Session Information
23 SES 06 A, Europe and Beyond
Parallel Paper Session
Contribution
This paper aims to critically examine the terror threats, attacks and uncertainty in Pakistan, Afghanistan and across the world that are planned and accepted by a special group called Taliban (Arabic word which means students) who seek education in madrassa (religious schools). Madaris (plural of madrassa) provide free religious education, boarding and lodging and are schools for poor. This is done first by historically reviewing the madrassa Education since Pakistan’s independence in 1947. The Deobandi madrassas, the ones most closely allied to the Taliban, went up from 1779 to over 20000 in number and with over two million children in attendance. There are a large number of unregistered madaris that have hardly any information available. It is argued that the vast majority of these seminaries are run on zakat (Islamic Tax) and are financed by businessmen and the rich class believing this act will earn them a blessed life and a peaceful hereafter. There are other madaris which are supported and funded by Iran and Saudi Arabia. Their influence on rural people and poorer sections of the urban merchant class will continue to increase as poverty increases. It is argued that Madaris in Pakistan are producing anti-Western, sectarian and sub sectarian bias. Second, the practice of teaching Arabic in varied instructional setting and classified education system on the basis of socio-economic background is described. Furthermore, the consequences of classification of education are discussed in the light of recent education policy of Pakistan. Madarasa students are always kept deprived by the ruling elites and they express their anger via the idiom of religion which as a result brings them in conflict with the Westernized elites. It then argues that the present education policy of Pakistan has nothing to do for the improvement and reformation of this class as the establishment always keep them disadvantaged, deprived and illiterate to use them for their own benefits time to time. It is argued that unless the poverty is not eradicated, the class system is not eliminated and literacy is not targeted Taliban will rise in number and power over night getting their circle of friends and supporters wider throughout the world.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
• Ahmad, Mumtaz. (2001) Continuity and Change in the Traditional System of Islamic Education: The Case of Pakistan. In Baxter, Craig and Kennedy, Charles H. (eds.), Pakistan 2000 Oxford pp. 182-194 • Ali, Saleem H. (2009) Islam and Education: Conflict and Conformity in Pakistan’s Madrassas. Karachi: Oxford University Press. • Candland, C. (2004). Religious education and violence in Pakistan. [Online] Available from: http://www.wellesley.edu/Polisci/Candland/MadarisViolence.pdf [Accessed 22nd Dec, 2009]. • Cooley, John L. 1999. Unholy Wars, Afghanistan, America and the International Terrorism. London: Pluto Press, 1999. • Farooq, Muhammad. (no date) Disciplining the Feminism: Girls’ Madrasa Education in Pakistan. [Online] Available from: http://www.gcu.edu.pk/FullTextJour/Hist/V3N205/P64-88.pdf [Accessed on 20th Dec 2009] • Mamdani, Mahmood. (2004) Good Muslims, Bad Muslims: America, the Cold War and the Roots of Terror. New York: Pantheon. • Metcalf, Barbara D. 1982. Islamic Revival in British India: Deoband 1860-1900. Princeton: Princeton University Press. • Mehar, Ijaz. 2010. The Role of Madaris in Extremism (online) Available from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/pakistan/2010/01/100110_punjab_ijaz2_zee.shtml (Accessed 13th Jan. 2010) • Rahman, Tariq. 2002. Language, Ideology and Power: Language-Learning among the Muslims of Pakistan and North India. Karachi: Oxford University Press. • Rahman, Tariq (2004) “Education in Pakistan: A Survey. In Baxter, Craig (ed.) Pakistan on the Brink: Politics, Economics and Society. Karachi: Oxford University Press. pp 171-190. • Rashid, Ahmed. (2000) The Taliban. New Haven CT: Yale University Press. • Riaz, Ali. (2005) Global Jihad, Sectarianism and the madrassas in Pakistan. RSIS Working Papers; 085/05 [online] Available from: https://dr.ntu.edu.sg/handle/10220/4482 [Accessed 19 Dec., 2009] • Singer, Peter, W. (2001) Pakistan’s Madrassas: Ensuring a System of Education not Jihad. [Online] Available from: http://www.brookings.edu/views/papaers/singer/20020103.htm [Accessed 20 Nov., 2009]
Search the ECER Programme
- Search for keywords and phrases in "Text Search"
- Restrict in which part of the abstracts to search in "Where to search"
- Search for authors and in the respective field.
- For planning your conference attendance you may want to use the conference app, which will be issued some weeks before the conference
- If you are a session chair, best look up your chairing duties in the conference system (Conftool) or the app.