Developing tolerance: HRCP tries to get angry students to open up and talk about rights
Students are angry with the government’s policies regarding the province, said SU pro-VC.
KARACHI:
An angry student with a burning question disrupted a simple conference organised by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan in the Senate Hall of the University of Sindh.
“If the Baloch people can talk about independence, why can’t we?” asked Kashif Samejo, a student from the English department the HRCP representatives on Saturday. “This entire conference is a drama, why don’t you do anything about the human rights violations by the intelligence agencies and the armed forces?”
Ghazi Salahuddin, an HRCP council member responded in a calm manner and said that yes, it was a drama but it was a drama that gave him the liberty to stand up and express his anger. He added that the HRCP had always raised a voice against human right violations but it was never enough as young people never came forward to support them.
According to the university vice chancellor Dr Nazir A Mughal, the students should overcome their ignorance and educate themselves about human rights and tolerance. The HRCP vice chairperson Amaranth Motumal, said the HRCP wanted young people to work with them. “We are reaching out to schools and want to involve children in simple exercises that will give them an insight into other religions,” he said.
A philosophy professor, Prof. Amar Sindhu, was very enthusiastic about the steps being taken by the HRCP and said that if we were an intolerant society then our institutions would also be intolerant.
Sindhu then asked the audience if they felt that people from different religions were equal citizens in the country. “Can an Amar Sindhu and an Amarnath Motumal stand as equal citizens? It is important for us to understand and answer this question!” he said. “We need to ask ourselves if intolerance is a historical phenomenon of the Sindhu Dharti [Sindh] or if it has been nurtured by the state that is now known as Pakistan.”
Ghazi Salahuddin, a council member of the HRCP, said that he was fascinated by how new ideas had evolved in universities. Speaking about the economic crisis in Pakistan, he referred to the Great Depression in America. “Franklin Roosevelt articulated the Four Freedoms: freedom of expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear and we should work towards that,” he said.
The Faculty of Law dean Prof. Jhamat Mal said that the army and the agencies were to blame if they failed in catching criminals. “I request you to never think about breaking up Pakistan. The games being played by the agencies and establishment are getting weaker,” he said. “We can break their shackles by being united, not by breaking up.”
Later, while talking to The Express Tribune, Salahuddin said that the students in SU were angrier than the rest but had an open mind.
The pro-vice chancellor of the university, Dr Parveen Shah said that the students were angry with the government’s policies regarding the province. However, she said that if people were still under the impression that the province would thrive after independence, then they were wrong.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 26th, 2011.
An angry student with a burning question disrupted a simple conference organised by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan in the Senate Hall of the University of Sindh.
“If the Baloch people can talk about independence, why can’t we?” asked Kashif Samejo, a student from the English department the HRCP representatives on Saturday. “This entire conference is a drama, why don’t you do anything about the human rights violations by the intelligence agencies and the armed forces?”
Ghazi Salahuddin, an HRCP council member responded in a calm manner and said that yes, it was a drama but it was a drama that gave him the liberty to stand up and express his anger. He added that the HRCP had always raised a voice against human right violations but it was never enough as young people never came forward to support them.
According to the university vice chancellor Dr Nazir A Mughal, the students should overcome their ignorance and educate themselves about human rights and tolerance. The HRCP vice chairperson Amaranth Motumal, said the HRCP wanted young people to work with them. “We are reaching out to schools and want to involve children in simple exercises that will give them an insight into other religions,” he said.
A philosophy professor, Prof. Amar Sindhu, was very enthusiastic about the steps being taken by the HRCP and said that if we were an intolerant society then our institutions would also be intolerant.
Sindhu then asked the audience if they felt that people from different religions were equal citizens in the country. “Can an Amar Sindhu and an Amarnath Motumal stand as equal citizens? It is important for us to understand and answer this question!” he said. “We need to ask ourselves if intolerance is a historical phenomenon of the Sindhu Dharti [Sindh] or if it has been nurtured by the state that is now known as Pakistan.”
Ghazi Salahuddin, a council member of the HRCP, said that he was fascinated by how new ideas had evolved in universities. Speaking about the economic crisis in Pakistan, he referred to the Great Depression in America. “Franklin Roosevelt articulated the Four Freedoms: freedom of expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear and we should work towards that,” he said.
The Faculty of Law dean Prof. Jhamat Mal said that the army and the agencies were to blame if they failed in catching criminals. “I request you to never think about breaking up Pakistan. The games being played by the agencies and establishment are getting weaker,” he said. “We can break their shackles by being united, not by breaking up.”
Later, while talking to The Express Tribune, Salahuddin said that the students in SU were angrier than the rest but had an open mind.
The pro-vice chancellor of the university, Dr Parveen Shah said that the students were angry with the government’s policies regarding the province. However, she said that if people were still under the impression that the province would thrive after independence, then they were wrong.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 26th, 2011.