Iraqi MP urges restoration of postgraduate access for contracted students

BAGHDAD, Iraq — A member of the Iraqi Parliament's Education Commission, Selma al-Mikrahi, has called on the prime minister to reverse a Ministry of Higher Education decision removing contracted students from postgraduate programs. Speaking at a press conference, al-Mikrahi described the move as an administrative error and asked the government to grant a special exemption to safeguard the students' right to continue their studies. Al-Mikrahi said the ministry's earlier postgraduate admissions guidelines had explicitly allowed temporary, permanent and daily-wage contracted staff to apply and be accepted. After entrance examinations were completed, the ministry sought guidance from its Legal Department on the study-leave status of those candidates, according to her account. The General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers subsequently ruled that contracted students should be excluded from postgraduate quotas, based on the ministry's notification. Al-Mikrahi urged the prime minister to issue an exemption allowing the affected students to resume their education. No further details on the number of students affected or a government response were immediately available.