ISLAMABAD: A wave of criticism erupted on the social networking websites following Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MNA Arif Alvi’s statement in Quatrina Hosain’s talk show about giving in to the Taliban’s demands of separate schools for boys and girls. Later the MNA cleared his stance saying people should have the right to choose.
During the show, aired on Wednesday, Alvi stated that the Talibans made four demands and one of them was about an end to co-education.
Discussing the demands of Taliban, Alvi said, “If they (Taliban) do not want co-education in the area, let’s just stop it.”
However, a day later, Alvi tweeted, "The government should allow separate schools for boys and girls in areas where people don’t prefer co-education system.
On Quatrina Husain's show regardng co-education I said that in areas where people want boys and girls schools separate we should let them
— Dr. Arif Alvi (@ArifAlvi) June 20, 2013
Giving example of separate churches for boys and girls in the West, Alvi said people should have the right to choose.
Churches and Western countries have separate boys & girls schools. People have a right to choose which school shud they send children to
— Dr. Arif Alvi (@ArifAlvi) June 20, 2013
Alvi added that the choice whether there should be co-education or not should be made democratically.
Choice whether there shud be co-education or not shud be made democraticaly & not under pressure,by parents, local and provincial governmnts
— Dr. Arif Alvi (@ArifAlvi) June 20, 2013
Following his talk in Hosain’s show, the PTI MNA was criticised on social media for giving in to the Taliban’s demands of separate schools for boys and girls.
The show host also tweeted, saying:
@UmairaAhmed1 @MohsinSayeed The point is any coed schools shouldn't be banned cos Taliban want it. Not in PTI manifesto. So why endorse it?
— Quatrina (@QuatrinaHosain) June 19, 2013
Arif Alvi did NOT say ppl have right to choose between coed or not. I did. He advocated shutting them. C show on facebook/dchowk
— Quatrina (@QuatrinaHosain) June 20, 2013
I did not tweet extensively re Arif Alvi's comments cos PTI's online trolls are incoherent. See show yrself now and judge.
— Quatrina (@QuatrinaHosain) June 20, 2013
COMMENTS (80)
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Arif Alvi should first make a segregate his clinic for men and women before demanding segregation of schools based on gender.
@Maryam: Perhaps educated in schools and universities but have not learnt to thnk soundly. What the Talibans are supporting is very basis of democracy, the evolution and not a revolution, a diversity of education methodologies and not a rigidly fixed standard as in former communist . Pakistan is a former colony of the the anglo saxon whse education profile does not encourage critical thinking but practices the parroting of the text books material, more or less similar to the teaching of scriptures, just to get the grades and move on to higher classes and the university. Pakistan needs revolutionary education reforms at least for the coming generations. How does one explain to people who do not soundly think, are fearful of others and lack the trust to look at issues objectively? Your narrating personal experiene could help.
Rex Minor
The basic problem seems with all educated muslim people is, they study and read and try to understand and follow each book EXCEPT QUR'AN and SUNNAH..... if they dare to know the teachings of islam then there is no questions for co-ed or not and many other prolems would have been solved. Islam is a complete package as how to live a LIFE.not a 5 times pray, fasting Zakat n hajj only.. and its a fashion to label TALIBAN to anyone who talks about the religion.. I condemn the Talibanization and imposition of their style of islam that is one extreme BUT another extreme is who talks about the liberalism and secularism.
A Humble request, prior to commenting on any issues, first read n know what are the teachings of islam if we consider ourself as muslim.... We all are answerable on the day of judgement, so ponder what is right and what is wrong instead of playing in the hands of Taliban and Librals...
Regards
@Aysha M (original version):
"PTI is 'metastasizing' into something dangerous"? I like it when a MQM troll uses big words. It makes them seem more intelligent for a difference. I'm guessing that you're a medical student.
Sick Mind of PTI Members is coming out day by day.Be ready for more surprises
The first priority in KPK has to be education even if it involves seperating boys and girls schools! Atleast they will educate the common masses! Go arif alvi!
A BUNCH OF "EDUCATED PEOPLE" commenting and bashing here against PTI ignoring ground realities. Please please please try to understand the ultimate goal which is to educate people by any mean. Then why are you creating fuss among it by deciding to where they should send their children? Let them open the separate schools as education in separate schools is much better than sitting at home and not sending girls to schools by making an excuse of co-education. Everyone sholud support the educational process rather than creating hurdles. When one generation will get education, than they will be open to accept co-eduation. P.S. I am living in Islamabad and have many friends who were not able to attend university just because of co-education. By opening women universities, atleast they can obtain degrees so what is better in your opinion.. No education due to co-education system OR getting education in a separate educational system? Afterall we all are here to promote education, aren't we?????
Bowing down to ideology of Taliban is very dangerous. People should be given choice where they want to sent their children. If making separate girls and boys school helps, go ahead, but dont do it because Taliban wants so.
