Let the education system not fall prey to conflict, politicking
Sameer Showkin Lone
SRINAGAR: With the burning of nearly 30 schools, issuing of protest calendars, curfews and the ongoing political uncertainty, the education system across restive Kashmir valley has become a major causality.
The prominent educationists, academics and activists have come forward; expressing their concern that the education system should be delinked from the political processes and kept away from the strike roasters issued by the joint resistance camp.
The Private Schools Association Kashmir (PSAK), an amalgam of schools, keep on reiterating that schools must be treated as emergency service so that the classes could continue amid strikes.
“We want that education be declared as an emergency or essential services. We know that the Kashmir problem will not get solved in two days, so we will consult all stakeholders and put this point forward. The loss to education has to be taken into consideration,” Chairman, Private Schools Association, G N Var told The Legitimate.
Education is yet again at cross roads in crisis-hit Kashmir because of the ongoing unrest that erupted after the killing of a prominent militant commander, Burhan Wani, during an encounter in south Kashmir’s village. Wani’s killing triggered spontaneous protests that continue even after over four-and-a-half months. Around 93 civilians have been killed and over 15000 injured in the clashes between civilians and government forces during mass protests. Many youth have been rendered blind by the use of pellet guns, which outraged the civil society in general.
Religious leader, Dr. Hameed Fayaz, who holds PhD in Islamic Studies while sharing his opinion on the subject, said that whosoever is involved in burning schools are actually axing the basic principles of Islam.
“Education system shouldn’t be derailed,” Dr Fayaz said. “The knowledge explosion is because of Islam only. Islam has promoted education like anything. It will be a good thing if education doesn’t suffers in the times of political crisis. But at times the situations are quite different,” he said.
Ironically more than 37 government schools, some of them historical, have been set ablaze by unknown persons. The Syed Ali Geelani led joint resistance camp spearheading the current agitation and government have termed these unknown arsonists as “miscreants and enemies of the society”. However, one thing is clear these “miscreants” aren’t aliens but belong to the same society and are part of “Kashmiriyat”. Burning of educational institutions is not new to Kashmir. Education has always been at the center of Kashmir conflict and continues to remain the same.
According to a factsheet of the home ministry, around 630 educational institutes were damaged between 1990 and 2001, one of the most volatile decades in Kashmir. This was the period when government forces occupied many school buildings, which were being used as interrogation and detention centers. Even now, during the current unrest, BSF and CRPF officials have been stationed in various schools.
‘Spare Schools’
With increasing number of schools being burned in the restive Kashmir, triggering an outrage, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court too had to step in, asking the civil society members to act as guardians of the State. The court directed the police and civil administration to ensure protection of schools besides unmasking the “mysterious enemies of education” and deal with them with an “iron hand”. As various sections condemned such incidents, the state government pointed fingers at separatists while the central government termed these as acts driven by the “combination of madness and perversion” and asked people of the Valley to realise that those responsible are acting at the behest of the enemy “across the border”. A division bench of the J&K High Court took suo motu cognizance of the reports about nearly 30 schools being burned in Kashmir Valley during the ongoing unrest which started following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Waniin early July. The bench observed that the mysterious burning of centres of learning has sent shock waves awakening all to ponder. Education is the main factor for intellectual excellence and prosperity. Imparting education in the centres of learning has no other viable substitute.
The burning of schools in Kashmir indicates that a very smart strategist is coordinating the unfolding challenge to the country. The objective is multi-layered. At the most basic level, this round of arson has raised the ante on whether board examinations can be held, and if schools can function again. A large number of students and parents were eager that exams be held. Who is burning the schools? This questioned remained a buzz word across the Kashmir valley.
‘Learn to Unlearn’
Noted poet and satirist, Zareef Ahmad Zareef, lashed out at the joint resistance leadership for lacking “strategy” to deal with the political conflict.
“We should learn from Palestinians who have never let education suffer being in a very intense conflict. Palestinians have experienced more than us but they never let education to suffer,” Zareef said, adding “They in such circumstances made their children doctors, engineers and other professionals. We have ruined our education and are playing with our future generation.”
Zareef blames political leadership especially the Hurriyat, saying the leadership lacks strategy and have politicised every section of life. “It is not constructive but destructive politics. We have never got a political leader who is a deep thinker, a think tank and a strategist, which is very unfortunate for us,” he said.
“Politically the present leadership is not capable to fight the enemy. They don’t know how to fight the occupier. “Our economy is shattered. Political leadership are using religion for politics. We should even not have involved students in this crisis. When schools remain shut the students have nothing to do so they hit streets, block roads even when there is a deal in strike,” he said. Zareef said the ongoing unrest needs capable leaders.
Eminent educationist and former head, Department of Psychology, Prof. A G Madhosh said students have gone into “collective depression” for the right and wrong reasons.
“Conducting examinations have thrown students into double depression. It will lead them into a vulnerable depression in future,” he said.
Madhosh said when minds of students are occupied in something else, normal activities get affected. “Their strategic ideology doesn’t remain in any formal dimension. Even a minor scuffle at home affects the students’ mindset. When there is such a big problem around, what will one expect? Education isn’t a business you will bargain. The meaning of examination is learning residue. Examination isn’t to be equated with education. Examinations can be conducted at any time, but education cannot,” he said.
Lately, the voices are growing shriller that education be treated as an emergency service like health and needs to be delinked from the conflict to save the future of the youth of this conflict ravaged place. The same voices should have turned louder when the unrest began, but someone has said “better late than never” fits the present situation. Yes, there is a need to delink education from politics, no matter, how serious is the problem.
