Students and families demand education in Kurdish mother tongue

Reactions against the Syrian Ministry of Education’s decision to allocate three weekly lessons to teaching Kurdish continue, amid calls for education to continue in the mother tongue rather than limiting its teaching to a set number of lessons.

In this context, several students and their families in the city of Tirbespiye in the Jazira spoke to ANHA agency.

Aisha Mustafa said: “I have three children who have been studying in Kurdish since first grade. We do not accept them continuing their education in another language while their mother tongue is limited to three lessons a week. Our children have the right to learn in their mother tongue and continue their education in it. Therefore, we will not send them to school until this decision is changed.”

She added: “We demand that Kurdish be officially recognized in the new constitution and that the decision to allocate three weekly lessons be amended so that our children can continue their education in their mother tongue.”

Student Suzfin Kaheel said: “Three lessons a week are not enough for us to study in our mother tongue. I do not accept this decision. I have studied in Kurdish for years, and I cannot now continue my education in another language. Therefore, I will not attend school until the decision is changed.”

Suzfin added: “We want to continue our education in the language in which we started, and we want Kurdish to be fully present in our education, not limited to just three lessons.”

Student Najlaa Hassan said: “I demand my right to study in my mother tongue, and I do not accept Kurdish being limited to a certain number of lessons.” She noted that she had studied in Kurdish for several years, saying, “We have the right to continue doing so and for Kurdish to be the language of instruction in schools.”

Najlaa stressed that Kurdish “is part of our existence and identity. Our people have sacrificed thousands of lives and made great sacrifices to preserve it. Therefore, we do not accept our studies being limited to a set number of lessons. We want to continue our education in our mother tongue.”

Student Darbin Mustafa also backed her classmates’ demands, saying: “As a student, I do not accept this decision, and I will not attend school until it is changed, Kurdish is recognized as an official language in the new Syrian constitution, and we are able to study all our subjects in our mother tongue.”

Darbin concluded: “We want to continue our education in Kurdish, rather than having our mother tongue turned into a limited subject taught for only a few hours. We want it to be a language through which we study and learn different subjects.”

ANHA