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The Student Federations of Pakistan have been growing in popularity and significance over the past few years. This has been attributed to the increasing social disparity between the younger and older generation of the country. 66% of population of Pakistan is currently under the age of 30,[1] and approximately only 5% of the population is over the age of 65.[2] Researchers have noted the significance of political youth organizations in social environments such as these, and have project that the youth organizations in Pakistan will help define the future of the nation over the next few years.[3] Reporters have noted that Pakistan’s political climate is in a current state of divisive unrest. Political actions taken within the country have simultaneously sparked public celebrations and large scale riots.[4] Due to the demographics of the country, the population under the age of 30 has been very involved in these public actions, and the youth and student organizations within the country have been prominent in the formation of some of these actions.
Background[edit]
The first student political group in Pakistan was the Muslim Students Federation. Started in 1947, as a student wing of the Muslim League, the Muslim Students Federation held prominence in Pakistan until the Muslim League splinted shortly after coming to power.[5] The 1950’s saw the rise of two kinds of political student parties; Left leaning Marxist parties like the Democratic Students Federation,Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page). and religious right wing parties like the Islami Jamiat-e-Taleba.[6] The leftist groups were not treated kindly by the ruling powers at the time and in 1953 a protest lead by the Democratic Student Federation, the police shot into the crowd killing six students. Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page). The next year the same group was banned from the country for its possible ties to the Communist party of Pakistan, followed shortly thereafter by a ban of its successor group the All Pakistan Students Organization.[5] These groups were succeeded by yet another leftist group, the National Students Federation, which continues on to this day.[7]
The student unions in the 1960’s were characterized primarily as a struggle for power between the Maoist-Soviet leaning left and the religious right, with the leftist National Students Federation and the National Students Organization coming out on top. The 1970’s brought with it a rise in student political action as the 1974 Student Union Ordinance was passed.[8] This Ordinance actually encouraged student activity on campus, and several prominent new student organizations came into existence and grew during this time. Meanwhile the struggle between the Marxist and religious student associations grew, with both sides creating their own respective alliances, though both groups suffered from political infighting and splintering.
Through the late 1970’s and into the 1990’s the student groups began to clash violently with each other and the government, with assassinations and deadly conflicts becoming common. The political climate calmed down during the early 2000’s, but has in the past few years started to regain its violent characteristics.
Current Issues[edit]
There are currently three major issues driving the political activist groups in Pakistan. These issues are a lack of educational opportunities, jobs, and ideological differences.
Education[edit]
The public education system has three major problems facing it right now. First, there is a shortage of teachers and schools within the country. Approximately 33% of the children in Pakistan are not attending school, and even the ones who are may not have an actual teacher in the class room.[9] Second, the public education system is outdated by over 30 years. The textbooks used in the majority of public schools were written in the 1980’s and they tend to lead students to be more susceptible to adaptation into radical forms of Islam.[10] Third is the stark difference between the private and public education systems. The top ten percent of the country send their children to private schools that speak English, instead of Urdu, and most children coming out of the private education system tend to be dismissive of their Urdu-speaking counterparts. This is creating a strong communication and familial rift between the educated population of Pakistan.[10]
Several political youth organizations in Pakistan have recognized these problems and are trying to address them. For example the Pakistan Youth Movement has been trying to get more teachers to come to Pakistan,[11] and the Anjuman-e-Talaba-e-Islam states as part of its mission to help create equality amongst Muslim students.[12]
Jobs[edit]
The job market in Pakistan is not promising for students coming out of the education system. The unemployment rate in 2008 was estimated at 24.67%. This was attributed to a large part of the student population getting educated for technical jobs that are not in high demand in the country.[13] Approximately 85% of Pakistanis only make $2 per day, which is not an appealing prospect to college graduates in Pakistan.[14] This disparity of expectations is mobilizing factor behind a significant number of student federations.[10]
Ideological Difference[edit]
The student federations of Pakistan have been known to engage in fights over political, religious, ethnic, nationalist, and sectarian differences. Several students die each year in the physical confrontations that frequently break out between groups during protests.[15]
Islamic Sharia Groups[edit]
Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba[edit]
Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT) is the student wing of the Jimiat-e-Islam party in Pakistan. The IJT's stated mission is to, “eliminate the non-Islamic factors and the secularism from the curriculum and teachings of the educational institutions of Pakistan.”[6] The IJT was known in the 1980’s for its militant nature and was one of the student unions temporarily banned in 1984. Today the group is active and continues to be a source of recruits for the Jamiat-e-Islam Party,[16] though it is still known for its militant nature and deadly confrontations with the All Pakistan Muhajir Students Organization (over 26 members of the IJT have died in inter-group clashes).[15]
Anjuman-e-Talaba-e-Islam[edit]
Anjuman-e-Talaba-e-Islam (ATI) was founded in 1968 to help create equality amongst Muslim students.[17] The ATI has been known to hold demonstrations for Islamic and Pakistani causes. On February 7, 2013 they held a protest for Kashmir Solidarity Day and burned an Indian flag.[18] The ATI has also protested the existence of books that are not in line with their religious beliefs.[19]
Pakistan Islamic Students Federation[edit]
It is unclear when the Pakistan Islamic Students Federation (PISF or APISF) was founded, though its internet presence was established on February 24, 2012.[20] PISF is an Islamic group in Pakistan best known for its protests of Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen and the Danish cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad, where they called for the public hanging of the Danish cartoonists.[15] [21]
Imamia Students Organization[edit]
‘‘From Main Article:’’ Imamia Students Organisation
Imamia Students Organisation is a Shi'a Muslim students organisation in Pakistan. It was founded by Dr. Mohammad Ali Naqvi on 22 May 1972 at University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore. In 2012 it had "around 1200 units in Pakistan,"[22] covering all the five provinces of Pakistan, Tribal areas, Azad Jamu, Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan.
