ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – “Read books every day,” was the message at a World Book Day event hosted by the Public Library of Hawler-Zaytun in Erbil’s Sami Abdulrahman Park on Monday.

"We organized this event because we want to encourage people to read books every day, especially Kurdish people," Naz Falakadin Kakai, Public Library Director and Chief of the Korean-Kurdish Friendship Organization told Rudaw English. "The independence of the country depends on education, especially the younger generation."

Kakai explained that the Korean Zaytun Division, who spent five years in Kurdistan on a peacekeeping mission, built the Zaytun Library as a gift to the Kurdish people and has over half a million books in many languages such as Kurdish, Arabic, English, German, French, Farsi, and Turkish.

Korean Consul General Mr. Junk Sik Park was in attendance. 

"Zaytun Library is a symbol of friendship between Korea and Kurdistan. The Korean Zaytun force chose this library as their farewell gift for Kurdish people because they were aware of the value of the reading in this powerful and sound society," Park told English, adding that he hoped many people take advantage of the library to enjoy reading.

The library is developing a website that will include an inventory of all its books available to go out on loan. 

Organizations and media sources such as Bryar Magazine, Peshmerga Forum, and the Barzani Charity Foundation among others set up booths in the park to bring recognition to their organizations as well as provide reading materials to promote reading.

"Nowadays, Kurdistan is full of fashion and models, and books are being ignored," said Ahmed from Bryar Magazine, a publication which focuses on management and human development. Bryar means "Decision" in English.

A gallery of original newspapers was also on display, including Kurdistan, the first ever publication in the Kurdish language, published in Cairo, Egypt in 1898. The original copy was gifted to Zaytun Library by Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani. 

Newspapers from the Saddam Hussein era were also available. 

On April 23, 1616, Miguel de Cervantes, William Shakespeare, and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega all died. So the date was a natural choice when the United Nations selected it as the day to pay tribute to books and authors.