[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 43 (Monday, October 27, 2003)]
[Pages 1423-1424]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

October 18, 2003

    Good morning. During the decades of Saddam Hussein's oppression and 
misrule, all Iraqis suffered, including children. While Saddam built 
palaces and monuments to himself, Iraqi schools crumbled. While Saddam 
supported a massive war machine, Iraqi schoolchildren went without 
textbooks, and sometimes teachers went unpaid. Saddam used schools for 
his own purposes: to indoctrinate the youth of Iraq and to teach hatred.
    Under Saddam, adult illiteracy was 61 percent, and for women it was 
a staggering 77 percent. Iraq is a nation with a proud tradition of 
learning, and that tradition was betrayed by Saddam Hussein.
    As part of our coalition's efforts to build a stable and secure 
Iraq, we are working to rebuild Iraq's schools, to get the teachers back 
to work, and to make sure Iraqi children have the supplies they need.
    Six months ago, nearly all of Iraq's schools were closed, and many 
primary schools lacked electrical wiring and plumbing and

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windows. Today, all 22 universities and 43 technical institutes and 
colleges are open, as are nearly all primary and secondary schools in 
the country. Earlier this year, we said we would rehabilitate 1,000 
schools by the time school started. This month, just days before the 
first day of class, our coalition and our Iraqi partners had refurbished 
over 1,500 schools.
    Under Saddam, textbooks were so rare, six students had to share each 
one. So we're working with UNESCO to print 5 million revised and modern 
textbooks free of Ba'athist propaganda and to distribute them to Iraqi 
students. By the end of the school year, there will be enough textbooks 
for each Iraqi student. And for the first time in years, they will get 
to read the work of great Iraqi writers and poets--much of it banned by 
Saddam's regime.
    We have assembled more than a million school supply kits, including 
pencils and calculators and note pads for Iraqi schoolchildren. We have 
distributed tens of thousands of student desks and teacher chairs and 
chalkboards. And to assure the health of students, we have delivered 
over 22 million vaccinations for Iraqi children.
    In many cases, American soldiers have intervened personally to make 
sure Iraqi schools get the supplies they need. Army First Lieutenant 
Kyle Barden of Charlotte, North Carolina, wanted supplies for the 11 
schools in Laylan, Iraq. In response to Kyle's request for help, North 
Carolina schoolchildren, doctors, businesses, and others have donated 
thousands of dollars to buy notebooks and pencils and colored pens.
    Army Major Gregg Softy of the First Armored Division sent an e-mail 
to friends about Iraq schools. The response was overwhelming. Hundreds 
of packages were shipped, and a web site was established to encourage 
other Americans to contribute.
    All of our efforts to improve Iraqi education ultimately serve the 
cause of security and peace. We want young Iraqis to learn skills and to 
grow and hope, instead of being fed a steady diet of propaganda and 
hatred. We're making progress, but there is still much work to do. The 
request I made to Congress for Iraqi reconstruction includes funds for 
additional health and training projects. I urge Congress to pass my 
budget request soon, so this vital work can proceed.
    Our efforts will help Iraq reclaim its proud heritage of learning 
and bring it into the family of nations. An elderly man in Umm Qasr 
recently tried an Internet connection for the first time. He was stunned 
by the speed with which he could read newspapers from across the world. 
He said, ``Our society has been cut off from the world, and now we are 
reconnected.'' As Iraq rejoins the world, it will demonstrate the power 
of freedom and hope to overcome hatred and resentment. And this 
transformation will make our Nation more secure.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 8:25 a.m. on October 16 in Riverside, 
CA, for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on October 18. The transcript was made 
available by the Office of the Press Secretary on October 17 but was 
embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office of the Press 
Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of this address.