在亞美尼亞UWC的國源採訪了來自西撒哈拉的Leila。大家知道西撒哈拉在哪裡嗎？

UWC Taiwan 人物專訪：Leila Belkecem
Edited and written by Kuo-Yuan (Jeff) Tsai 蔡國源, UWCD ‘21

For Leila Belkecem, it is important to be the voice of her people.

An activist, public speaker, UWC alumnus, and much more:
Leila Belkecem is a natural when it comes to expressing her ideas. Despite her language barriers, the passion in her words is always expressed through powerful messages. Leila, who is the second/third-year of our brilliant Taiwanese students, Hope (@...) and Sunny (@...), has graduated from UWC Maastricht in 2019. During her two-year stay in Maastricht, she never once given up on an opportunity that knocks on the door. Coming from a refugee camp in Algeria for Western Sahara people, she truly understands what it means to represent the voiceless in her hometown, proceeding to bring their collective stories to the international stage. With an unyielding presence to behold, Leila is an integral part of what makes the UWC educational movement a meaningful one.

JEFF: Most of the international community doesn’t know much about your hometown, and especially in Taiwan as well. Is it possible that you introduce us a bit more to Western Sahara?

Leila: So, Western Sahara started off as a colony of Spain, and it was originally named as Spanish Sahara. However, after long colonial ruling, the Western Saharans decided to fight against the Spanish colonial power. At the end of the conflict, Spain signed a deal with Morocco and Mauritania to split our homeland into pieces. The Moroccan influence is huge in Western Sahara. In recent years, many activists had noticed the violation of human rights in Moroccan-controlled territories, trying to take action to better it. Although Western Sahara is now recognized as an independent state for some states in the African Union, we still have a long way to go.

JEFF: I understand now. It must be a struggle to live in refugee camps. Could you give us a big picture on how your childhood was in your hometown?

Leila: Everyone knows each other. It’s a very closely-knitted community, so I definitely had a strong sense of security there. People are so simple and supportive, and I also received some education there as well. We have really passionate volunteers working as our teachers, but what we learn does become limited and repetitive. I knew I needed a better education, so I signed up to go an Algerian boarding school, which completely changed my view on the world.

JEFF: To leave home at such an early age, did the boarding school turn out to be an ideal place for you to develop your perspective as a person?

Leila: Yeah, it was definitely the start of my journey, because I realize that I knew nothing about the world. It was also a challenge to keep up with others in my classes. Some of my classmates in the Algerian boarding school don’t like students from the refugee camps, on top of that, we’re one of the worst when it comes to academics. However, there is a way to overcome it. We try really hard to improve our grades, because having a good education is our only way to get our recognition and independence.

JEFF: All that hard work must have paid off once you got admitted to UWC Maastricht, did any of your expectation of what a UWC is, changed, after entering the campus?

Leila: At first, my only thought was that there is a chance for me to study in Europe. It was an one-of-a-kind opportunity, so I went straight ahead into the application process. But UWC turns out to be much more rewarding than what I thought it was. The community in UWC Maastricht guided me through many challenges that I could not face alone.

JEFF: Do you think the community’s support helped you find a sense of belonging there?

Leila: There was support all the way, but at the beginning, it was tough for me to integrate into the community. To know how to speak in English became the main obstacle I have to overcome. Although I spoke very little English before I came to Maastricht, we had a really nice support group with student volunteers teaching those who are struggling to speak the language. People help me to restructure my word order, or correct my grammar, so what I say could actually make sense. I also got a lot of support from the Arabic community and my teachers. Sometimes, my friends will invite me to places for fun, but deep down, I’m afraid I will drag their conversation, still, they brought me anyways. All of the little things they did, made me feel that I’m truly a part of the UWC family.

JEFF: Being a part of the UWC family also means that you’re spending a lot of time around people. How did you manage to balance your social and academic life in Maastricht?

Leila: During my first year in Maastricht, I would study late at night, but during the daytime, I definitely devote much of my time to socialize with people. You need the socializing to keep up the energy to do the academics. What’s great about our campus is that we have a lot of community projects and time to gather people’s opinions, and connect us as a whole. There were dance clubs, conferences with keynote speakers, and student-led workshops.

JEFF: I watched the keynote speech you did for the Educational Collaborative for International Schools (ECIS) conference in London some time ago, and you mentioned you were involved in conferences before. What exactly were the conferences about, and how was your experience involving in it?

Leila: The conference lasts for three days, and contains a wide range of topics for discussion in the workshops. My first conference at Maastricht covers topics such as the conflict between Palestine and Israel, Western Saharan and Morrocan conflict, and religious beliefs. I worked with a Western Saharan partner in my first year, and then proceeded to work with a Moroccan. It was nice to hear different perspectives from my teammates, so it challenges the way you think.

JEFF: To me, you must have committed a lot of time and effort into these acts of kindness. How did you keep up the drive to stay determined?

Leila: Being the very few people to represent my community makes this chance extra valuable. To receive an education that they never had, and when all of that is given to you, makes it a huge responsibility to tackle. Their sight never leaves you, in a way that, they are eager to know what changes you are making on your own. All their hopes are on me, so I see a reason to keep fighting for what I do. The situation back in my community has been the same for many years: endless waiting and chattering, for their roots are not in the soil of the refugee camps. I did all that I could do to spread the news on Western Sahara, by travelling to Europe to meet politicians, and never losing a chance. For now, the people who hear this are still audiences. We are still teaching them the struggles of my community far, far away from their worlds, but it is not enough. To make them act and care for it is much more important. But, at the end, everything takes time.

JEFF: The responsibility factor is definitely what I can relate to. Besides from working on the issues occurring in your community, how did you come to develop your thinking into who you are today?

Leila: I must admit when I first came to UWC, I brought a certain set of beliefs with me. Soon, my classmates will ask me many hard questions such as: “Why did you wear hijab?”, “Why do you pray or fast?”, etc. Because of who I am as a person, I will either do or not do certain things. Getting challenged by these hard challenges really made me stay committed to my choices, and do it with conviction. I know the reasons behind making my choices, and it shed a new light on how I think. Talking with people also helped me in understanding why they do what they do. Occasionally, people will complain about food, but I find it weird. (laughs) This generally has boosted my confidence as well.

JEFF: After two years of hard work in advocating such rights, have there been any changes on the quality of education in Western Sahara?

Leila: The education has been the same since I left providing only two years of middle school. Children who reaches a certain age can still choose to go an Algerian boarding school, like what I did before. The people there need better access to education, because all of us were thrown into refugee camps without a proper one. I will certainly push for more progress in the future, because we need the education to survive and get our human rights. In doing so, we will truly be free.

JEFF: As an observer, it really is harder for people to care for these issues. I believe you will succeed in your goals! Do you have any last words for our future 2020 UWC Taiwanese students?

Leila: When you watch the UWC promotional videos, it is very likely that you only see the bright side of the educational movement. However, there are things we don’t talk about, which are the challenges of being a UWC student. Nobody touches on this topic often. For your first few months on a new campus, it is okay to feel that you don’t belong, and it will take time for you to truly become a part of the community. Also, remember to always ask questions. Not everyone knows everything, and we need to learn from others to understand their values and cultures. I hope you all have a magnificent two-year journey in UWC, by making the most out of it.

Leila Belkecem is currently interning at the Development Office of United World Colleges Dilijan in Armenia, sorting out the end of term affairs along dedicated staff members.

(P.S. The interview has been edited for optimal reading experience. )