Support pours in against 'undemocratic' rules as students take to roads across country

[Lincoln]

Support pours in against ‘undemocratic’ rules as students take to roads across country

by News Desk

November 29, 2019




Ministers, leaders of opposition parties, journalists as well as rights activists have voiced their support for marchers as students across the country take to roads for 2019 edition of the Students’ Solidarity March and press the authorities for better educational facilities.

The marchers insist that the government must ensure the following:

• Lift the ban and hold elections for student unions
• Abandon privatisation of educational institutes and reverse the recent decision of school and college fee hike
• The state should pledge free education for all
• No more budget cuts for the Higher Education Commission (HEC) or sacking of educational staff
• At least five per cent of the GDP should be allocated for education
• Abolish the semester system
• Lift the ban on students from participating in political activities
• End the intervention of security forces in educational institutions and release all students held captive in the name of national security
• Establish committees to investigate incidents of sexual harassment and ensure women are made a part of the setup
• All universities should have a library, hostel and provide transport and an internet connection
• Modernise education systems according to the modern scientific requirements
• Set up schools and colleges in lesser developed areas and increase the quota of students coming from outside main cities
• Establish research centres for a transition from fossil fuel energy to renewable energy in public sector universities
• Announce April 13 as a national holiday to honour Mashal Khan

The march on Friday was held in over 50 cities across Pakistan, including Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Gilgit, parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) and interior Sindh.

Students, labourers, lawyers and rights union members all joined in as thoroughfares flooded with marchers holding banners, placards and red flags. Solidarity was also expressed with members of New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) as protests against fee hike continues across the border.

In a tweet, the Progressive Students’ Collective (PSC) shared the final locations for the march.


PSC@PSCollective_

Final locations of #StudentsSolidarityMarch organised by Students Action Committee today.

Lahore
Istanbul Chowk to Punjab Assembly
2.00 pm

Islamabad
Press Club to D-Chowk
2.00 pm

Rawlakot
A) Degree college to Zaheer Chowk
10.30 am
B) Poonch University to Main Road
11.00 am


317
4:25 AM - Nov 29, 2019
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Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chief Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari also lent his support to the marchers.

“The PPP has always supported student unions. The restoration of student unions by SMBB [late former prime minister Benazir Bhutto] was purposely undone to depoliticise society,” he tweeted.


BilawalBhuttoZardari

✔@BBhuttoZardari
· 5h

The PPP has always supported Student unions. The restoration of student unions by SMBB was purposely undone to depoliticize society. Today students are marching in the #StudentSolidarityMarch for the restoration of unions, implementation of right to education, 1/2


BilawalBhuttoZardari

✔@BBhuttoZardari

end to privatization of public universities, implementation of sexual harassment legislation, right to student housing & the demilitarization of campuses. The spirit of activism and yearning for peaceful democratic process from a new generation of students is truly inspiring. 2/2


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11:38 AM - Nov 29, 2019
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“Today students are marching in the #StudentSolidarityMarch for the restoration of unions, implementation of right to education, end to privatisation of public universities, implementation of sexual harassment legislation, right to student housing & the demilitarisation of campuses. The spirit of activism and yearning for a peaceful democratic process from a new generation of students is truly inspiring [sic].”

Earlier in the day, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhary also came out in support of the restoration of student unions and termed the ban “undemocratic”.


Ch Fawad Hussain

✔@fawadchaudhry

I fully support Restoration of students unions, ban on students unions is anti democratic,we can always ensure that students politics must remain violence free and regulations may be introduced for smooth functioning but ban on students politics amounts to limit future politics


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Federal Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari wrote:


Shireen Mazari

✔@ShireenMazari1
· 6h

In my 16 plus years teaching in a public sector Uni in Pak, I have seen the damage ban on student unions did to our students. Instead of students from diff backgrounds coming together in a Student Union, we had students collecting together under ethnic & sectarian groups


Shireen Mazari

✔@ShireenMazari1

Causing polarisation. What is needed is not a ban on Student Unions but clear rules - which Unis shd enforce - so that student unions function effectively as they do in other parts of the world - learning tolerance & accommodation of the other.


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10:18 AM - Nov 29, 2019
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Among others who expressed support for student marchers were politicians including PPP’s Farhatullah Babar, former Awami National Party (ANP) parliamentarian Bushra Gohar and journalists, including Mazhar Abbas.


Farhatullah Babar@FarhatullahB

We stand by and with #StudentSolidarityMarch. Ban on unions unacceptable, intimidating presence of uniform on campuses unacceptable, forced occupation of students space by uniform unacceptable, shrinking space for intellectual infrastructure in name of 5G war unacceptable https://twitter.com/AroojAurangzaib/status/1200228371936022528 …

Arooj Aurangzaib@AroojAurangzaib

A thread on the complete list of all the locations where #StudentsSolidarityMarch has been organised by the Students Action Committee today.

