{"id":93359,"date":"2018-12-21T11:53:04","date_gmt":"2018-12-21T10:53:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=93359"},"modified":"2026-02-10T16:48:34","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T15:48:34","slug":"what-i-want-most-is-to-be-able-to-prevent-any-child-from-ever-being-seriously-ill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2018\/12\/21\/what-i-want-most-is-to-be-able-to-prevent-any-child-from-ever-being-seriously-ill\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018What I want most is to be able to prevent any child from ever being seriously ill\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Doctor, philosopher, master student, family man, member of the University Council, one of the initiators of the Erasmus MC Student Inclusion and Diversity Work Group, tour guide and \u2013 don\u2019t forget, actor. Nizar El Manouzi (22) is a busy man, because being active is \u2018simply\u2019 uplifting. One thing he doesn\u2019t deal with well is having to wait.<\/p>\n

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The El Manouzis have always been people with a \u2018fire in the belly\u2019, says Nizar. It\u2019s a family trait. \u201cGenerations of El Manouzis have fought against inequality and for freedom in Morocco. There\u2019s even a book about our family called Jaren van lood <\/em>written by Sietske de Boer.\u201d The book, literary non-fiction, describes the struggles of many, including Nizar\u2019s grandfather, against the French for an independent Morocco. However, independence didn\u2019t usher in a period of freedom and democracy as they had hoped, so the El Manouzis continued their opposition, now against King Hassan II. This led to harsh reprisals in which some family members were killed. Nizar\u2019s father came to the Netherlands to study Philosophy, but immigrating didn\u2019t extinguish the fire. The fighting spirit was literally passed on from father to son. \u201cHow you live your life is always up to you. That\u2019s what my father taught me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nizar visits his family in Morocco three times a year. Over the past few years, he hasn\u2019t made this journey on his own. Instead, he invites other students to accompany him. \u201cI thought: I\u2019m going anyway, so why not give others a chance to learn about Morocco? Around seven students come with me each time. They could be students from IBCoM or Law; each group has people from a wide range of backgrounds.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moroccan roots<\/h2>\n\t
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\n\t\t\u2018What makes a lasting impression on me is when someone shows respect for others and is curious about their stories. Not where their family comes from\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

Thanks to the presence of other students, Nizar also learned about another side of Morocco. \u201cIf I walk through the market alone, people ignore me, but when I\u2019m with a group of tourists, people always want to strike up a conversation with us.\u201d According to Nizar, because of his Moroccan background, he doesn\u2019t stand out from the crowd when in Morocco. And while he recognises some of his own traits when he\u2019s there, he doesn\u2019t feel these are an important part of his identity. \u201cI have much more in common with people who have the same values and purpose. If someone also coincidentally has family in Morocco, that doesn\u2019t automatically mean we\u2019ll get along well. What makes a lasting impression on me is when someone shows respect for others and is curious about their stories.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, Nizar is aware of how his Dutch and Moroccan sides have an influence on him. As he puts it, in the Netherlands it\u2019s more about substance, while in Morocco it more about the relationship. \u201cThis summer in Morocco I was sent on an errand and when I walked into the shop, I immediately asked for the product I needed. The man in the shop was almost shocked by how blunt I was, and he said so too. His response was \u2018First tell me how you\u2019re doing\u2019, while I just wanted to get the job done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nizar appreciates that blunt approach, but at the same time he sees the value of investing in relationships. \u201cAt the University Council we often have a lot to discuss, so the substance of these discussions is essential. If you also take the time to get to know each other, it becomes easier to discuss issues. It also makes the work more enjoyable.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Nizar El Manouzi and his father<\/span><\/p>

