We can't ignore the hope seen in Afghan girls' faces

A photo of Afghan schoolgirls evokes a sense of responsibility for them, a reader says. Other letter topics today: the nurse who dropped the baby, the soldiers who burned the Quran, the cooperation that Tunisia needs, and the use of a noun as a verb.

Afghan schoolgirls' faces speak eloquently of what the country needs, a reader says. Courtesy: Ray of Hope Foundation

My husband and I can't stop looking at the photo of three little Afghan girls shown with a teacher in the M magazine story Free to educate (March 11).

The hope and intelligence and potential and happiness in those faces is more convincing than any number of political speeches.

If you look at those girls, how can you deny that they deserve a fair chance in the world?

And how can anyone then fail to understand what Afghanistan really needs?

And once we understand, how can anyone turn his or especially her back on those hopeful little faces?

Susan Gregory, Abu Dhabi

Pity for nurse who dropped a baby

I refer to Nurse who 'dropped' baby appeals guilty verdict (March 7).

Why were there cables lying around waiting for someone to take a tumble? I pity the poor nurse who tripped and fell along with the infant in her arms. Why, even the mother of the baby could have tripped had she crossed the same path.

F Baasleim, Mafraq

Arrest Assad and put him on trial

There is no doubt that Syria needs a change for the better for the general population.

Killing your own to maintain your "status quo" of corruption is evil no matter what.

The international community's hypocrisy is obvious, as inaction allows other countries to obtain their own selfish goals.

Bashar Al Assad should be arrested to stand trial for multiple murders.

SS Sunkar, Australia

Arab elections deserve respect

Loving democracy is not the same as liking the winner (March 10) made enthralling and informative reading.

Its message should be shared with many in western countries who still expect that countries here in the Middle East should somehow want to become like them. I have had many an argument back home on the differences in culture that shape the politics and everyday life of this region.

Western leaders and popular opinion should respect the outcomes of elections in fledgling democracies and assist in their progress towards maturity - or risk the finger being pointed at their own ballot-box credibility.

Susan Falconer, Abu Dhabi

Tunisia needs party teamwork

I hope that current talks will be fruitful so that the strikes by Tunisian workers will end (Ennahda cleans up with a little civic action, March 11).

Tunisia's moderate Islamist party Ennahda won the country's first democratic elections in October but has been relatively unable to make Tunisia free, independent, developing and prosperous.

And so foreign investors remain nervous and so do tourists, both groups being badly needed.

Ennahda should work with other political parties in spite of ideological differences and improve the economy, create jobs, and contribute to the establishment of a durable and pluralistic democracy.

No country is free just because it has had a revolution, and the journey to obtain freedom from authoritarian rule should end smoothly and rewardingly.

Gaye Caglayan, Dubai

'Trial' headline tries patience

Your headline Julphar trials insulin production (March 11) is comprehensible only if we assume that "trials" is a verb, which it certainly is not.

If the company is putting a vaccine to the test then it is testing the drug, trying it, assessing it, measuring it, evaluating it … There are a lot of possibilities.

I know it can be hard to write headlines. But "trial" is not a verb.

Henry Watson, Dubai

Wise advice in Ask Ali column

Like many Muslims and believers in other faiths, I was deeply disturbed by the recent Quran burning in Afghanistan.

I found the response in Ask Aliin M magazine (March 3) to be admirable in urging more "tolerance and respect among ourselves and towards other cultures and religions … Let us stretch out our hands rather than point fingers".

And I say amen to your prayer that: "May God forgive those who burn our holy books, intentionally or unintentionally, and may all our Muslim brothers and sisters gain strength rather than anger every time they hear of such incidents."

May God bless all peacemakers.

Baquer Namazi, Dubai