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| Assad aide Shehrezad 'Sherry' Jaafari |
We
are all outraged that a media adviser to Bashar al-Assad has been accepted into Columbia
University’s School of International Public Affairs (SIPA).
There
is something terribly wrong, when an individual who has been advising Assad on
how to ‘spin’ and cover up massacres
by the regime is rewarded for their ‘experience’ and accepted into one of the
prestigious educational institutions in America.
To
make matters worse, through a referral/ recommendation
from Barbara Walters
for helping her setup the now infamous Assad interview back in December 2011.
There
is a petition
being circulated online calling for Columbia to rescind their acceptance – please sign and share
widely!
If
you are a Columbia student or alumni, please mention your affiliation in the
petition. And also contact the administration directly - they want to hear from
you!
This
is a human issue – people of conscious, regardless of background are all taking
part in this effort.
This
is not about personally attacking a 22 year old ‘student’. Rather this is a
political issue where one of Assad’s close aides, has the opportunity to personally
benefit (per her own statement) from her experience in
advising a dictator on how to cover up massacres.
Additionally,
another major concern is the informer role she can play at Columbia, informing
on fellow Syrian students who are pro-revolution, risking their safety and the
safety of loved ones back in Syria who are at risk (Assad regime spying on
Syrians in the US is a major issue).
Many
have mentioned that the unscrupulous characters connected to dictatorships have
always been accepted to US universities – This is not acceptable in a
post-"Arab Spring" world. There was a status quo before March 15
2011, before Mohamad Bouazizi self-immolation in December 2010, were this
behavior may have acceptable. Not anymore – we cannot reward those who have an active role in assisting the regimes
to cover up their tracks.
Finally,
if Columbia University is interested in helping Syrian students, there are many
languishing here, who cannot afford to pay tuition, and can’t go home due to
the regime onslaught.
Thank
you,
National
Alliance for Syria
Recent
news coverage on the issue:
Petition
Link:
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