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MIRI – The women’s wing of the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) has called on the Education Ministry (MoE) to immediately withdraw a directive issued to all schools to hold programmes for a week in support of Palestine.
Its chief Kho Teck Wan said today that it is unwise to force students to be involved in international conflicts.
The ministry’s move will spark off a precedent where children will be forced to take sides in future geopolitical crises at a tender age.
Such a situation is potentially dangerous, as it will cause children to adopt radical thinking and behaviour early on, she said today.
“The ministry had asked school students to collect donations for Palestine during that week,” Kho said.
“The ministry had also told schools to hold poster campaigns to support Palestine, organise songs and video presentations to show support for Palestine and even hold prayers for Palestine.
“The unity government has the right to show sympathy to Palestine and take sides in international conflicts,” she added.
"However, to force our students who are still in schools into taking sides in such conflicts and wars is unwise, as it could cultivate in them radical behaviour and actions,” she said in a statement.
Kho said her wing wants the ministry to withdraw the mandatory directive to schools to hold the Solidarity with Palestine Week.
Such activities can be organised but must not be inside schools and must not involve school-going children, she said.
MoE had issued the directive for all schools to organise events for Solidarity with Palestine Week, slated to take place from October 29 to November 3.
Since the unprecedented October 7 attack on southern Israel by armed resistance group Hamas, which reportedly killed 1,400 people and claimed over 200 hostages, Israel has ramped up its assault on the occupied Palestinian territory of Gaza.
Al Jazeera quoted Gaza’s health ministry as saying that at least 5,791 Palestinians, including 2,360 children, have been killed by Israel’s airstrikes as of Tuesday.
A total of 704 people were killed in the previous 24 hours alone, making it the highest 24-hour number of deaths throughout the fortnight of Israel’s bombing, the ministry added. – The Vibes, October 26, 2023
