Zineb Benkhelifa lives with a mobility handicap, is the City of Zurich’s representative for the equality of people with disabilities and is very happy to do so. We have portrayed the Tsüri member who would prefer to go shopping in St.Annahof in a dressing gown.
December 25, 2020
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1200 people are Tsüri members. What are the faces and stories behind this number? We go on a search and portray them. Are you also not averse to Tsüri members and a portrait? Get in touch!
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Zineb always wears red lipstick. That makes the Algerian-born woman unmistakable. But that’s not all: she has been dependent on walking sticks since she was a child. Shortly before she was four years old, she contracted polio in her home country. The 54-year-old doesn’t have many memories of this time and her mother tongue. «I was born as the tenth child in an oasis city. Four years later I got polio. ” At that time she could neither sit nor stand – only crawl. Her father was already traveling to Switzerland at that time. He was an open mind and often approached foreign guests in Algeria. So he met an orthopedic surgeon from Zurich, who at that time was making orthoses – that is, splints – for the children’s aid organization “Terre des Hommes” in the oasis city. Her father asked him about options for his daughter. So it came about that thanks to “Terre des Hommes” she was treated in Switzerland.
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From the oasis town to the farming village in Thurgau
Zineb first came to Switzerland when he was five. She lived with a Catholic foster family in a farming village in Thurgau with around 300 residents. After months of hospitalization and a recovery period with her foster parents, she returned to her home country before finally returning to Switzerland at the age of eight. At that time it was possible to remain in the care of a foster family in Switzerland as a “Terre des Hommes” child. Today we refrain from such uprooting from the biological family. In the Thurgau foster family, Zineb grew up with two “brothers”, one from Algeria, the other from Morocco, both of whom also lived with a disability.
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“I was integrated very quickly,” says Zineb. In her youth she discovered her enthusiasm for the GC because the son of a neighbor played there. So it came about that she watched numerous games in the Hardturm Stadium. Zineb attended secondary school in nearby Weinfelden and then completed the 10th year of school with nuns in Friborg. There she began her enthusiasm for the French language and culture, which continues to this day: “I have a subscription to Le Courrier from Geneva and listen to French radio and songs – I am very Francophile.”
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Seems like a good hand – Zineb am Jassen. One of her numerous hobbies. Photo: zVg.
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The wish to become a draftsman was unfortunately not fulfilled due to the restricted mobility. After graduating from business school, she worked in numerous offices as a commercial clerk. At the age of 30, Zineb wanted to learn her mother tongue again, after completing the federal B-Matura at the LAGS she studied Islamic Studies at the University of Zurich. In addition to her two jobs, she also edits master’s theses, dissertations and other texts as a self-employed person. Thanks to her studies, she was recently allowed to check the subtitles for some films that were shown at the Arab Film Festival Zurich. When her free time allows, she also studies Arabic poetry and tries to translate it into German.
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One and a half liters of green tea for breakfast
Zineb is a jack of all trades. In addition to her work as a representative for the equality of people with disabilities in the city of Zurich and that of the Swiss Theater Association, she pursues numerous hobbies: She is a member of the Fire Brigade Music Zurich-Altstadt, where she plays the soprano saxophone, is a great jazz lover, but listens also with enthusiasm for Swiss folk music. A course “Country music for career changers”, which she attended at the beginning of 2020, increased her enthusiasm for popular music. She sits on the board of the NGO Public Eye. She also likes to write postcards and letters and likes to buy special stamps for them. She is also a member of numerous cultural organizations such as the Winkelwiese Theater or the Zurich Literature House. Your morning ritual is to drink one and a half liters of green tea while reading the NZZ or the Blick. This is her future project, says Zineb with a hearty laugh.
If Zineb could wish, then she would prefer her apartment on Rennweg:
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It is my dream to go shopping at St. Annahof in the morning in a bathrobe!
However, she would also move into an apartment elsewhere in the old town, the only condition: access to the apartment with a lift. Shortly before Christmas something actually happened and in spring Zineb moved to District 1 on the right of the Limmat. Something that takes a long time …
Zineb has lived in Zurich for over 30 years. Why did she become a Tsüri member? «Here I get exciting information and tips. Furthermore, membership can only enrich me, especially because I work for the city of Zurich. In addition, the city magazine provides good input for life in the city with its daily newsletter. ” After 90 minutes the conversation is over and we say goodbye. It’s Thursday – in a few minutes Zineb’s first virtual Jass evening will begin.
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You can also become a member if you never count the trump cards when playing games.
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