The college of arts organized a workshop on the use of virtual reality entitled “No one listens to me” on the occasion of receiving the UNESCO Chair for genocide prevention studies in the Islamic world in conjunction with the third anniversary of the victory of our security forces and elimination of the terrorist organization (ISIS) and the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide. This event was organized in collaboration with the United Nations Migration Agency and Yazda Global Organization which is a multi-national Yazidi global organization established in the aftermath of the Yazidi Genocide in 2014 to support the Yazidi ethno-religious minority and other vulnerable groups.
Prof. Dr. Munir Hamid al-Saadi, representative of the minister of higher education and scientific research stated in the opening speech that it is the duty of universities to adopt peace building goals along with peaceful coexistence, rejection of extremism and hate speech to promote the values of citizenship in the Iraqi society, since the policy adopted by the ministry aims to fight destructive ideas of social cohesion and the formulation of new approaches based on human rights, expressing his regret for the genocide of our Yazidi brothers during the terrorist attacks of ISIS.
Then Dr. Wassan Saeed, dean of the college delivered a speech in which she stated that after five years of exerting sincere efforts with the support of the university presidency and the ministry of higher education, now Prof. Dr. Salah Fleifel Ayed Al-Jabri has received the UNESCO Chair for genocide prevention studies in the Muslim world to represent the University of Baghdad in its endeavor to combat criminal ideas in coincidence with the third anniversary of our great victory.
Assist. Prof. Dr. Laith Majeed Hussein, Chairman of the General Authority for Antiquities and Heritage and representative of the minister of culture, tourism and antiquities said that this is the second qualitative effort of UNESCO in Iraq after the Interfaith Dialogue Chair received by the University of Kufaat to strengthen the humanitarian role of this organization in the country.
Prof. Dr. Salah Fleifel Al-Jabri, representing the UNESCO Chair for Genocide Prevention Studies in the Islamic World talked about this intellectual project targeted towards confronting genocide in Iraq and that started after initiating a field of studies at the college to publish research in Arabic and English on genocide phenomenon in Iraq in an attempt to reflect its negative effects on society to encourage Iraqi people to prevent violence and extremism, especially among younger generations to promote the concepts of peace, cultural diversity, tolerance and social coexistence.
For his part, Professor Paolo Fontani, UNESCO Representative to Iraq said that there are seven seats for genocide worldwide to embody heritage and diverse cultures and to focus on the significance of education in spreading ideas of equality and peaceful coexistence among global communities, as well as employing social media to renounce discrimination and intolerance so as to create a better future for us and for future generations.
Ms. Hala Sevile, representative of the Network of Yazidi Survivors asked for an international recognition of the genocide against the Yazidis in Iraq and to raise awareness of the responsible authorities for her people as well as to establish a national day against genocide in a safe country that respects human beings and provides people with decent livelihood, employment, education, justice and cultural prosperity.
At last, Prof. Ryan de Souza, designer of the virtual reality exhibition stated that his work has been translated into Arabic and Kurdish by the International Organization for Migration to reflect the suffering of survivors in affected communities in addition to raising awareness against terrorist crimes that have been committed nearly six years ago and to inspire scholars in the fields of psychology, sociology and history to benefit from these lessons in their research.
It is noteworthy that this event was attended by the former minister of higher education Mr. Ali Al-Adeeb and a number of international activists, professors and researchers who were impressed with the exhibition and made valuable remarks.
