Teacher Under Fire for Asking Pupils to Colour Israel Flag

28 September 2007

By Habib Toumi

Manama: A Bahrain-based teacher has come under fire for asking her students to colour the Israeli flag as part of an assignment to identify the flags of countries in the Middle East.

"We urge the ministry of education to take stringent action against the teacher for flouting the rules and regulations governing school curricula and seeking to affect the minds of young students," Fareed Abdul Wahid, a preacher, said during the Friday sermon.

"Teachers and schools should appreciate that we do not have ties with the Zionist entity and that they should not impose assignments that are contrary to the beliefs of the students and their families," said Fareed at Al Adliya Mosque, a large mosque located in a posh area in Manama.

The school assignment was first reported by the mother of a student in a private school who complained in a statement to the press about the teacher's action. "I was bewildered to hear my daughter who is in the second grade asking me about the colours of the flag of Israel so that she could continue her homework. She then told me that her teacher had asked them to colour the flags of some countries in the Middle East, and that included the Israeli flag," the mother said.

Ebrahim Al Hadi, an Islamist deputy representing Al Menbar, the offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, said that the teacher had irritated parents and the community.

"The issue is not about colouring a flag, but rather about engaging in an activity that would make students respect a country that persistently refuses to respect our nation," said the deputy member of the Palestine Committee at the parliament's lower house.

"Attempts at normalisation often start with seemingly innocent activities and simple procedures targeting impressionable minds," said the deputy whose bloc has six of the house's 40 seats.