--- title: Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda | TIME description: Muammar Gaddafi's famous Green Book was once required reading for every Libyan student. Now, the transitional government is purging textbooks and lesson plans of Gaddafi’s ubiquitous influence canonical: https://time.com/video/xmXKZXli/ og:title: Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda og:description: Muammar Gaddafi's famous Green Book was once required reading for every Libyan student. Now, the transitional government is purging textbooks and lesson plans of Gaddafi’s ubiquitous influence og:url: https://time.com/video/xmXKZXli/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xmXKZXli/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda twitter:description: Muammar Gaddafi's famous Green Book was once required reading for every Libyan student. Now, the transitional government is purging textbooks and lesson plans of Gaddafi’s ubiquitous influence twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xmXKZXli/poster.jpg?width=720 --- # Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Subscription: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME is a general-interest news organization founded in 1923, reporting on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world. A TIME subscription provides full access to that journalism in print and digital, from $20 a year, and can be cancelled at any time. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda [Watch (HLS stream): Purging Libya's Schools of Gaddafi's Propaganda](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xmXKZXli.m3u8) (4:08)  _Published 2011-12-12. Muammar Gaddafi's famous Green Book was once required reading for every Libyan student. Now, the transitional government is purging textbooks and lesson plans of Gaddafi’s ubiquitous influence_ --- Jul 27, 2023 3:20 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations](/video/PUSb6UrR/) ### Col. Gaddafi's Camera-Ready Victory Celebrations [TIME's Exclusive Interview with Gaddafi's Son Saif](/video/J1nlyZwp/) ### TIME's Exclusive Interview with Gaddafi's Son Saif [TIME's 2009 Interview with Libya's Muammar Gaddafi](/video/EvJsCIfA/) ### TIME's 2009 Interview with Libya's Muammar Gaddafi --- ## Transcript Within days of the death of former Libyan President Momar Gadaffi, students at this technical high school in Tripoli had their revolutionary hand crafts out on display for sale. I was selling like a necklace and bags and pictures to take the money and give it to the poor people. They That the houses are broken from [ INAUDIBLE ]. The red, green, and black colors you see all over these goods are the colors of Libya's new flag, adopted since the uprising started back in February. [ SOUND ] Etel Abubakar's major at this school is fashion design. But many of her other subjects focused on something else, Gadaffi. The self named Brother Leader, featured in classes like history, geography and [ FOREIGN ], a subject entirely devoted to Gadaffi's core treatise on politic and civic life, the Green Book. You have to re- read it, read it, again and again. Every year you read the same book about Muammar. They always talk about Muammar Gaddafi. Mm- hm. He is the leader, he is the everything in the world. Mm- hm. Like he is the God, you know? Mm- hm. Now, we are free now. We can talk anything we want. [ SOUND ] While [ FOREIGN ] and her school friends are embracing that freedom with needles and threads, Libya's transitional government has some refashioning of its own to do. It's will need to purge the lesson plans from Primary school to University of Gaddafi's ubiquitous influence. [ FOREIGN ] We don't want anything that signifies him, neither his name, his family, nor his symbols and signiture green collar. [ FOREIGN ] Mohamed Sowi heads up a newly formed team of 160 experts charged with rewriting educational curricula throughout Libya's entire public school systems. First the team [ UNKNOWN ] of the green book. Then several superficial changes were made, like removing the word [ FOREIGN ]. A term invented by Gaddafi to describe his special notion of a republic. [ FOREIGN ] Which is related to the government. Or, we change it from [ FOREIGN ] to Libya. Just Libya. Now it's change it to the, transitional council. I'm. [ INAUDIBLE ]. Maybe After a while when had the, a name for our government, we will, change it to the, name. In some subjects, more severe changes are being made. Take science. International symbols, like cm for centimeter. That's kg for kilogram, are being restored after Gaddafi had been cursed, considering them symbols of colonialism. We changed all the symbols that were in Arabic before into Latin script. We corrected many spellings and technical errors as well. [ NOISE ] By January 14th according to the national transitional council, a new set of textbooks and circular will be rolled out to the estimated one million students in the country. [ SOUND ] It's a provisional solution until Lybia electes a new government in eight months time. Until the books arrive. Classes continue, students need to catch up on lost lessons due to the war. [ FOREIGN ] The larger goal, removing the false ideas and mentalities cultivated over more than four decades of indoctrination, may take quite some time. We have to know, the children have to know, wha... What they missed. before. The the grandfather and things like that. Like the old people how they was and we have to know about that. Have to know why Muanmar Qadafi has come? why, why, he, he do that? Libya. [ SOUND ] Don Duncan for Time Video in Tripoli , Libya. 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