Wherever you are! Whoever you are!
Please join the #StudentsSolidarityMarch today! https://twitter.com/pscollective_/status/1200224316396318722 …


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7:41 AM - Nov 29, 2019
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Bushra Gohar

✔@BushraGohar

Join #StudentsSolidarityMarch today - Demilitarise Campuses; Restore Student Unions...



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9:49 AM - Nov 29, 2019
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Mazhar Abbas@MazharAbbasGEO

Time to restore Student Unions. Support Student Solidarity March, today.


762
7:20 AM - Nov 29, 2019
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Earlier, the PSC and other organisations from all over Pakistan had formed the committee (SAC) at a national level to demand the revival of student unions and other issues. Representatives of student organisations from Sindh, Balochistan, Gilgit Baltistan, KP, AJK and Punjab are part of the SAC.

According to Dawn, over the past three weeks, SAC office bearers have conducted corner meetings in public and private educational institutions to hold the march in their respective areas. They said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had left students dejected and directionless and reduced the higher education budget to almost half, bringing Pakistan into the list of countries that spend very less on education.

Ahead of the march, scores of Pakistani student leaders studying at international universities have also voiced their support for the march.

In an open letter addressed to the government, students have come together under the banner of the Pakistan International Students Alliance (PISA) and registered opposition to the ban on student unions.

https://thecurrent.pk/politics/poli...les-as-students-take-to-roads-across-country/

 

[POTTER]

Bunch of Chutias.

 

[El Sidd]

So the Talibans aka Students are demanding their rights in Ryasat e Madina?

Whoever is surprised needs to watch 1992 World Cup videos.

 

[Lincoln]

So the Talibans aka Students are demanding their rights in Ryasat e Madina?

Whoever is surprised needs to watch 1992 World Cup videos.

Exactly, lmao.

Bunch of Chutias.

Fascists ko chot tou lagi gi.

 

[Verve]

Hybrid war is unrelenting ... One attack after another.

 

[Lincoln]

Hybrid war is unrelenting ... One attack after another.

Lmao. Alhumdulillah, students from Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Multan, Swat, Muzaffarabad, and in over 50 cities, took to this march.

This is not a hybrid war, this is reality. Wake up.

Hybrid war is unrelenting ... One attack after another.

What part of their demands are wrong? In fact, as the claimer of Riasat-e-Medina, claiming to building a social welfare state which priorities education and merit, these demands should not be a problem.

 

[B.K.N]

So the Talibans aka Students are demanding their rights in Ryasat e Madina?

Whoever is surprised needs to watch 1992 World Cup videos.

Not students but army haters read tweets in OP
Students don't have time for these things and those students who beat their teachers at roads join these type of unions

 

[El Sidd]

Not students but army haters read tweets in OP
Students don't have time for these things and those students who beat their teachers at roads join these type of unions

Let me take a wild guess. They are all paid Indian agents of 5th gen warfare?

Right?

 

[B.K.N]

Let me take a wild guess. They are all paid Indian agents of 5th gen warfare?

Right?

I don't know which country's agents they are but agenda is anti Pakistan
Those people who are supporting this movement can never support anything which is good for Pakistan

 

[Verve]

What part of their demands are wrong?

See below:

Lift the ban and hold elections for student unions

or sacking of educational staff

Lift the ban on students from participating in political activities

End the intervention of security forces in educational institutions and release all students held captive in the name of national security

Announce April 13 as a national holiday to honour Mashal Khan

 

[Path-Finder]

universities are producing marxist schills and not the future workforce.

 

[bananarepublic]

I don't know which country's agents they are but agenda is anti Pakistan
Those people who are supporting this movement can never support anything which is good for Pakistan

So demanding more funds for education is bad for Pakistan?

 

[Lincoln]

Let me take a wild guess. They are all paid Indian agents of 5th gen warfare?

Right?

They are human-like autobots made by the CIA many years in operation fuckiamretardedifibelievethis.

 

[El Sidd]

I don't know which country's agents they are but agenda is anti Pakistan
Those people who are supporting this movement can never support anything which is good for Pakistan

Your definition of good for Pakistan keeps changing after every election depending upon panchayts electables.

Even for the sake of discussion lets take your POV.

Does that mean Fuwwad and Shireen are anti Pakistani elements in the government by Indian mafia which PM keeps hinting?

 

[Lincoln]

Not students but army haters read tweets in OP
Students don't have time for these things and those students who beat their teachers at roads join these type of unions

Army haters, lol. Lol. Looooooooool.

Only 2 cards up your sleeves.

Army hater or anti national.

universities are producing marxist schills and not the future workforce.

University should be a place of free speech and thinking.