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Photo: AP
No respect for Olmert among students
Photo: AP

Students: Remove Olmert's photos from schools

High schoolers send letter to principals nationwide, say Olmert improper role model for students

A group of religious and secular students sent a letter to principals across the nation, urging them to remove the photos of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert from schools. The students argued that the PM does not deserve to serve as a model for the country's young generation.

 

"The moral standards represented by the prime minister are not a model for emulation," the students wrote. "The kind of 'accountability' shown by the prime minister in the wake of the Second Lebanon war is not the kind of accountability we should be educated for."

 

Turning to the principals, the students wrote: "If you wish to make an educational statement to your students, you may remove the prime minister's photos from your office and from the school's hallways. There is no law that requires you to post the photo of a man suspected of criminal activity above your head…we are certain the act will contribute to the morality of prime ministers and ministers today and in the future."

 

The letter was sent to all public schools in Israel, and the students plan to send it to private schools soon.

 

'Ideology and values'

High school student Roi Gifman from the Golan Heights, who signed the letter on behalf of his comrades, told Ynet: "The prime minister is a distinguished thing, like a king. It carries the highest status among the people of Israel toady. I'm not going into the affairs pertaining to him, and whether he is guilty or innocent, yet the mere fact he is being probed and all the reports about the perks, wealth, and cigars do not make him a moral role model. We must also not forget the Winograd Commission's conclusions.

 

Gifman said it is important for Israelis to see that teenagers are active and influential.

 

"There are some who express despair over the state of our youth, yet here we see teenagers who are bothered by these things, youth who have ideology and values."

 

Meanwhile, Education Minister Yuli Tamir said: "There is no intention to issue instructions not to post the prime minister's photos. A school that chooses to post the photos has the right to do so. Ehud Olmert is the prime minister and we have no objection to posting his photos."

 


פרסום ראשון: 06.06.08, 17:45
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