Who do we blame for Tashfeen Malik’s radicalisation?
The world wonders where did a mother learn the art of killing innocent human beings
Tashfeen Malik, (L), and Syed Farook are pictured passing through Chicago's O'Hare International Airport in this July 27, 2014 handout photo obtained by Reuters on December 8, 2015. PHOTO: REUTERS
Fourteen people in San Bernardino, California are dead and the world wonders where did a mother, Tashfeen Malik, learn the art of killing innocent human beings? How could she have abandoned her own infant child? She probably lived an okay life in California, which she and her husband chucked aside to apparently fulfill the purpose of the Islamic State (IS). In their minds, the couple probably performed a moral duty.
Fingers are now being pointed at the university where she got her degree in Chemistry, the Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) in Multan, as well as the Al-Huda Institute in the city. There are others who believe that it were her years in Saudi Arabia that did the trick. Who is to be blamed?
Discrepancies emerge over where Tashfeen Malik grew up
Ultimately, performing such an act of terror was a personal decision in which none of the places or institutions that she has been associated with can be directly blamed. Moreover, none of the places named above may have provoked her into taking such a decision. Nonetheless, they may have played an instrumental role in formulating a mindset that possibly predisposed her towards such an action. Let’s consider each one of the places.
Was it BZU? A Pakistani scholar based in Germany, whom I had a chance to speak with after the incident, and who had spent about two weeks at the university was of the view that the university might not have been the place for the indoctrination. The professor had taught at BZU. Moreover, there is little evidence that students there embark on this kind of aggression. But it is also a fact that BZU as well as other universities in the surrounding areas have been accessible to several violent extremist groups. At least three to four have students associations operating in these universities, recruiting members and even financing studies of some students. I was informed by university sources about the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi’s Malik Ishaq staying at the hostel for a couple of days in late 2013. Religiosity has certainly been on the rise, which many will not see as necessarily leading to extremism at some later stage. But one wonders when does this ‘religiosity’ begins to cross lines.
I am reminded of a conversation I had with a former rector of the Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology. The gentleman, a believer and someone who offered his prayers, talked about conversations with students who would spend entire nights involved in religious activities rather than focusing on their studies, which was what they were supposed to do. Ultimately, the gentleman had to leave as he received threats mainly due to his policy of keeping students on track.
Tashfeen Malik unable to understand message of the Quran: Farhat Hashmi
In 2011, when Tashfeen Malik was still studying at BZU, an assistant professor of English was accused of committing blasphemy. The lawyer and human rights activist defending the professor were later shot dead in 2013. The university is situated in a city that has experienced a lot of internal migration from conflict zones in the last decade or so. We should also not forget that the main madrassa of militant outfit, the Lashkar-e-Khorasan, is also located in the Multan division. In addition, there were several Uzbek militants present in some madrassas in town as late as the end of 2013. None of this proves that Ms Malik got indoctrinated here, but we have to consider the fact that the university is situated in a high-risk environment. In fact, its overall environment may encourage the fostering of a particular mindset.
Could one then blame Al-Huda where she went for religious education? Indeed, this is the first case ever in which someone from the female seminary is linked with an act of terrorism. Al-Huda is a venture started by Farhat Hashmi, who earlier taught at the Saudi-managed International Islamic University in Islamabad. It tends to attract women from middle, upper-middle and upper classes, and teaches a very orthodox, conservative version of religion, and is also influenced by the Jamaat-e-Islami. The seminary certainly does not teach violence. Otherwise why would it have been allowed to open branches in Canada, the US and now even in London? But then it is rather silly to view these institutions as having planted the idea of killing innocent people.
Tashfeen Malik was a ‘Saudi girl’ who stood out at a Pakistani university
Nor is it possible to find a linear connection between her stay in Saudi Arabia and the decision to kill innocent people. In any case, she probably attended schools that children of Pakistani expatriates go to, which means she probably did not go to Arabic schools. But this is not to say that her years of growing up in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were not critical. The places where she acquired education in both countries seem to have played a role in shaping her view of a perfect Islamic society. The issue one has with the highly conservative version of religion, whether taught in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Bangladesh or any other country, is that it uses literal interpretation of the scriptures that leave little room for flexibility or pluralism. This version of religion espouses a hardline interpretation of what a woman’s role in society ought to be. It is worth remembering that from the late 1960s onwards, the hardline clergy in Saudi Arabia had a constant friction with the then royalty over the issue of empowering women.
The point I am trying to make here is that it is small contributory factors that indicate the broader belief system of an individual. Whatever Ms Malik might have learnt at different places may have set her mind in a certain direction. The very act of joining the IS seems to be a culmination of such thinking.
