Constant vigilance: Schools told to display anti-terror material on campuses

It is an attempt to draw attention towards anti-terrorism efforts

LAHORE:

The Schools Education Department (SED) has issued directives to district education officers to put up material discussing anti-terrorism efforts, tolerance and co-existence in all schools of the province.

The directive, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune, has asked school administrations to put up charts and posters in classrooms and at prominent places on their campuses to draw the students’ attention towards efforts to eliminate terrorism from the country.



The material was created by the Punjab Textbook and Curriculum Board and contains topics ranging from definition of terrorism to the importance of tolerance in the society. The material is in Urdu.

Terrorism has been defined as, “Imposing one’s views by killing innocent people, destruction of public property and destruction of infrastructure such as railway tracks, gas pipelines and bridges and creating chaos and fear in the country and society.”

The document lists external conspiracies, anti-state actors, lack of education, misinterpretation of religious texts, sectarianism, provincialism, racial discrimination, poverty and Indian infiltration as reasons for terrorism.



The document classifies forms of terrorism into suicide attacks, bombings and shooting and kidnapping of citizens. The document says terrorism targets include educational institutions, mosques, imam bargahs and churches, bus stands, railway stations and airports, markets, cinemas, hospitals, government organisations or infrastructure, army installations and public gatherings.

The document suggests actions in case of a terrorist attack and provides a number to call in case of an emergency. The document urges children to stay away from abandoned toys and shopping bags. School children are also urged to not talk to strangers and to inform an adult (teacher or policeman) when they see a suspicious activity.

It says that students should leave schools in small groups. The document also provides safety instructions for school managements on deloyment of guards at school gates, use of metal detectors and installation of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at the campuses.

I am not saying other terrorist attacks should have less recognition but that Pakistan did not receive enough

The document defines tolerance as having patience for opposing views and actions and calls it the embodiment of the doctrine of “live and let live.” The document also refers to the teachings from Quran and sayings of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah as lessons in tolerance.

The SED has asked school administrations to display the material on a priority basis. However, no deadline has been set in the letter for implementation of the orders.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 7^th, 2016.