After facing sharp international backlash after the Pulwama terror attack, Pakistan has admitted the fact that there are Madrasas in Pakistan which are involved in ‘propagating terrorism’.
“There are over 30,000 madrasas. Out of these, only 100 are involved in propagating terrorism,” Major General Asif Ghafoor said while addressing a press conference in Rawalpindi.
He also added that several steps have also been initiated to bring these religious schools into the mainstream. “All madrasas will be brought under the Ministry of Education so that contemporary subjects can be taught. We will formulate a syllabus which will not have hate speech and students will be taught respect for different sects,” he said.
In Madrasa education system of Pakistan children spend most of the day memorizing the Quran. Madrasas are often ill-equipped for the modern world knowledge and some madrasas even act as breeding grounds for militant outfits.
Tensions between India and Pakistan have been rising after the deadly terror attack by a Pakistan based terror group in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, which killed more than 40 soldiers of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). India promptly assessed the situation after the terror attack and in a pre-emptive anti –terror strike , Indian Air force destroyed a major terror camp in Balakot, Pakistan in which according to intelligence reports, around 300 terrorist could have been killed in action.The Indian forces successfully entered in Pakistani territory and destroyed terror camps without being detected by Pakistan’s air-defense radar systems.
What followed the terror attacks was worldwide condemnation of terror outfits operating out of Pakistan which eventually transformed into strict diplomatic actions. Pakistan already struggling to gather funds to run its economy, has been trying hard to woo international lending agencies like the IMF to provide economic support.
This move by Pakistan may prima facie appear positive, however, Pakistan’s long standing record of weak credibility raises questions on whether these words will actually be converted to actions.
“In February, money was allotted to bring the seminaries into the mainstream. To control the welfare activities of proscribed organizations, the government has made a system to mainstream their social activities,” Ghafoor said. He added that to bring the madrasas into the mainstream, they will have to start teaching other subjects so that students have skills other than religious knowledge.
Initial investment of 2 billion PKR is required and another 1 billion PKR to continue the mainstreaming, “We will provide these funds so that these madrasas are mainstreamed and all of our children have equal opportunities,” he said.
Ghafoor also added Pakistan would pay for the madrasas by diverting cash to education from the cost of anti-terrorism security operations, which are less necessary because militant attacks have sharply declined in recent years.
However, with the economy in tatters it seems highly unlikely that Pakistan would be willing to spend such a huge amount on education which has traditionally taken a back seat in Pakistani agenda. Adding to the problems, the money diverted from anti-terror operations, the security condition in Pakistan is sure to further deteriorate.