“It is only the poor among the poorer who suffer the most. Rich and affluent class of the society manage to ensure smooth studies for their children in or outside the state,” said Sajad Ahmed, a PhD scholar.
Meanwhile Director School Education, Kashmir, Aijaz Ahmed Bhat told The Legitimate that he is surprised as to why education has been linked with politics. “Our leaders, cutting across ideologies need to evolve a mechanism to keep education away from conflict. Education should be treated as an emergency service,” he said.
“There are 11766 government schools in the valley in which 7, 28, 903 students are enrolled while in private schools the number of students is 5, 89,734, whose education has suffered in the last five months,” Bhat said.
Education had already taken a back seat in Kashmir because of the devastating 2014 floods. According to official figures, there were around 4600 government schools that had damaged by the floods.
Some schools had collapsed fully or suffered extensive damage, whereas others needed major repairs. Even after two years of floods, there was still no adequate infrastructure in place for the students in most of the schools. Whatever was left in the education sector has been taken away by the 2016 unrest. It took a heavy toll on education. After closure of over nearly five months, the government’s “adamant and egoistic move” to conduct the board examinations of class 10th and 12th well on time and announcing mass promotion from classes 1 to 9, might have come as a major relief for many students, but it is really not a good sign for the welfare of the student community, say academicians.
Several institutes, according to media reports, had not even formally started teaching or had completed just 10-20 per cent of the syllabus when the unrest started.
“The prevailing systems under which students are writing their examinations are definitely not going to help them. It will affect their performances in future,” something people widely believe. Many believe that the set up under which education is provided and examinations are conducted is a compromise with the education and not imparting proper education to students.
Otherwise when Kashmiris are given competitive and proper education they will shine. Kashmiris, both boys and girls, have proved their mettle in almost every sphere of life. Whenever the opportunities knocked, Kashmiri students have come up with flying colours.
Journalist and writer of the popular book on Kashmir ‘Curfewed Night’, Basharat Peer has recently filled the heart of every Kashmiri with pride after he was appointed as the op-ed editor of international wing of New York Times. Peer during the peak of insurgency had fled the valley and continued his studies in country’s top Aligarh Muslim University (AMU). His work as a journalist and writer on Kashmir unlike his many colleagues who opted for gun and fell to the violence gave much impetus to the Kashmir’s political struggle. Peer represents Kashmir at many national and international forums besides writing for world’s influential journals, newspapers and magazines.
“Interestingly, when Peer wrote “Curfewed night”, some of the locals treated him non entity for staying outside Valley during the insurgency. But his contribution for Kashmir left every critic dumbstruck and those who believe in violent form of resistance,” said the local journalist on conditions of anonymity.
“To live as a proud nation we need to promote values of education instead of breeding a generation of illiterates who are prone to exploitation politically and economically.”
Not long ago, another Kashmiri, Sameer Bhat took over as the new Opinion Editor at Gulf News, the most influential paper in the Middle East. There are a number of Kashmiris manning important positions and influencing global opinion.
Mehvish Mushtaq, Software Developer, developed “Dial Kashmir” an android app for smartphones. ‘First of its kind’ was surely not the reason. Mehvish was the sole reason for the media to get all excited, because she was a woman that too from restive Kashmir.
Dr Shah Faesal whose father was killed by unknown gunmen during his childhood topped the coveted Indian Administrative Services (IAS) in 2009, and became the first Kashmiri to do so. Shah’s feat inspired many other Kashmiris to crack IAS. Every year, a sizeable number of Kashmiri make it to the list of India’s top administrative examination.
This year only, another Kashmiri Athar Aamir-ul-Shafi Khan from Devipora-Mattan village of Anantnag district secured second rank in the prestigious civil services examination, 2015.
In the past too, Kashmiris have made their mark only when they got adequate education. Dr. Ayub Thakur, from a remote Pudsoo village of Shopian did his Phd in Nuclear Physics. Later on he joined the Nuclear Engineering Department of King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, as a lecturer. He later turned as a Kashmiri political activist and founder of London-based World Kashmir Freedom Movement (WKFM), an organisation that claimed to seek a peaceful political solution to the Kashmir Conflict.
K H Khurshid, another Srinagar boy rose to become the first elected president of Pakistan controlled Kashmir. According to Dr. Misfar Hassan in an article published in 2006 in a leading local daily, K. H. Khurshid, was born in an environment where culture and education were valued above all else. His father was a teacher at Boys School and the significance of knowledge was the stuff of everyday life. Khurshid also served as the secretary of Governor General of Pakistan, Ali Muhammad Jinnah.
Even in games, Kashmiris have not held back despite having not facilities at par with the players of other parts of the globe. Recently, eight-year-old Bandipora girl, Tajamul Islam scripted history at the World Kickboxing Championship in Italy, by becoming the first player ever from the sub-junior category to clinch a gold medal.
“Kashmiris are very sharp minded people. I will say sharper than people of many regions around us. We are among the intelligent races, which is also a reason that we have locked horns with such a powerful country like India. Otherwise we are a handful of people in comparison to world’s second most populated country,” says Professor Abdul Gani Bhat, who is a Hurriyat Conference leader.
Bhat was a professor of Persian before he was terminated from services in mid 1980’s on the grounds of being a “threat to the state” by then state government.
The author can be reached at [email protected]
The story is from the print edition of Nov 30 to Dec 6, 2016.
