An Open Letter To The PM  Of  Southern Kurdistan

June 22, 2005

Dear Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani,

We are a group of students from Salahaddin University in Hewler. During the President's inauguration speech on becoming president of Southern Kurdistan he mentioned the importance of higher education.  We could not be more in agreement with this point; higher education is the key to the future of Kurdistan. The future generations of youth must be educated in a free, democratic, patriotic and intellectual atmosphere. Otherwise, we will be left with a generation of graduates who are unable to function in their fields or have the knowledge of modern science. However, unfortunately our University is far from reaching these standards. President Massoud Barzani said that Kurdistani universities must be on a level with the rest of the world, yet in our university we have English teachers that do not know English, science teachers who do not know science and arts teachers who do not know their subjects. The university is far from being a place of knowledge and learning and is a place of corruption and ignorance. Our teachers, with rare few exceptions, do not speak to us, they do not even say hello to us. Our teachers are not promoted on their merits but their loyalty to the Party. If someone wants to study a master's degree he must be with the Party. Those who do not bow their heads to this system are not respected by the university authorities. This is not the way to build a strong education system. Our system smells of the former regime. Even many of our teachers were former Ba'athist, in fact not just in name but in action. This must be changed. The University leadership has spoken many nice words on change, but nothing has changed. Rather, the university is just changing its face in order to allow them to receive their guests form the West in a good way. The only thing the students notice is the increase in big cars and money being spent on new offices for the deans of colleges. Meanwhile the President spends his time on trips abroad and shows his importance with bodyguards.  Meanwhile, we have no books or suitable class rooms in which to study. This is a sad state of affairs. We accuse the university system of being corrupt. It is a system that makes people corrupt. This cannot be changed by bring a face from the west or making super structural changes. It needs radical reform. It needs to be revolutionized and cleaned out from the old Ba'athist ideas. Otherwise, the Kurdish nation will undergo great damage. We appeal to you Prime Minister. It is well known that you are one of the most forward thinking minds in our nation. Liberate us, the future, from the chains of backward mentalities and corruption. Please, in the new administration reform education without regards to party but with regards to skill and ability. This problem is not just in Hewler but is across Kurdistan. We ask you to do your best. Although we dare not give our names less we be mistreated by the university officials, we ask you to listen to us.

Yours respectfully

The Students of Salahaddin University