Iraq and IU

This Tuesday I read a disconcerting article in The New York Times. A shocking 121 people were killed in a string of car bombings in Iraq. On a more sinister note, the attack occurred just as Iraqi policy makers decided on a future date to hold elections.

The same article recalled other discomforting facts: On Oct. 25, suicide bombings in Baghdad took the lives of 155 people. And in August, the Foreign and Finance ministries were hit by car bombings, resulting in over 120 deaths.

Like many citizens in the United States, I feel awful, my stomach turning and heart aching, as news comes in about the latest suicide attack. After so much destruction and carnage, there comes a point where we must transition our attitudes and mentalities and look inwards. And the form of introspection I advocate is not one to yield to contentious debate and seemingly endless finger-pointing, but one of genuine reflection and dialogue that will ultimately lead to much needed change and action. Concrete action.

For, as we can all reasonably conclude, the vast majority of our attention towards Iraq has manifested itself in talk and debate. While action on behalf of civil society in town (i.e. micro-loaning programs, protests, and fund raisers) is admirable, I believe efforts can be more effective with collaboration among appropriate persons and institutions.
We must ask ourselves, in a pragmatic fashion, what can we do as members of the IU community to aid the promotion of peace and prosperity in Iraq, while at the same time promoting the interests of our University?

I believe a slight revision in international student enrollment policy is part of the solution.

According to the IU Online Geographic Origin Enrollment database for the 2009 fall term, IU-Bloomington enrolled one student from Iraq (a doctoral candidate). If we expand this perspective, the results improve. In total, the remaining seven IU campuses (excluding Bloomington), host nine students from Iraq: both undergraduate and graduate.

On the other hand, we must acknowledge that the Bloomington campus has just over 4,000 international students, more than 2,000 of which come from just two countries. The total number of international students rises to over 5,000 if we take into consideration all IU campuses.

The dichotomy defies logic: 5,000 to 10.

It is within the realm of logic and the aims of our University to increase the number of students from Iraq while not decreasing other international student constituencies. I believe that, at the very least, by doubling the current number of students from Iraq in Bloomington and throughout the campuses of the University, we would be investing in a promising weapon against instability. At the same time, the esteem and reputation of our University would rise. And the benefits would be numerous.

The pertinence of this proposal is reinforced when we consider that Feisal Istrabadi, the former Iraqi ambassador to the United Nations, teaches law here in Bloomington.

In the end, even students on campus can fundamentally contribute to peace promotion and development in Iraq. We can continue efforts to promote the diversification of our international student body.