Pakistan is not a homogeneous country, just like India. In India most areas prefer coed but in some areas like bengal, coeducation is not much popular. Its people's call.
Do whatever you like, but don't let Taliban force-feed you their culture.
Greetings from India !
After the 'dreams' of electoral whitewash, rebellion, naya pakistan and all other non-coherent catch phrases and motherhood statements, the truth has kind-of come a bit too early.. !
1) PTI is not an ideological movement. Its cadres are filled with turncoats, lotas and opportunists.
2) The thinking beyond that of a select group of people still is driven out of the feudal, tribal and obsolete mindset on issues like honour, education and sovereignty.
3) The honey-moon seems to be over rather quickly and all the exalted, unrealistic and unachievable expectations from PTI on governance or 'naya-pakistan' are materialising.
4) Its leaders and its representatives in the parliament (although a fraction of what they expected) are as devoid of discipline and in understanding and relaying PTI's policies as the PTI trolls that just abuse and call anyone questioning its policies or statements as "IK Hater".
5) The juvenile love affair is going to get un-wrapped rather quickly and in broad day light and in front of tens of millions of super-charged Pakistanis and beyond who thought of IK as some kind of messiah !
IK and PTI are in reality a 'sexy' version of the clergy - Nothing else !
With each passing day PTI supporters are finding it extremely hard to defend their party's actions but it's just the beginning. Ibtada-e- ishq hai rota hai kya Aagay dekhiyay hota hai kya
Why do I see so fuss here? It was more of a political statement to accommodate the sentiments of Taliban. Btw whatever he said was from no angle antithetical to our values. We need quality education. Whoever we study with doesn't matter much. Enough PTI haters!
PS. I support secular educational system.
What this has to do with Taliban? this everybody's democratic right to choose!!! ET get of PTI case please..
The problem with PTI is that it is a right wing fundamentalist political party with some liberal leaders and a lot of liberal supporters. They hold majority in the most conservative and backward province. This is a huge dichotemy and the PTI is totally confused as to what it wants to be when it grows up.
@Fatima: Shariah courts should be closed down. This is an added complexity to the legal system and adds no value.
After watching news coming out of kpk and pti , my sister is already regretting why she voted so called (naya Pakistan) in NA - 250 . And the funny thing is its just the beginning...... haha.
co education is not an issue. Both mode of education should be available. its people's choice to select one that suits them.
I completely agree with Areif Alvi. Our goal should be education. We should respect others culture & customs
The Taliban are against education for women, that's why they've burned hundreds of girls' schools besides shooting Malala. So the next thing Mr. Alvi should demand is the closure of all girls' schools in the country, followed by shooting all those who support education for girls. I don't think PTI is going to succeed in KPK, considering that they've made an alliance with the Jamaat-e-Islami, a fervent women-hating party. Why doesn't the PTI devote some funds to cloning, so that the whole problem is solved? Only males should be produced by cloning, until the whole KPK is rid of all girls. No girls' schools, no co-education, problem solved!
Anyone who wants to push an extremist agenda would always say that it is for the people to decide. They know it well that the agencies will either not provide or are not capable of providing protection to the moderates and that the extremists are powerful and fearful to push their agenda.
right so based on mr alvi's logic, if people by majority decide not to send their girls to school at all ... that shud be legislated too?!
He is asking everyone to respect wishes of the people of a certain city or area. What's wrong with it? This is democracy, people. If someone doesn't want their kids in co-ed schools, you can't force it on them. Just like you can't force segregated schools in areas where people prefer co-education. Live and let live... a brand new concept in Pakistan. No wonder there is such a reaction.
@Zain: if you are so against the Sharia, why not close down all sharia courts?
The hypocrisy of our people, they pray 5 times a day, go to Haj and get caught all the time mixing water in milk and other stuff in our food products even medicines are not spared. Some of them even swindle the Hajis and don't blink an eye for amassing the ill gotten money. I hear that lots of people watch pornography in Pakistan on Internet, and what do they think they are doing. Some of these people have affairs going on with other people's wives, daughters and sisters and yet they want to safe guard their daughters and sisters etc. Morally it is wrong even to watch pornography and let alone having affairs, this kind of hypocrisy is not confined to Pakistan but even the most educated and prosperous countries in the world has the same blight. So it all comes down to human emotions and feeling for other human beings, some call it love and others call it lust. Believe me I have seen the lust in Mullah's as well as in the preachers eyes. We are all just humans.
Brilliant!! have separate schools for girls... makes an easy target to blow up... doesn't it?
Looks like a PTI bashing day today. 3 news items in ET bashing PTI. Could this be in response to the landmark opening speech of IK in Parliament yesterday?
