Published 2003-05-07T00:00:00Z”/>
Adrian Palenchar<br>Staff Writer
Today, many Iraqi citizens fly pre-1991 Gulf War Iraqi flags, symbolizing rebellion against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. But in the Bell Memorial Union at Chico State University, a Saddam-tailored flag hangs from the ceiling.
It is unlikely that the current Iraqi flag will be removed or replaced.
If the new flag policy is approved by the BMU Committee next week, it will remain alongside the other 88 flags, representing international students who’ve attended Chico State.
During a University Affairs Council meeting April 16, Mike Garcia recommended replacing the current Iraqi flag in the BMU with the pre-1991 Gulf War flag. He said it should be done because that is what the people of Iraq are doing.
In Iraq April 9, before a statue of Saddam was pulled down, a pre-1991 Gulf War flag was hung around the statue’s neck.
Garcia said he made the recommendation after this event and after speaking with students on campus who agreed unanimously on the issue.
There’s one catch.
“The kicker is, the university is in violation of its own codes right now,” Garcia said.
The current BMU flag policy states that in order for a flag to be displayed in the BMU, there must be a student currently attending Chico State representing the flag. There isn’t a student from Iraq currently attending Chico State and the Iraqi flag isn’t the only one in violation.
Kristina Zekos-Ortiz, vice president of facilities and services, said BMUC is in charge of putting up and taking down flags at the beginning of each semester, but hasn’t been doing so because of time constraints.
To remedy this, committee members proposed a new policy.
The proposed changes include leaving flags up that represent students who have, at one point in time, attended Chico State. Also, a removal and replacement clause states that a flag will only be replaced if that country’s government makes changes to its official flag.
Saddam made changes to the Iraqi flag in 1991.
The words “Allahu Akbar” (Allah is Great) were added prior to the start of the Gulf War in order to improve Islamic image. The words were added to the flag between its three stars to represent unity, freedom and socialism.
“The flags (in the BMU) are supposed to represent countries and cultures – not politics,” Zekos-Ortiz said.
Adam Dondro, vice president-elect, agreed.
“I don’t want to take down the Iraqi flag until we can replace it, because that’s a statement,” he said. “We’ve had Iraqi students here.”
Dondro said the point behind the flags is diversity on campus.
“The Associated Students try to adhere to a policy to minimize controversy otherwise symbols get people all charged up,” said Bob Jackson, dean of school of graduate, international, and sponsored programs.
Jackson said five years ago students from a breakaway province in India wanted their flag up, but students from the country of India were upset. The flag didn’t fly because the province was not recognized by the United Nations as an official country – a BMU flag policy clause.
Cassie Elliott is a Chico State student who disagrees with sticking to the policy.
“If we have a country’s flag up we should make sure it’s the one that citizens are accepting as theirs,” Elliott said. “We should do what is politically correct and deal with flags on a case-by-case basis.”
Under the current BMU flag policy, flags are dealt with on a student-by-student basis.
In order for a flag to be added, an international student on file at Chico State must write a request to Eleni Theodorou, commissioner of multicultural affairs.
The proposed changes will likely be solidified on May 14, leaving the Iraqi flag hanging in the BMU as is.
Adrian Palenchar can be reached at: [email protected]
