Expressing deep anguish over relentless attacks on education at various parts of the world, Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Education Above All Foundation, has called for renewed global commitment to safeguarding schools from attacks.
Her Highness Sheikha Moza was addressing a galaxy of world leaders yesterday at Qatar National Convention Centre on the occasion of the 5th Observance of International Day to Protect Education from Attack marked annually on September 9.
Her Highness Sheikha Moza started the address by stating: “When I talk of education, my definition is not abstract, but comprehensive. Education is classrooms crowded with innocent children who dream. Education is the parents who dream of a bright future for their children. Education is the vessel that will carry those children to that bright future. Education is the dedicated teachers who guide the vessel and prepare the children to lead the way.”
“But attacks on education rip away the vessel, destroying the lives of teachers and students and leaving nothing but emptiness. The future is annihilated. And there is no doubt that those who target education know what they are doing and do so with premeditation,” continued the EAA chairperson.
Speaking about Palestine, Her Highness Sheikha Moza said that Gaza is being subjected to brutal bombardment – a genocide marked by massacres that are taking place every day.
EAA chairperson said: “One of the most atrocious was the massacre of more than a hundred displaced Palestinians, killed as they took shelter in the Tab’een School in Al Daraj district. If a similar massacre was committed by another country in Asia or Africa, the international community would have rushed, with no hesitation, to condemn and sanction it.”
Her Highness Sheikha Moza highlighted that the violence continues and the displacement of millions continues and attacks on education continue. “In Sudan, Ukraine, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Colombia, innocent students pay an incalculable price for bitter division. We – the international community – have failed to protect education and we have failed to protect students,” lamented the chairperson.
Her Highness Sheikha Moza noted: “We may well rationalise what we see, but we cannot justify the international community allowing those who attack education to do so with impunity and without decisive deterrence.”
“I am angry at an international community that claims to be civilised. Gaza has revealed its hypocrisy. I am angry at the leaders of countries who proclaim their anger over one war and remain silent about another. I am angry at leaders who blather about human rights and the mandate of international law and say nothing about the genocide taking place in Gaza,” highlighted Her Highness Sheikha Moza.
The chairperson remarked that in the midst of despair, those students around the world, who continue to protest against war and suffering, embody the innate human instinct towards peace before it is tainted by personal interest, pragmatism and politics.
“As the challenges to this fragile planet mount – among them climate change, disease, and further wars – we need the talent and ability of every child and young person to be put to good use. We need them to fulfil their potential. We need them to continue their education. We need them to teach, to advocate and to lead, to defend the rights of children and young people to peace and education. Above all, we need them to live,” added, Her Highness Sheikha Moza.
During her speech on the occasion of the International Day to Protect Education from Attack, which is held under the title 'Education in Peril: The Human Cost of War' in 2024, Her Highness Sheikha Moza said, "when I talk of education, my definition is not abstract, but comprehensive. Education is classrooms crowded with innocent children who dream."
