Dr. Behrouz Chamanara, a member of the faculty of the Department of Kurdish Language and Literature at Kurdistan University in Sanandaj, Kurdistan Province, has raised objections to the rejection of his qualifications by the Ministry of Intelligence for continuing as a faculty member.
In a letter to the university’s president, Chamanara voiced his objections to his employment status and the lack of an official employment decree, while also criticising his inclusion in media lists of “expelled professors”, which he claims are biased and politically connected.
“Due to non-academic and non-university reasons primarily arising from the security or political orientations of certain entities outside the university, there has been an obstacle to the issuance of my employment decree”, Chamanara said in his letter.
Chamanara, the former director of the Kurdistan Studies Research Centre, was abducted by the Ministry of Intelligence on 25 November 2022 while on his way to his home in Sanandaj.
He was held incommunicado for ten days before being released on bail.
In his letter, Chamanara emphasised the lack of a visible response from both the Ministry of Education and Kurdistan University, highlighting the disregard for academic freedom and the rights of faculty members.
He called for immediate clarification, urging the university’s administration to determine the fate of his request for the extension of his contractual period by 11 September.