'We feel ashamed': Pakistani relatives of California shooter
Hopefully, we won’t see another similar character coming out of the BZU or Al-Huda. However, the incident must prompt policymakers in Pakistan to think about introducing stricter accountability of private education, in fact, of education in general. Moreover, the state ought to protect public sector educational institutions to ensure these are safe from intervention from militant organisations. Closing our eyes will not work at all.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 10th, 2015.
Fingers are now being pointed at the university where she got her degree in Chemistry, the Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) in Multan, as well as the Al-Huda Institute in the city. There are others who believe that it were her years in Saudi Arabia that did the trick. Who is to be blamed?
Discrepancies emerge over where Tashfeen Malik grew up
Ultimately, performing such an act of terror was a personal decision in which none of the places or institutions that she has been associated with can be directly blamed. Moreover, none of the places named above may have provoked her into taking such a decision. Nonetheless, they may have played an instrumental role in formulating a mindset that possibly predisposed her towards such an action. Let’s consider each one of the places.
Was it BZU? A Pakistani scholar based in Germany, whom I had a chance to speak with after the incident, and who had spent about two weeks at the university was of the view that the university might not have been the place for the indoctrination. The professor had taught at BZU. Moreover, there is little evidence that students there embark on this kind of aggression. But it is also a fact that BZU as well as other universities in the surrounding areas have been accessible to several violent extremist groups. At least three to four have students associations operating in these universities, recruiting members and even financing studies of some students. I was informed by university sources about the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi’s Malik Ishaq staying at the hostel for a couple of days in late 2013. Religiosity has certainly been on the rise, which many will not see as necessarily leading to extremism at some later stage. But one wonders when does this ‘religiosity’ begins to cross lines.
I am reminded of a conversation I had with a former rector of the Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology. The gentleman, a believer and someone who offered his prayers, talked about conversations with students who would spend entire nights involved in religious activities rather than focusing on their studies, which was what they were supposed to do. Ultimately, the gentleman had to leave as he received threats mainly due to his policy of keeping students on track.
Tashfeen Malik unable to understand message of the Quran: Farhat Hashmi
In 2011, when Tashfeen Malik was still studying at BZU, an assistant professor of English was accused of committing blasphemy. The lawyer and human rights activist defending the professor were later shot dead in 2013. The university is situated in a city that has experienced a lot of internal migration from conflict zones in the last decade or so. We should also not forget that the main madrassa of militant outfit, the Lashkar-e-Khorasan, is also located in the Multan division. In addition, there were several Uzbek militants present in some madrassas in town as late as the end of 2013. None of this proves that Ms Malik got indoctrinated here, but we have to consider the fact that the university is situated in a high-risk environment. In fact, its overall environment may encourage the fostering of a particular mindset.
Could one then blame Al-Huda where she went for religious education? Indeed, this is the first case ever in which someone from the female seminary is linked with an act of terrorism. Al-Huda is a venture started by Farhat Hashmi, who earlier taught at the Saudi-managed International Islamic University in Islamabad. It tends to attract women from middle, upper-middle and upper classes, and teaches a very orthodox, conservative version of religion, and is also influenced by the Jamaat-e-Islami. The seminary certainly does not teach violence. Otherwise why would it have been allowed to open branches in Canada, the US and now even in London? But then it is rather silly to view these institutions as having planted the idea of killing innocent people.
Tashfeen Malik was a ‘Saudi girl’ who stood out at a Pakistani university
Nor is it possible to find a linear connection between her stay in Saudi Arabia and the decision to kill innocent people. In any case, she probably attended schools that children of Pakistani expatriates go to, which means she probably did not go to Arabic schools. But this is not to say that her years of growing up in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were not critical. The places where she acquired education in both countries seem to have played a role in shaping her view of a perfect Islamic society. The issue one has with the highly conservative version of religion, whether taught in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Bangladesh or any other country, is that it uses literal interpretation of the scriptures that leave little room for flexibility or pluralism. This version of religion espouses a hardline interpretation of what a woman’s role in society ought to be. It is worth remembering that from the late 1960s onwards, the hardline clergy in Saudi Arabia had a constant friction with the then royalty over the issue of empowering women.
The point I am trying to make here is that it is small contributory factors that indicate the broader belief system of an individual. Whatever Ms Malik might have learnt at different places may have set her mind in a certain direction. The very act of joining the IS seems to be a culmination of such thinking.
'We feel ashamed': Pakistani relatives of California shooter
Hopefully, we won’t see another similar character coming out of the BZU or Al-Huda. However, the incident must prompt policymakers in Pakistan to think about introducing stricter accountability of private education, in fact, of education in general. Moreover, the state ought to protect public sector educational institutions to ensure these are safe from intervention from militant organisations. Closing our eyes will not work at all.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 10th, 2015.