Solutions without violence

The problems that students are facing this year, in particular due to the Covid-19 pandemic, online classes, and the natural reluctance to gather together in a closed space for exams, is a phenomenon not suffered by Pakistan alone, but experienced around the world. However, most countries have been able to find solutions of one kind or the other without resorting to the kind of violence we saw on Monday, when students belonging to the Progressive Students Collective staged protests in Lahore. Police reacted by baton-charging and beating the unarmed protesters, who also included girls among their ranks, and treating them as if they were a dangerous mob rather than young people simply asking for the right to be kept safe from the coronavirus and also demanding a reduction in hostel fees given that they would have to stay at hostels should exams be given in person and on campus.

The education minister has taken note of the problem but said the final decision will lie with the city bureaucracy. Shafqat Mahmood has also said it is also essential that all students be able to give exams and that access to the internet and WiFi not hamper them. This has been a problem for students in remote northern areas, in Balochistan and other places all through the year with access to the internet not even available to some students. There is also a demand from Shafqat Mahmood that exams be of a good standard and quality not be dropped in order to accommodate the new measures that may be required this year. This is a genuine requirement. But the best way would be to sit together with the students and find a way around it. Most students do not want their studies to be impacted or to get by by giving easy exams, which would put them at a disadvantage in the future. In other nations, ways have been found to set online exams which can be accessed by students who sometimes collect at a centre close to their hometown where invigilators can offer them WiFi and other facilities. We need to think of innovative solutions and innovative means to set papers as well. At the same time, the question of hostel fees has to be addressed – again in consultation with the students.

The threats made to students at PIMS are completely unacceptable. The college, under an ordinance brought in under the PTI government, is being privatised and students there are protesting high fees. The same problem may be faced by other colleges. This is a matter which requires a gathering of all those involved in education so that the immediate problem of exams and longer-term problems like privatisation can be addressed in a sensible and thoughtful manner, which is fair to all students.