Wheat-dogg’s world
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These letters were emailed to International Schools Review subscribers on June 28. They are reproduced here for all to read.

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Dear ISR Readers,

Many of you have counted on me as the ISR Teacher On-line Advisor over the past two years. I can assure all of you that this has been the most difficult situation I have encountered during that time. I trust all of you will join me in sending our prayers and thoughts to Katherine Phillips and her family.

I want the ISR Community to know that I have spent time working in the International Education Community in Kuwait. During that period I met many wonderfully thoughtful, kind and loving people – especially parents who supported their children and the schools they attended without resorting to personal violence or power mongering. I met children who were joyous and special, and teachers who were dedicated and caring, administrators who were positive and thoughtful. The situation as it has unfolded for Katherine Phillips does not personify the general population in Kuwait. It does not describe the caring attitude many Kuwaiti people have for their American partners and for the international teaching population who live and work in that environment.

Unfortunately, we are learning that it takes only a few powerful people, as in any culture and in any business, to destroy the trusting and working-together possibilities that give us hope within a community. When this happens, we tend to respond to injustice with a fight or flight syndrome, one that simulates exactly what we are dealing with from the other party. In this case, ISR has responded by asking teachers to ‘fight’ the injustices perpetrated upon a colleague by standing up and being counted. We have also asked you to take ‘flight’; that is, we have asked some of you to reconsider your decision to work in Kuwait until such time as Katherine Phillips is sent home to her family. We have done this to place pressure on the Kuwaiti government to lift Katherine’s travel ban and to mobilize the American and other governments to come to her aid.

Time will tell if what we are doing at ISR is the ‘right’ thing in response to this situation. I do know teachers have begun to talk openly to us and among themselves within the safety of our community about their own terrifying International teaching experiences. Teachers have also begun talking to others outside of ISR about Katherine Phillips and her terrifying experiences. We encourage our readers to continue ‘talking’, and writing and calling and communicating with whoever every they think can and will help on Katherine’s behalf. We are hopeful that their ‘talk’ will help move this situation towards a positive resolution for our colleague. Yes you are being heard and small movements are being made towards reconciliation in this situation. Don’t stop.

We are publishing an updated letter from Katherine’s father in this bulletin at his request. Mr. Miller regrets his initial provocative letter; this follow-up letter is more tempered and he encourages all of us to follow his lead. Like Mr. Miller, we must all move towards finding a positive resolution to this situation through the thoughtful, positive and meaningful communication that epitomizes our teaching profession in the hopes that Katherine will soon be reunited with her family.

It takes a whole village to raise a child
It also takes a whole village to support each member.
We are Katherine’s village today .Someday in the future you may need your village to support you… And we will be there.

In closing, the staff of ISR asks the person/family who has a discrepancy with the policies under which Ms. Phillips was required to administrate at Al-Bayan School to understand that Katherine was not the author of these policies. Muslim people are well-known for their forgiveness. We ask the person/family who feels they have been wronged by the Al-Bayan administrative system to forgive the school’s policies.

We would like to remind these individuals that Katherine is the daughter of loving parents. It is not Katherine alone who is hurt by such extreme punishment. In this case, Katherine’s parents have also been victimized. We ask your compassion, as parents yourselves, for Katherine’s parents. We appeal to you to release Katherine from detention so that she can return to her parents immediately.

Feel the Love

Dr. Barbara Spilchuk and ISR

Updated Letter from Katherine’s Father

Some of you I do not know except through our daughter Katherine Phillips, a Middle School Vice Principal at the Al Bayan Bilingual School in Kuwait. I have been in the Middle East for the last five years, she six. In that time, the Arabic people I have met have been fairly decent, civil, people (I can only relate to the Kingdom of Bahrain) toward western and in particular, American citizens.

Imagine our surprise and disappointment when Katherine called us from the airport in Kuwait to let us know that the Kuwait Government had placed a travel ban on her. The alleged charge against her of illegal confinement occurred in March 2006 against the son (a 5th grader) of an influential Kuwaiti citizen. These charges were subsequently proven without merit by both the Ministry of Education and the Police.

Her Mother and I, as well as our daughter continue fear for her safety despite the assertion by the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait that they will not let anyone harm her. That is interesting in light of the continued harassment and threats from this individual stating he will “harm her” and “destroy her”. He “knows how you Americans are and how you like to illegally detain people”. He likens the in-school detentions and suspensions to “Guantanamo Bay”. It is interesting because each parent received a handbook outlining student responsibilities and the results of their actions. Of the three students punished for fighting, only this one student’s father complained. Since this incident over 15 months ago, the Ministry of Education has banned in-school suspensions.

It is interesting that the same baseless “charges” have been imposed three times now. The latest charge was officially filed after the travel ban was imposed. While most Arabic people are decent, it is important to remember that money equals power, and in most cases corruption. This is not restricted to Middle-eastern countries. It can happen anywhere in the world to anyone if the antagonist has enough monetary resources.

Let us not forget the bottom line. Our daughter albeit not in jail, continues to be illegally detained by the State of Kuwait, not the parent. She has committed no crime, has been a stellar Ambassador for the United States of America and educators everywhere. During this time, she has remained dignified and conducted herself with aplomb.

Her Mother and I have received no contact from any Government official except for the three phone calls we initiated and a follow-on e-mail from the Embassy in Bahrain. We have exhausted our ability to fight this injustice on our own and ask for your help as it appears the U.S. is powerless despite two letters from the Ambassador in Kuwait to the ruling family. Makes me wonder why I did 30 years in the Military to be ignored by our government when I needed them most. Please notify everyone you know and ask them to appeal to the U.S. and Kuwaiti Governments to intercede on her behalf. There are at least two other teachers in Kuwait who have been jailed on false charges. Do not let it happen to our daughter.

Please let all currently contracted educators and those considering a contract in Kuwait know of this situation and ask them to boycott their contracts until our daughter is released by the ruling family, and the Kuwaiti Government can guarantee teachers safety. Every child deserves quality education. But at what cost?

Our special thanks go out to our biggest champion, Dr. Barbara Spilchuk and the International School Review. I encourage educators everywhere who are either contracted to work in Kuwait or considering positions there to think twice. Dr. Spilchuk has my permission to reprint this e-mail on her website, the ISR Review.

Sincerely,

Thomas and Carol Miller