Students: “We cannot continue our education in another language”

Students’ reactions are intensifying over the Syrian Education Ministry’s decision to restrict Kurdish-language education to only a few classes per week. They consider the decision unfair and say it fails to meet the aspirations of the Kurdish people or reflect the scale of their sacrifices and demands to preserve their language and culture and their right to receive education in it.

Speaking on the issue, second-year secondary student Alfin Ismail, who has studied Kurdish since first grade, said: “I have studied Kurdish since first grade until now, and I have excelled in my studies in my mother tongue.”

She continued: “I hope my beautiful language remains part of the school curriculum, as everyone has the right to learn in their mother tongue.” She called on the authorities to listen to students’ demands and enable them to continue their education in their primary language.

“We students are not opposed to the integration process, but our language must be preserved so that students are not subjected to injustice,” she added. “Many students have decided not to attend school because they cannot study in a language other than their mother tongue. The teachers also deserve the greatest credit, as they were among the first to struggle and fight for students’ right to study in their own language.”

Alfin concluded: “After 14 years of struggle and the sacrifices of the martyrs, we are now faced with this unfair decision. I hope the relevant authorities will review their decision and make Kurdish an official language so that we can continue studying in our language.”

For her part, student Alfa Hassan said: “Our only demand is for our mother tongue to remain part of our curriculum because our language is our existence and identity, and we define ourselves through our language.”

She continued: “Three hours a week is not enough, and we do not accept it. An entire generation has studied from primary school through secondary school in our mother tongue. This decision is unfair to us.”

“We will face great difficulty studying in a language other than our mother tongue,” she added. “Language is our identity, and 14 years of struggle and the sacrifices of martyrs on this land were made so that our language and identity could survive. We will never forget the sacrifices of the martyrs that brought us to this stage. As students, we reject the decision limiting Kurdish-language instruction to three hours a week.”

Student Celine Atta said: “I have studied Kurdish for eight years, and I hope Kurdish remains part of our curriculum because it is our language and identity. For us, the Kurdish language is the voice of the Kurdish revolution that has continued for 14 years.”

She concluded: “I hope our Kurdish language remains so that we can live a free and dignified life. Replacing the Kurdish language and curriculum with Arabic would make studying extremely difficult for us. The sacrifices of the martyrs were immense, and all of this was so that we could study in our mother tongue.”

Meanwhile, student Avin Khalaf said: “Our primary demand is to continue our education in Kurdish, our mother tongue, so that the sacrifices of our martyrs do not go in vain. I would like to thank the mothers of the martyrs. It is thanks to the sacrifices of their sons that we have reached this stage today.”

Avin concluded: “Our primary and only demand is for Kurdish to remain part of our curriculum. We have studied in our mother tongue throughout these years, and we simply cannot switch to studying another language today.”

a.k

ANHA