The Goal of this Organization is to set the lives of the young generation in accordance with the teachings of Quran and Mohammad-o-Aal-e-Mohammad (as), so that they may become good Human beings and Momins, and may defend the Highness of the Holy Religion and the geographical and ideological boundaries of Pakistan.[23]
Allegations were directed against ISO that they receive funding from Iran. ISO counters those allegations, stating that they only receive moral guidance from Iran.[22]
Muslim Student Federation[edit]
Muslim Student Federation is a conservative Indian political group that was started on September 1, 1937 in Calcutta, India.[24] The group has a wing in Pakistan that is lead by Rana Arshad.[24] The student federation has also been known to engage in fights with the Islamic Jamiat-e-Taliba[25] and exhibit an independent militant nature.[26]
Progressive and Marxist Groups[edit]
Democratic Students Federation[edit]
Democratic Students Federation (DSF) was founded in 1949, and being the oldest leftist student federation in Pakistan many other left leaning student political organizations can trace their heritage back to this group.[27] The DSF was banned in 1956 because of its political association with the communist party, which resulted in several other student groups forming from its ashes, like the National Students Federation and the Liberal Students Federation.[28] The DSF was allowed to reorganize in 1980, and grew in popularity because of its connection to the then powerful Soviet Union. This popularity faded after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the group restructured itself in 2011 to adapt to more current issues. The groups stated mission is to, “bring back the balance of power to the students in universities which is formerly lost.” [29]
National Students Federation[edit]
National Students Federation (NSF) was formed from the remnants of the Democratic Students Federation when it was banned in 1956.[28] The group is a self proclaimed revolutionary communistic left-wing student federation whose stated goals are to,
1) Struggle for a class free education system and all rights of the student community
2) Struggle for free education for all
3) Struggle for improvement in the conditions of all educational institutes
4) Promote peace, tolerance and unity amongst students
5) To link students with the international movements against capitalist, imperialist oppression.[30]
In 2008 the group was reorganized during the Lawyers’ Movement, and now primarily operates out of Punjab, though its values remain mostly the same.[31]
Liberal Students Federation[edit]
Liberal Students Federation was formed in 1973 as a faction group that split off from the National Students Federation.[28]
Peoples Students Federation[edit]
‘‘From Main Article:’’ Pakistan Peoples Party
Peoples Students Federation is a youth-led party organisation attempts to mobilise the youth for Peoples Party candidates for the Youth Parliament.[32] It also has the separate Trotskyist-Marxist wing, “The Struggle”, which is internationally affiliated with International Marxist Tendency (IMT); the student wing, the Peoples Students, a student-outreach organization with the goal of training and engaging a new generation of Pakistan Peoples Party. The Peoples Party also has an active military-street wing, the People's Committee, controversially affiliated with the Pakistan Peoples Party.[33]
All Pakistan Muhajir Students Organization[edit]
All Pakistan Muhajir Students Organization (APMSO) was founded in 1978 at the University of Karachi by Altaf Hussain.[34] Unlike other student political organizations, APMSO spawned its own national political party in 1984, the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM).[35] While the APMSO platform has some liberal elements to it, at its core it is the ethnic political party of the Muhajir, an Urdu speaking people who immigrated from India in 1947. [36] This student organization has also been involved in violent clashes with other student political organization, which have resulted in over 20 deaths since the group's founding.[15]
Liberal Democratic and Politically Unaligned Groups[edit]
Pakistani Youth Movement[edit]
Pakistani Youth Movement was started sometime in 2010 for the stated goal of harnessing the educated youth of Pakistan to make the country as a better place.[37] The group claims to not have any ties to political or religious entities, [38] and does not have the structured leadership normally found within a political party.[37] The group has posted videos about their active role in giving relief to flood victim and their support of the Teach for Pakistan Movement in 2011.[11]
Pakistan Youth Alliance[edit]
