Harakat Al-Shabaab Al Mujahideen
The militant group al-Shabaab has banned teaching of Geography and History in primary schools in the Middle Shabelle region, according to a high-ranking official.
The official said the al-Shabaab's administrative body in the region's Jowhar town in southern Somalia issued the directive on Saturday, banning the teaching of the two subjects in all primary schools in the region. However, it remains unclear why the group has imposed such a ban.
He said senior education officials, including head teachers and school principals in Middle Shabelle region have been notified.
“It is very difficult to abide by such a strict order banning Geography and History in primary schools. These are very important subjects to the pupils," a school principal in Jowhar who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Somalia Report.
He said both teachers and pupils may be forced to boycott classes in the affected schools until the order is reversed.
But in an apparent move to firm up the order, the al-Shabaab fighters toured the schools in the main districts of Middle Shabelle, including Jowhar, and donated new textbooks in Arabic ostensibly to replace the Geography and History textbooks.
Parents have expressed concern over the move by the militant group that has been fighting against the Transitional Federal Government.
“Al-Shabaab plans to deliver lectures on Jihad by removing the two main useful subjects of Geography and History and we are concerned,” a bewildered parent in Jowhar who only gave his name as Kamal told Somalia Report.
“They (al-Shabaab ) are struggling to enlist new young recruits to go fight for their sake, after they were defeated and withdrawn from the capital,” he added.
Early this year, the al-Shabaab group in Lower Jubba Region banned learning of English in schools in the region. The Islamist group also prohibited ringing of bells in schools claiming that it was promoting Christian values.
