ASIA/IRAQ - “Changing school curricula in the Middle East could help uproot extremism” says local priest in Iraq. “Schools should educate to peace! If from the age of six a child hears of nothing but war and enemies to kill then it is not surprising that at 18 he dreams of being a suicide bomber”

Thursday, 2 September 2004

Baghdad (Fides Service)- “I am certain that one way to help eliminate terrorism in Iraq and in the Middle East in general, is to reform school programmes” Father Nizar Semaan, Iraqi priest in Mosul told Fides. “I speak from my own experience at state schools in Iraq. In more than 15 years at school no one ever spoke to me about peace. I was told that enemies surrounded Iraq: Iran, Israel, and Syria. No one told me anything about ideas or values like peace, co-existence, and respect for others. It was only at church and later in the years of formation at the seminary, that I discovered that there exist values of peace and love ” Father Nizar said.
“Iraq is not alone in this aspect: in schools throughout the Arab world children are inculcated with fear of other peoples who must be hated and fought. Now the school programmes in Iraq are being revised and this will undoubtedly help improve the situation. If things do change in Iraq, will other Arab countries follow? I sincerely hope so, but I have my doubts” Father Nizar told Fides.
“This explains teachers of terror have absolutely no difficulty in recruiting young men willing to blow themselves up as long as they kill other people. If from the age of six a child hears of nothing but war and enemies to kill then it is not surprising that at 18 he dreams of being a suicide bomber” Father Nizar said.
“Although terrorism continues to kill we must not let ourselves be caught up in the logic of hatred. If we start fearing and hating others then the terrorists will have won. This is precisely their goal to spread an unending spiral of terror and hatred. What we can do to break the chain of hatred is to promote our values of peace and peaceful co-existence” Father Nizar told Fides. “We should also realise that these boys who blow themselves to pieces are victims of those leaders who exploit and abuse the profound religious sentiment of the Middle East peoples for an evil end. We never see any of the leaders who head terrorist networks blow up themselves, they obviously care more about their own lives than those of their pupils who are diabolically brainwashed”.
“However I am confident that love of life will prevail of the logic of death. One day soon these boys who dream of suicide and death will discover life in all its beauty and throw their explosive stuffed belts away. I know this will take time and that more blood will be shed, but I know too that the logic of violence will never have the last word,” said Father Nizar. “As Christians it is our duty to share with others our beliefs and our logic of love. We too have martyrs, but martyrs who die that others may live. People who kill themselves to kill others are not martyrs to be lauded even for Muslims, true Muslims. This false idea is an evil manipulation of Islam”. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 2/9/2004 righe 39 parole 514)


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