Pakistan Youth Alliance (PYA) is non-politically aligned youth driven relief and aid group.[39] Started in November 2007, the PYA has the stated goals to, “create political and social awareness amongst the youth of Pakistan,” and, “provide a platform to the youth through which, they can raise their voices against injustice, exploitation and other social ills of our society.”[40]
Pakistan Youth Council[edit]
Pakistan Youth Council (PYC) was started by Mian Muhammad Arfat in 2012, as a membership based democratically aligned youth organization.[41] The group’s mission is to, “create economic, political and social awareness among youth and enable them to protect and claim their rights e.g. education, health, employment and sports.”[42] The PYC has promoted the role of youth in politics through educational conferences and lobbying for age reduction for parliamentary candidacy.[43]
Youth Parliament of Pakistan[edit]
Youth Parliament of Pakistan (YPP) is a democratically oriented activism group started in 2006.[44] The group does not a political or religious affiliation, and primarily works on educating the youth of Pakistan about the ideas of democracy.[45] In 2009, YPP started the Youth Action for Democracy in collaboration with the United Nations Democracy Fund. This project was aimed at increasing democratic education and youth participation in politics in the districts of Punjab, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtoonkha, Sindh, and Azad Jammu Kashmir.[46]
List of Student Federations, Political Alliances, and Affiliations[edit]
Sources[edit]
- ^ Saeed Shah (November 20, 2009).British Council: Pakistan facing 'frightening' demographic disaster.The Telegraph. Accessed 2013-4-18
- ^ Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision
- ^ Michael Kugelman (Jannuary 2012). [http://www.peacebuilding.no/var/ezflow_site/storage/original/application/c530d5c5390dc83b08a97052c606ff57.pdf Prospects for youth-led movements for political change in Pakistan] Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Center
- ^ Hasnain Kazim (January 15, 2013). Unrest and Political Uncertainty: Pakistan Tumbles into Chaos Spiegel Online International, Accessed 2013-4-22
- ^ a b Nadeem F. Paracha. Student politics in Pakistan: A celebration, lament and history The Nadeem F. Paracha Works Archive
- ^ a b Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba Pakistan
- ^ NSF Facebook Page
- ^ Jayatsen Bhattacharya, (October 17, 2012). A catch he can't miss HindustanTimes Accessed 2013-4-22
- ^ Teach For Pakistan- Start the Movement
- ^ a b c Moeed Yusuf, (October 2008),ProsPects of Youth Radicalization in Pakistan: Implications for U.S. PolicyThe Brookings Project on U.S. Relations With the Islamic World
- ^ a b PYM Facebook Events
- ^ ATI Facebook About Page
- ^ Unemployment in Pakistan (Case Study)
- ^ Muhammad Naveed, (March 21, 2013). Unemployment In Pakistan FM Urdu Accessed 2013-4-22
- ^ a b c d Daily Times PakistanAccessed 2013-4-15
- ^ IJ Group ProfileGlobalSecurity.org Accessed 2013-4-22
- ^ ATI Facebook Profile
- ^ The Nation (February 7, 2013). Anjuman Talaba Islam condemns Indian atrocities in IHK
- ^ Punjab Study (July 11, 2011). Anjuman Talaba Islam Call Govt To Ban Novel
- ^ PISF Facebook Profile
- ^ Pakistan Denmark Prophet Drawings
- ^ a b Amir Rana and Waqar Gillani (November 24, 2003). Iran not funding ISO: Shirazi. DailyTimes.com. Accessed 2007-09-10.
- ^ Imamia Students Organization. ISOPakistan.net. Accessed 2008-05-09.
- ^ a b Muslim Student Federation (N)Formation of Muslim Student Federation Cite error: The named reference "MSF(N)" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ Owais Jafri (November 25, 2013).Campus violence: Three critical after students’ clashThe Express Tribune Accessed 2013-4-22
- ^ MUSLIM STUDENT FEDERATION • CHICHAWATNI PAKISTAN
- ^ Beena Sarwar, (August 22, 2011).Aur Nikle.nge Ushhaq ke Qafley - a documentary film on DSF (1949-54) 30 min (2010)
- ^ a b c Nadeem F.Paracha (February 10, 2008).Student politics: a brief historyDawn.com Accessed 2013-4-22
- ^ DSF Facebook Profile
- ^ NSF's Facebook Profile
- ^ NSF's Website
- ^ The Directorate of Press of Pakistan Peoples Party
- ^ News headlines (6 March 2011). "People's Aman Committee is PPP's wing". Samaa Television. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
- ^ [ http://www.mqm.org/englishnews/72/altafhussain MQM's Website]
- ^ Pakistan Elections 2013 Reference Page
- ^ Moonis Ahmar (October 1996).Ethnicity and State Power in Pakistan: The Karachi Crisis Asian Survey Vol. 36, No. 10
- ^ a b Pakistan Youth Movement - Vision-brandsynario
- ^ PYM's Website
- ^ PYA's Facebook Profile
- ^ PYA's Website
- ^ PYC's Facebook Page
- ^ PYC's Website - Vision
- ^ PYC's Website - Mainpage
- ^ YPP's Facebook Profile
- ^ YPP's Webiste - About
- ^ Youth Action for Democracy