Board chairperson of KJA talks about her ‘early life’
Open meeting held
KUWAIT CITY, April 15: Board Chairperson of Kuwait Journalists Association (KJA) Fatima Husain talked about her life during the open meeting held recently at the music stage of Sheikh Jaber Cultural Center, reports Annahar daily.
Husain started her narration with her birth in Sharq in 1937, reminiscing about the simple life then – without all sorts of luxury – indicating there was no electricity in houses and water came from Basra. Water was not clean so they had to add alum in order to improve its quality. Soap was unknown at the time when women washed clothes in the sea using sand and seaweeds, she disclosed.
She added her father named her after her grandmother, adding that there were no medical centers and doctors despite the big number of residents and the first doctor who arrived was Dr Yahya Al-Hadidi. She said their means of transportation were some animals like donkeys and mules.
Talking about her education, Husain said she began her studies through ‘Katateeb’ — the practice of going to a scholar who taught reading, writing and the Holy Quran to groups of children. She later enrolled in a school in Qibla where she experienced harsh treatment by her classmates at the beginning but they respected her when they realized she was clever and an excellent student.
On her good relations with teachers from Lebanon, Syria and Palestine; she said the students vehemently objected when some teachers were replaced with other nationalities.
She spent her university days in Egypt where she underwent military training on how to use a gun and handle landmines. She graduated from the Faculty of Arts at Cairo University in 1960.
On cooking, Husain said she started by preparing meals for Kuwaitis studying in America where she lived with her husband.
In 1961, she studied in America where she participated in social activities and represented Kuwaiti women in different events.
When she came back to Kuwait, she wrote articles for free and received great encouragement from her senior colleagues like Khalid Qatma and some journalists. She also established Samra Magazine and chose its name.