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It wasn\u2019t Nizar\u2019s Moroccan roots that motivated him to be one of the people behind establishing the Student Inclusion and Diversity Work Group, a group of students committed to making \u2018education more sensitive to diversity and inclusion\u2019. It also wasn\u2019t his idea. The idea came from fellow student Bo van den Berg. \u201cOf course I had noticed that students with the same background formed their own groups. I wanted to take all the different cliques and create a more unified whole by encouraging students to talk to each other. Following a conference on diversity and inclusion, Bo wanted to take action to change healthcare and education, and I fully support this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nizar studies with his father in the University Library on Campus Woudestein twice a week. \u201cMy father finished his studies years ago and now works as a strategic analyst at the National Crisis Centre (NCC). But he simply enjoys learning and this is something we\u2019ve been doing together for years now. When he was studying for his doctorate, he would take me with him to Woudestein. I would play with my toy cars while he studied. He has always challenged me to read about all kinds of subjects. If I was finished reading a book, we would discuss it.\u201d Nizar still lives at home with his younger sister (17) and younger brother (13) in Rotterdam-Prinsenland.<\/p>\n

Creativity v.s. strategy<\/h2>

His mother is the polar opposite of his father, he says. She teaches biology to pupils in the international preparatory class at the Wolfert College secondary school. Where his father deals in rationale and strategies, his mother is a more emotional person. \u201cMy father doesn\u2019t understand why I want to act if I plan to be a doctor. He\u2019ll ask about my strategy behind that decision. My main reason for doing it is because I enjoy it, because it\u2019s uplifting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018My father doesn\u2019t understand why I want to act if I plan to be a doctor. He\u2019ll ask about my strategy behind that decision.\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

His mother wanted him to go to a Steiner primary school. \u201cThat would be better for developing my creative side.\u201d And that\u2019s just what happened. Nizar went to the Steiner primary school and in no time he could often be found on stage. He played in the school\u2019s theatre, took on roles in the Ro Theatre and talked his way to the finals of the BBC public speech competition on the topic of happiness.<\/p>\n

With his two study programmes and work in various committees, Nizar is extremely busy. He is also acutely aware that he has to watch out for his health. \u201cThis year my master in Medicine is on the back burner. The same goes for my master in Philosophy. If I\u2019m really overdoing it, I quickly feel the impact this has on my health.\u201d But he has no regrets about his busy schedule. \u201cThe double degree, for example (Nizar completed his bachelor programmes in Medicine and Philosophy this summer, ed.), was the best decision I ever made. Philosophy teaches you to really think and that skill keeps me on my toes. I always think carefully about what I\u2019m doing. I have to enjoy it and it has to give me energy when I do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Acting debut<\/h2>

Acting is the perfect example of something he finds invigorating. On a friend\u2019s recommendation, he signed up with a casting agency a few years ago. For a long time he heard nothing from the agency, and then this past year he was asked if he were interested in playing the role of Brahim in the Dutch feature film Catacombe<\/em>. The film is about professional footballer Jermaine Slagter (Willem de Bruin) who is deeply in debt. The individual he owes money to offers him one way out: match fixing. Jermaine is a player from the older generation while Brahim is a young rival on the verge of making it big.<\/p>\n

In the coming year he will appear in Gappies<\/em>, a new VPRO series. \u201cIt takes place in a supermarket and each episode will feature a different character. I\u2019ll be playing an Art History student who has a side job restocking shelves. A lot of fun and it doesn\u2019t require a huge investment of my time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018I\u2019m very conscious of the fact that everything I do is possible because I\u2019m in good health. I want to help others to have that experience too.\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

Nizar harbours no doubts that everything he does will help him be a good doctor. And becoming a doctor is his ultimate goal. Everything else he\u2019s doing now is because the opportunity is there and because he has the ability to do it. \u201cI\u2019m very conscious of the fact that everything I do is possible because I\u2019m in good health. That\u2019s how I got interested in studying Medicine. I want to help others, especially children,to have that experience too.\u201d\u00a0 When he\u2019s a doctor, his total focus will be on healing patients. \u201cWhat I want most is to be able to prevent any child from ever being seriously ill.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t\n\t

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De redactie<\/h2>\n\t\t\n\t\t
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