Iraq's universities and schools near collapse as teachers and pupils flee

[Barrett808]

Iraq's universities and schools near collapse as teachers and pupils flee
Peter Beaumont in Baghdad
Thursday October 5, 2006
The Guardian

Iraq's school and university system is in danger of collapse in large areas of the country as pupils and teachers take flight in the face of threats of violence.

Professors and parents have told the Guardian they no longer feel safe to attend their educational institutions. In some schools and colleges, up to half the staff have fled abroad, resigned or applied to go on prolonged vacation, and class sizes have also dropped by up to half in the areas that are the worst affected.

Professionals in higher education, particularly those teaching the sciences and in health, have been targeted for assassination. Universities from Basra in the south to Kirkuk and Mosul in the north have been infiltrated by militia organisations, while the same militias from Islamic organisations regularly intimidate female students at the school and university gates for failing to wear the hijab.

Women teachers have been ordered by their ministry to adopt Islamic codes of clothing and behaviour.

"The militias from all sides are in the universities. Classes are not happening because of the chaos, and colleagues are fleeing if they can," said Professor Saad Jawad, a lecturer in political science at Baghdad University.

(more)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1887804,00.html

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. But the Army just finished painting all those schools!

What will Bush do for good news in Iraq now?

Seriously... that's terrible. Kids can't even go to school or college any more? We sure have brought the foundations of a Jeffersonian democracy to Iraq, haven't we...? :sarcasm:

[lapfog_1]

2. Despite having a despotic dictator (or perhaps because of it)

Iraq used to have a very good secular education system, and produced more engineers than any other arab country.

Iraq was much better off with Saddam (though they did need to figure out how to transition from Saddam to a democracy,
but we should have let THEM figure that out!)

[saigon68]

10. THE GOOD NEWS IS 15 Marines handed out 2 dozen pencils

In the GREEN ZONE today

[noshenanigans]

3. Not to mention any female students..

They had a rough go of it to begin with, but now they walk into an education facility with a crosshairs on them.

[brentspeak]

4. The only way to salvage Iraq is to recruit a multi-national force of

literally a million peacekeepers. Saturate the country so thoroughly with troops that it would impossible for insurgants to walk across the street without bumping into a peacekeeper holding an automatic weapon.

But the chances of that kind of multinational force forming are exactly zero.

[wellst0nev0ter]

8. At This Point, It Will Only Create A Million More Targets

the days of which we might secure the cooperation of the Iraqi people has long since passed.

[ConcernedCanuk]

9. Actually, there is a quicker way - put Saddam back in power - -

.
.
.

His military will return,

And the sectarian violence will cease almost immediately I'd bet . .

Of course, if this is indeed a GOOD idea,

The PNACers would never embrace it

After all, the PNAC goal was to destabilize the region,

and they've succeeded

Everything is going according to the PNAC plan, guys . . .

The bigger mess Iraq is, the longer the PNACers can justify their existence there

Sorry Iraq

The PNAC mob owns you now . . .

[Megahurtz]

5. It's called "Liberating the Iraqis"!

:sarcasm:

[tblue37]

6. Why "nearing" collapse?

It's like "on the verge of civil war." The schools and colleges have collapsed and the country is in a state of civil war.

I hate when the media use mealy-mouthed wuss words to disguise the ugly reality.

[Barrett808]

11. Agreed. "If we withdraw, the results will be catastrophic."

To which I reply, "If you haven't noticed, the catastrophe is already ongoing."

[YDogg]

7. This could not be true. president bush says freedom is on the march.

Damn facts.

[Spazito]

12. Oh pish posh, don't you know, this is merely a "comma".....

or is it now a semi-colon? Nah, to reach the seriousness of a semi-colon, it would need to be "nearing" a civil war......oh....wait....nevermind.