I don't understand the big hoopla about co-education, I went to schools in Mardan where the girls and the boys had their own schools, Mardan college did not have co-education, the only time I saw co-education was for little kids in Convent School at Risalpur and professional colleges at Peshawar University.Hey, I got a news for Taliban and their sympathizers that if girls and boys even from separate schools system want to get together, they will and believe me they did and still do. We are all humans and humans do have emotions and feelings, so no matter what they want , boys and girls will always be boys and girls unless you lock them up in some dungeons for 24/7.
great. create more gender segregation so there are even more problems with people turning into violent, intolerant abusive monsters towards the opposite gender.
@Zubair:
Good point. Not only Europeans but the Americans as well, though they are financed by the Talbens! Hillary Clinten went to women's college and now Pakistan elites are sending their fully clad and vvered students there as well but without the curtain. Pakistanis must learn the purpose of sending children to the schools, it is not limited to learning maths and reading history but for 'BILDUNG' ,education plus which +++++ makes her or him a useful being for his community. Imran Khan without his exposer to Oxford would have ended up as a sports teacher in a school..
Needless to remark that female students receive higher grades in womens only institutions.
Rex Minor
@Ramses the 2nd: Here is the thing...Education is a basic right! You can't vote on a basic right. A girl has as much right to go to school as a boy does...but if a family in a village doesn't send their little girl to school because they are not comfortable with their girl going to Co-ed school then you must give them the option of a segregated school. I live in Karachi and went to The City School. It's one of the more prestigious schools in the nation. During seventh grade our school decided to segregate boys and girls. The decision didn't impact my education nor my way of thinking. Education is the issue. Why are PTI haters and the media wasting their time on this whole co-ed comment. Why not talk about ways of making EDUCATION widely available?
@ahmer:
Chalo...the government just started ..they are trying to make a move to make education common..who cares with or without co education.....but no some of us want an over night change...!!!
I don't think he said anything wrong. Boys and girls schools should be seperate. It is not a question of liberalism but of practicality and freedom. I have been a student in both a coed and an only girls school at different points of my life. And the freedom I had in a girls school was so much more than the one in the coed school. So it all depends what works for a society, family and the individual.
Did someone said NAYA PAKISTAN??
Why do we need education at all?
SHAME ON YOU TRIBUNE....just shame on you media...!!!!!!!!!
Making joke of the country...!!!!!!!!
Ok there is some thing wrong with Pakistan..please dont turn yourself into Turkey...
The man said is right if some community doesnt want to go to co education than why force them...wht does this has to do with Taliban....!!!!! I thought freedom of speech means that wht ppl want under law should be allowed.....!!!!!!!
I live in Islamabad and there is no coed govt school here. What is the difference if they make gender segregated schools in more conservative areas?
Please come to West and see the horrors of co-education.
so arif alvi, how about giving the women in KPK the freedom to choose to live as they want, the freedom to decide if they can go out of the house, freedom to decide whether they want to wear a burqa or not, etc etc. While ou are at it, please also tell your taliban friends to let people choose what religion they want to follow....
@Usman: so why are you on this site and reading news??
Yes, lets do it the democaratic way. Why do these champions of democaracy in Pakistan has problems with democracy?
Well done PTI!
What people are forgetting is 'giving into Taliban's pressure' .. this is the crux. It shows how shallow and weak-boned KPK is. The debate isn't about co-ed or not, its about being firmly against Talibans.
It's a ticking bomb to see if terrorism and corruption will be eradicated 90 days in KPK from now , as promised by CM KPK.
Ermm...the Taliban are not in favour of education for girls AT ALL!!! ..who wrote this story?
So according to your logic Mr Arif Alvi we should also ban education for girls in areas where the people do not want the girls to go to school?
"Churches and Western countries have separate schools for boys and girls".
That is right but we do not have the resources to divide a 'scarce resource like eductation' on an equal basis on equal standards. It is cheaper to make one school than make two of an equal standard for two groups. When you make separate schools for boys and girls, you have to keep the quality and standard of education equal. This together, with providing a piece of land and building separately for boys and girls is not monetarily feasible. Education is scarce. Teachers are scarce. We cannot afford separate schools for different groups.
Interesting situation. PTI is known for its mixed gatherings and music. Now they are talking of gender segregation in schools. This anomaly is apparent in the tweets of their leader. PTI, predominantly comprises of moderate people who are forced to tow the right wing line. This unnatural stance will have to change sooner or later.
Not because Taliban wants it BUT at places such as tribal areas where they want seperate schools I say why not? Education is important and we should not provide unwilling parents to have an excuse for not sending their daughters to school.
ET has started a new business of taking selective tweets and start posting it :D. Coed or not, we need education first. If the people are getting education specially in far away places, coeducation issue should not be matter of hue and cry. Perfect example of how to strat wasting time on petty issues leaving aside all the most imprtant things to deal with.
