Fighting extremism

This refers to the article ‘Eradicating extremism’ (December 6) by Kamila Hyat. It is true that extremism in its various forms and nuances has made inroads everywhere in the society. But religious extremism is perhaps more ubiquitous and often turns into violent acts of terrorism, causing breach of public order. The law-enforcement agencies have to then move in to restore peace and apprehend the criminals.

Even though the chairman of the HEC has suggested that extremism cannot be tackle while madressahs still exist, closing down madressahs will only add to the number of children out of school. He should look into the rising trend of extremism, intolerance and violence of all sorts in institutions of higher learning affecting the quality of education at these institutions. The divisions in our education sector have divided the students into privileged and deprived classes with unequal opportunities for advancement. The present government is reportedly working on a unified system of education. This is a step in the right direction. The envisaged system must provide the requisite knowledge and skills to students so that they can serve the needs of the country adequately.

M Zubair Farooqui

Islamabad