches a tape of her son, in an earlier round, sing a moody, moving song about Jerusalem, with rapt attention, as men and women in the audience weep and wave the flag of Palestine. . "Palestinians, wherever they are, they see Ammar as an ambassador for them," Hasan Daqrouq said.
   ...
   Daqrouq can sound a touch defensive. But the focus on Hasan has produced political criticism, too, from Palestinian militants who think his celebrity is diverting attention from the prisoners' strike, Israel's security barrier and the intifada. . Hamas, in particular, has condemned the singing contest as trivial and a harmful diversion from real dilemmas. . Daqrouq dismissed such criticism. "Hamas should look to itself first," he said. . The previous Sunday, when Hasan survived the semifinals along with his Libyan rival, Ayman al-Atar, Palestinians rejoiced.
   ...
   But Hasan himself, speaking before the finals in an interview on the phone from Lebanon, rejected such criticism. He knows he has become a symbol of Palestine, but he wants to show the world the broader culture of a civilized people. . The prisoners are an important issue, "much more important than what I'm doing," he said. "But the occupation" - he means Israel - "is not afraid of kids throwing stones. The occupation is afraid of scientists, intellectuals and musicians who reflect the humanity and express the message of the people."
   
   When he was at school in Salfit, he said, he also threw stones at Israeli soldiers and saw how his classmates welcomed it as a way to avoid school. . "Do you think throwing stones will lead to victory?" he asked. "There is no victory with ignorance. Let's educate our children and plant the seeds of hope and humanity in their hearts."
   
   Hasan has made visits to Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan and Lebanon, including Sabra and Shatilla. Asked on the show why his tone is so sorrowful, he answered: "I can't separate myself from the situation of my people."
   
   At the same time, Hasan is uncomfortable that being Palestinian wins him sympathy and votes among many other Arabs. . "I want to win for my talent, and I don't want to win on the back of my people and my cause," he said. . Hasan Daqrouq worked in Kuwait as a sales manager for JVC until the Iraqi invasion in the first Gulf War, then returned to Salfit. The eldest of six children, he was born in Kuwait but lived a decade in Salfit, graduating from Al Najah University in Nablus in 2001. He began, as his father wished, studying business, but quietly switched to music - finally with his father's support. . Hasan, seeing the intifada and no prospect of work, moved to Dubai, where he had a cousin, and got a job singing at the Dubai Marine Beach Resort. There, the Lebanese composer Elias Rahbani, an organizer of "Super Star," heard Hasan and encouraged him to enter the contest. .
   ...
   So does Husam Madi, a skinny man of 40 with crooked teeth who helped teach Hasan how to sing and play the oud, a stringed instrument similar to a lute.
   ...
   Hasan's father, Hasan Ahmed Daqrouq, 63, just out of the hospital for a heart tremor and sitting in a small room festooned with posters and photos of his son, is overwhelmed with pride. His mother, Itidal, watches a tape of her son, in an earlier round, sing a moody, moving song about Jerusalem, with rapt attention, as men and women in the audience weep and wave the flag of Palestine. . "Palestinians, wherever they are, they see Ammar as an ambassador for them," Hasan Daqrouq said.
   ...
   Daqrouq can sound a touch defensive. But the focus on Hasan has produced political criticism, too, from Palestinian militants who think his celebrity is diverting attention from the prisoners' strike, Israel's security barrier and the intifada. . Hamas, in particular, has condemned the singing contest as trivial and a harmful diversion from real dilemmas. . Daqrouq dismissed such criticism. "Hamas should look to itself first," he said. . The previous Sunday, when Hasan survived the semifinals along with his Libyan rival, Ayman al-Atar, Palestinians rejoiced.
   ...
   But Hasan himself, speaking before the finals in an interview on the phone from Lebanon, rejected such criticism. He knows he has become a symbol of Palestine, but he wants to show the world the broader culture of a civilized people. . The prisoners are an important issue, "much more important than what I'm doing," he said. "But the occupation" - he means Israel - "is not afraid of kids throwing stones. The occupation is afraid of scientists, intellectuals and musicians who reflect the humanity and express the message of the people."
   
   When he was at school in Salfit, he said, he also threw stones at Israeli soldiers and saw how his classmates welcomed it as a way to avoid school. . "Do you think throwing stones will lead to victory?" he asked. "There is no victory with ignorance. Let's educate our children and plant the seeds of hope and humanity in their hearts."
   
   Hasan has made visits to Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan and Lebanon, including Sabra and Shatilla. Asked on the show why his tone is so sorrowful, he answered: "I can't separate myself from the situation of my people."
   
   At the same time, Hasan is uncomfortable that being Palestinian wins him sympathy and votes among many other Arabs. . "I want to win for my talent, and I don't want to win on the back of my people and my cause," he said. . Hasan Daqrouq worked in Kuwait as a sales manager for JVC until the Iraqi invasion in the first Gulf War, then returned to Salfit. The eldest of six children, he was born in Kuwait but lived a decade in Salfit, graduating from Al Najah University in Nablus in 2001. He began, as his father wished, studying business, but quietly switched to music - finally with his father's support. . Hasan, seeing the intifada and no prospect of work, moved to Dubai, where he had a cousin, and got a job singing at the Dubai Marine Beach Resort. There, the Lebanese composer Elias Rahbani, an organizer of "Super Star," heard Hasan and encouraged him to enter the contest. .
   ...
   So does Husam Madi, a skinny man of 40 with crooked teeth who helped teach Hasan how to sing and play the oud, a stringed instrument similar to a lute.
   ...
   Hasan's father, Hasan Ahmed Daqrouq, 63, just out of the hospital for a heart tremor and sitting in a small room festooned with posters and photos of his son, is overwhelmed with pride. His mother, Itidal, watches a tape of her son, in an earlier round, sing a moody, moving song about Jerusalem, with rapt attention, as men and women in the audience weep and wave the flag of Palestine. . "Palestinians, wherever they are, they see Ammar as an ambassador for them," Hasan Daqrouq said.
   ...
   Daqrouq can sound a touch defensive. But the focus on Hasan has produced political criticism, too, from Palestinian militants who think his celebrity is diverting attention from the prisoners' strike, Israel's security barrier and the intifada. . Hamas, in particular, has condemned the singing contest as trivial and a harmful diversion from real dilemmas. . Daqrouq dismissed such criticism. "Hamas should look to itself first," he said. . The previous Sunday, when Hasan survived the semifinals along with his Libyan rival, Ayman al-Atar, Palestinians rejoiced.
   ...
   But Hasan himself, speaking before the finals in an interview on the phone from Lebanon, rejected such criticism. He knows he has become a symbol of Palestine, but he wants to show the world the broader culture of a civilized people. . The prisoners are an important issue, "much more important than what I'm doing," he said. "But the occupation" - he means Israel - "is not afraid of kids throwing stones. The occupation is afraid of scientists, intellectuals and musicians who reflect the humanity and express the message of the people."
   
   When he was at school in Salfit, he said, he also threw stones at Israeli soldiers and saw how his classmates welcomed it as a way to avoid school. . "Do you think throwing stones will lead to victory?" he asked. "There is no victory with ignorance. Let's educate our children and plant the seeds of hope and humanity in their hearts."
   
   Hasan has made visits to Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan and Lebanon, including Sabra and Shatilla. Asked on the show why his tone is so sorrowful, he answered: "I can't separate myself from the situation of my people."
   
   At the same time, Hasan is uncomfortable that being Palestinian wins him sympathy and