"The government should allow separate schools for boys and girls in areas where "people" don’t prefer co-education system, tweeted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) MNA Arif Alvi on Thursday."
Arif Alvi i think you actually meant "The government should allow separate schools for boys and girls in areas where "taliban" don’t prefer co-education system.
Why don't you give the whole country on a platter to the TTP?
He is right..let people decide...where are seculars most cherished values of respecting people choices....So let the same principle applies..Hail Democracy
I do not demand co-education in conservative areas where people looking for reasons/excuses to not to send their daughters to schools. Girls education should take priority and should NOT be compromised because of co-education.
Media is carefully diverting PTI and People's attention from real issues. Is coed really that important to discuss at this stage? Pakistan is going through the hard time. Economy, security, terrorism and sovereignty are important issues to resolve. PTI members shall very carefully choose the talk shows and the type of topic they will be discussing in it before they join them.
Education for every one, either its co or not!
Another MNA of PTI, Ali Muhammad Khan, demanded imposition of Sharia.
"Areas where people dont prefer" - Yes: there are certain "areas" where PTI wants to butter up the forces that control the areas by coercion (ie, militants controlling tribal areas) and wants to remain in their good books by giving them what they want. Why should there be different standards in different "areas" of Pakistan?
whats wrong in it he didnt say abolish co education, whats in co education that is so important.? what if you want co education and other dont, whats wrong it in simply because taliban against co education so you would label any one who talks against it as taliban sympathizer?
i am for co education but it doesnt mean i criticize and label others who dont want it.
I can almost laugh on his saying people in west choose between the two types too. it is true but is it really the reason why the Taliban are demanding this Mr Arif Alvi? Freedom of choice for what? and then at some point they ll ask for separate universities, colleges, workplaces and may be even hospitals. then? and of course if they would nt be able to do this, they ll not let their women study and work. will these women who pass their degrees from women universities be allowed to work? will they have the freedom to choose? i seriously doubt this, considering the background of the area we are talking about. So you need to see where your argument goes
PTI should not even open this topic, its adjusted and accepted in the system. Choice of Co-education or separate schools are already available in our society. Lets not bring this discrimination in dirty politics. Dr. Alvi we voted you not for this but for true and honest representation. Please avoid
What Is The Best way To Improve Our Literacy Rate In Pakistan Should Be The Priority. Don't Waste Your Time Between What Crusaders / Taliban Wants. Please Stay Focus.
we need to understand the cultural and customery difference between metropolitan city like karachi and a small city in KPK eg. Mardan. In pathan culture, it is not considered appropriate for boys and girls to mix with eachother even on social occassions. It is not strange for PTI to go for seperate schools for boys and girls in KPK as this is the cultural practice there and by all means better than not sending girls to school.
Good decision PTI.
Thanks God PTI lost and I am certain next time Alvi isnt winning from 250 thats certain and i know moderates will make life miserable for them!
This is very realistic approach. I agree with what he has said
People should have the right to choose where to send their children to get education. Acting like a dictator and forcing your views on others is not acceptable whether they are leftist views or rightist.
PTI metastasizing into something really dangerous
@Ash: PTI has already disassociated itself from the Qadri comment. The MNA making the comment was stating his personal opinion. And as far as this issue is concerned, what's wrong? people should have the choice where they want to study, whether it's co-ed or single gender. Western countries have both co-ed and single-sex schools. What do you find contradictory in Alvi's words? I think you need help mate.
The priority right now should be to improve access to education and increase the enrollment rates. If the gender separation helps to do it, then go for it.
@Ash:
I heard ignorance is a blessing and in your case it seems true.
First understand what he is saying, before passing your biased comments
@Ash: You are sick. What's wrong with separate schools and colleges for boys and girls? Yes, I condemn the MNA's statement to the extant of Qadri.
He is right. Even in Europe, they have separate schools and colleges for boys and girls. Euorpean have Taliban mentality????????
I don't know how to say this but apparently MQM is the only hope for a liberal, secular Pakistan ruled by educated middle-class. Curse all you want but they are the only ones openly raising voice against extremism and in support of all minorities.
This is ridiculous, first of all education should be devolved to the lowest level, so how the local and provincial government be ignored? Most importantly, who ignores the parents? They should be encouraged to make choices on what they feel best for their children not sidelined! What a disappointment. Perhaps tomorrow the Taliban can dictate what we can eat for dinner and parliament can legislate on it.
Even in interior sindh not a single school is co education except few primary schools .. then why creating a fuss abt co education in war zone like KPK? ..
What else can you expect from followers of taliban khan ?
Why do I find such news on ET only? ET news are hardly reliable.
Very well done PTI, the rigth to choose is a democratic way!
True colors of PTI are getting clear with each passing day. At one end one of their MP has demanded release of Qadri while at other end Mr. Alvi is showing what PTI is all about! this is sick.