Qamishlo students conclude sit-in for mother-tongue education

The sit-in by Kurdish-language students in Qamishlo concluded on Thursday. The tent was set up in front of the United Nations office in protest against limiting Kurdish-language instruction to three classes per week and to affirm that education in the mother tongue is a fundamental right.

The sit-in tent was set up on Wednesday in front of the UN office, with the participation of Kurdish-language students, who said that limiting instruction in their language to three classes per week undermines their right to education in their mother tongue. They stressed that Kurdish is not merely a means of learning, but is closely linked to identity, culture, memory and history.

The second day of the sit-in saw a large turnout of students, teachers and students' parents, who stressed the importance of education in the mother tongue and called for this right to be enshrined in the new constitution.

During the sit-in, the students issued a statement in Kurdish, read by student Sulav Ali, which said:

"On behalf of all Kurdish students, we issue this statement to express our clear position on the new decision regarding education in Kurdish and the right to education in one's mother tongue.

We view the latest decision to further integrate and institutionalize the Kurdish language within the education system as a positive step and an important development. We thank all those who have worked and all institutions that have made efforts over the years to give the Kurdish language a greater place in the educational process.

Including Kurdish in school curricula can help Kurdish children develop stronger communication skills in their language and allow Kurdish to assume its rightful place within educational institutions.

However, we believe this step should not be considered an end in itself, but rather the beginning of a more comprehensive and institutionalized process.

As Kurdish students, we reject limiting Kurdish-language instruction to only a few classes per week. Teaching Kurdish for only a few hours a week is not sufficient and does not guarantee the right to education in the mother tongue.

The Kurdish language is not merely a school subject that one studies once a week or for a few hours. It is the language of our families, our culture, history and memory, and an important part of our identity.

Therefore, we do not want Kurdish-language education to remain restricted, limited and insufficient.

We want Kurdish to be taught in schools in a more comprehensive, organized and adequate manner. Kurdish classes should not be limited to reading and writing; the language should also have a place in literature, history, culture, folklore, the arts and other fields of study.

All students have the right to learn their language properly and to be able to read, write and speak it. For this right to be genuinely realized, a few classes per week are not enough.

Accordingly, our clear demands are:

We are not only calling for Kurdish to be taught in schools; we are calling for the right to education in Kurdish to be guaranteed.

In areas with large Kurdish populations, an education system should be established that enables children to learn in their mother tongue while also providing them with opportunities to learn other languages.

We recognize that Syria is a country of diverse languages and cultures. Therefore, our demand is not about disregarding another language or community. We are not against any person, language or community.

The model we are calling for is a diverse, democratic and inclusive education system in which Kurds, Arabs, Syriacs and all other communities can preserve their mother tongues, learn them and receive education in them.

Educating Kurdish children in Kurdish is not directed against educating Arab children in Arabic. On the contrary, we believe that mutual understanding of different languages, cultures and identities can help build a participatory society and make Syria stronger.

We do not view education in one's mother tongue as a privilege, but as a fundamental necessity and a matter of justice, human dignity and linguistic rights.

Accordingly, we call for further strengthening the status of the Kurdish language in education and for protecting the right to education in one's mother tongue through legal and institutional guarantees.

We also call on education officials to listen to the demands and views of students, representatives of the Kurdish community, teachers, educators, language experts and relevant institutions, and to launch a broad consultative process.

We do not want students' voices to be ignored. We want our voices to be heard and our demands to be taken into account in shaping the future of Kurdish-language education.

Therefore, we call on all Kurdish students to peacefully, respectfully and collectively raise their voices and clearly express their demands.

We are Kurdish students.

We are demanding our rights.

We are demanding respect for our language.

We are demanding education in our mother tongue.

We are demanding quality education.

We want our voices to be heard.

The Kurdish language is not merely a school subject. It is our language, our identity, our culture, our history and part of our lives.

Our goal is not only for Kurdish to be taught in schools, but for a Syria where Kurds, Arabs, Syriacs and speakers of other languages can live freely, preserve their identities and coexist, making Syria democratic, just and strong.

ANHA