KARACHI:
Karachi University (KU) students and faculty joined hands to protest against the controversial Universities Amendment Bill on Thursday.
A general meeting of the Karachi University Teachers Society was also held where it was decided to reject the Bill. KUTS announced that it would hold a protest on Monday at 11am in the Arts Lobby and hold another meeting on Thursday to decide further strategy.
The protest that began on Wednesday continued at KU on Thursday. Addressing the protesters, leaders said that the statement of Parliamentary Minister Nisar Ahmed Khuhro’s statement published in newspapers hints at the intentions of the Bill. They said that on one hand the chief minister was ensuring the Bill’s withdrawal to teachers, while on the other ministers were indicating that the government is not ready for any further amendment in the Bill.
The protest leaders said that this should not be turned into an ethnic issue. “We’ve raised our voices against every act threatening the self-determination and education of universities and today also we reject such laws,” they said.
KUTS Vice-President Prof Shah Aliul Qadr condemned Khuhro’s press statement in which he had said varsities were under their control because the government funds them. Dr Ali reminded Khuhro that varsities are places where academic freedom reigns supreme and no authority in the government can control the academic and financial affairs of varsities, as these are themselves statutory bodies.
KU’s Applied Chemistry Chairperson and member of the varsity’s academic council Dr Riaz Ahmed said the presence of students and staff at the second protest means that a movement to resist bureaucratic rule over varsities has once again begun from KU, as it had been in the past. He stressed the need of ideological preparation and propaganda to combat usurpation of rights of students.
Mohammad Farhan of the KU Employees Union criticised the role of the Sindh government in sowing seeds of ethnic strife when it passed the amendments, as these are designed to regulate admissions and promotions of varsity students and employees.
Uzair Ahmed, Islami Jamiat Talba secretary, called upon the government to withdraw the amendment, as it has eliminated student union representatives from syndicates while inserting a number of secretaries of ministries. He termed the amendments an attempt to control varsities through feudal means. Shaharyar Jahangiri of the All Pakistan Muttahida Students Organisation congratulated the teachers for launching a movement against the usurpation of rights of varsities and vowed to spread the word to involve larger number of students to march towards the Sindh Assembly. Dr Asim Ali, member of the academic council and computer science department, said KU will continue its struggle against attacks on varsity autonomy.
Dr Osama Shafiq, a member the KUTS executive council, warned the government that many dictators have failed to implement outside rule at campuses and this time the Sindh government will face strident opposition in the form of a campus movement.
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