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CAMPUS VIOLENCE

Leaderscan Help Students Out of Vicious Circle

by Mofizuddin Ahmed
***It is not unknown to our different political parties what are the causes of present campus violence and therefore they may come forward to help the country out of the situation.***
NOW that a Parliament has been elected it is natural for us to expect that all democratic forces. Irrespective of their individual party interest, will combine to solve the vital problems that have been crippling the nation. One of such problems la the prevailing campus violence. If not solved under the present setup when true representatives of the people and a neutral President are in charge of national affairs, the chronic problem will cause irreparable damage deteriorating quality of education and dwindling its standard.
It Is indeed a hopeful sign that the Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia in her address to senior officials has made a mention of campus terrorism and need for stopping this evil. The present education minister Prof. A.Q.M. Badruddoza Choudhury who was a teacher and is fully aware of the prevailing situation, has constituted a committee with Prof. Kazi Saleh Ahmad. Vice Chancellor of Jahangirnagar University to study the problem and suggest remedial measures. I therefore consider it an opportune moment to deal with the problem as I see it from my long experience of teaching and student management.
Our education has its origin in the western countries. Its books and reading materials came from the west. Our scholars of repute received education in the west. Our the then rulers who Initiated education came from the wrest. Thus our education had and is still having tremendous western influence. It is thus natural that our students receiving such education would be imbued with values of western democracy and Its practices. Thus from early years of Dhaka University came the process of students union and election of Its office bearers by the stu-
dents. While auch processes were going on. movement for of Indian subcontinent started. Student community could no longer wait and Jumped Immediately into the great movement. This movement gained momentum and students in more numbers participated tn political activities, be that lawful, or unlawful, open or secret, and many gave their lives of the hands of cruel ad ministration. During the process came up the movement
for Pakistan Indian Muslim students by and large threw their forces behind this movement.
Following the birth of Pakistan our students were Immediately involved in the movement to establish Bangia as a State language of Pakistan Since then one movement after another brought the participation of the students Into the mainstream of national politics. Dhaka University emerged as the centre of student politics, sometimes becoming the centre of national politics Itself. Often the political forces took their cue from what the students did. Years of struggle for democracy ultimately culminated In the armed struggle for liberation tn 1971.
Against this bq kground let us turn to campus violence. Disagreement on any Impor tant political issue or even Im portant university affair may lead (tn fact tn the past led) to some forms of demonstrations or even serious student aglta tion. and such situations may perhaps be tackled success fully by teachers and university administration. But now cam pus violence — clashes be tween students groups leading to physical assault and in some
cases murder, armed attacks on different students’ rest dences and university campus, use of guns and other lethal weapons, and similar application of brutal force — is con tlnulng alarmingly Mild vio lence originated In mid-sixties when serious difference existed between political parties. Situation gradually became grave from early seventies. Many killings took place in universities and educational Institutions since then. So-called outsiders' and hood lums move on the campus freely with guns. Teachers and great majority of the students remain silent observers, being helpless The elements' raid the students' Halls, use their guns freely on the campus, explode bombs, and attack oppo-
nenla. The entire campus la at their mercy What had been done to stop this great menace?
Occasionally police raided the Haifa and recovered arms and lethal weapons and in some cases arrested some miscreants That reportedly turned to be. just a showi Most of those arrested came out through bac k doojs and Halls were refilled with fresh weaponry University and Hall authorities felt absolutely help-
less I am told that they even supplied lists of miscreants to the government but. 'regretfully, there were no or little effect. Inflow of arms and undesirable outsiders to the Haifa remain unabated The present violence is caused not only for political reasons but also to meet personal ends. Time is running out and action should be taken without delay to save the edifice of education from destruction.
When political parties care little for democratic norms and want to gain power by force, its effects are manifested in various ways. Campus violence Is one of such manifestations. Further when democratic power Is usurped without lawful means by say. the military, the situation
turns grave. Democratic forces not give up to this design resulting Into greater turmoil and conflicts In such agitation and movement young students are greatly attracted their fight manifests tn the educa ttonai Institutions In the pro cesses, with a view to gaining superiority, political parties, both ruling and opposition, even arm their supporters including students and musclemen And in such a situation political demonstrations may
as well be armed clashes. We have witnessed many such in cidents; no amount of efforts by teachers and officials of a university can contain such flare ups. If such hoodlums, musclemen and agents of evil force as allegedly find support In the government they would care a fig for administration and authorities. Police raids in the Halls and arms recovery become Just superficial at tempt and eye wash. Formation of committees and commissions may even meet similar consequence
The most Important point is the sincere efforts of gov ernment as well as opposition parties. It Is not unknown to our present MPs and for that matter to the different politi-
cal parties what are the causes of present campus violence and therefore the present MP* elerted by fair free and unpar Ual votes may come forward to help the country out of the devas tat lag sltaatlon
Ues is much more Let as re member that political prob lems must be solved pottUealiy and there to no other way
Most students are Indtvldu ally senate polite subnMsafvr and conscientious Many of them are much more know! editable than the students M our times and brilliant ones are comparable to world stan da rd
These students could tee turned Into admirable and ex eeilent products If they arc left along in the car of thetr leach ers and freed from the clutches of outside forces Our are made aware of the situation around them, be it socto-eco nomte or politics I They may be allowed to express freely within the academic frame work thetr opinion* on tmpor tant national and Internationa) matter* of interest They may work as watch-dogs. Their minds are sympathetic and just - yet to be polluted by evil design for selfish gain The whole nation to eagerly await Ing the fiction of the govern ment and opposition parties specially the present MIS and expects that they will help students out of the vicious circle
The writer Is Professor Emeritus. Dhaka University and was Rounder Vice-Chancellor. Jahangirnagar University Founder Chairman. Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Re search. Chairman, Bangladesh National Education Commission 11987]