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| Kathmandu Friday March 15, 2002 Chaitra 02, 2058. |
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Worth noting
The other day, a high-ranking UN official
floated an idea of declaring educational institutions of this country "zone of
peace". This is the first time a UN official has acknowledged the growing Maoist
threats to educational institutions and expressed his concern over their security. Given a
series of Maoist attacks on teachers, schools and other educational institutions, his
proposal for peace merits immediate attention. In fact, the Maoist student wing — All
Nepal National Independent Students’ Union (ANNISU-R) — has time and again set
school buses on fire, vandalized school buildings and extorted money from private schools.
The Maoists have not only shut down a number of private schools in the rural areas but
also murdered school teachers and the people who protested against such terror. Such acts
of terror have disrupted the smooth functioning of educational institutions especially for
the last two years or so. Yet, the government has been unable to provide security to
educational institutions. Due to its lackadaisical attitude, innocent students and parents
have suffered. And if the government continues to turn a blind eye to what’s going
around, the situation could get even worse.
The country has witnessed a dozen governments
with six prime ministers over the past ten years. Since the restoration of democracy,
public schools and institutions have become almost synonymous with battlefields where
different political cadres flex their muscles regularly. There is not a single public
institution that is not immune from dirty politics. To compound the problem, the Maoist
student wing frequently calls for the closure of academic institutions on the slightest
pretext. The Maoists have picked up educational institutions to vent their wrath against
the establishment. Since the declaration of the state of emergency, people have sensed
relative calm within the educational institutions. But sporadic incidents of violence and
killings of teachers outside Kathmandu Valley have shattered hope for permanent calm. But
for how long will the students, teachers and parents live amidst threat and uncertainty?
Can the government do something to provide security to educational institutions? Or does
it need a UN personnel or someone of his stature to poke at the government every time the
law and order deteriorates? The government has been a mere spectator to frequent closures
and violence perpetrated by the Maoists-affiliated students.
The idea of declaring educational institutions
"zone of peace" to save, especially primary schools from the Maoist threats, is
indeed encouraging. It is true that Nepal is one of the poorest among the least
underdeveloped countries. Frequent political and educational disturbances have adversely
affected the development of this country. But it remains to be seen how the government
goes about the business of implementing the concept of Zone of Peace in the academic
institutions. What will be its mechanism if such declaration gets endorsed? Educational
institutions are facing a plethora of problems. It is time the government realised the
urgency to restore peace and order in schools and colleges. The Maoist insurgency has
claimed so far over 3000 lives and displaced thousands of people. The economy is in a
shambles and the tourism industry, country’s largest foreign exchange earner, is in
recession. More than 700 people have lost their lives since this government declared the
state of emergency. With many grave problems on almost all fronts, the government is going
through testing times, but this does not mean that it can afford to ignore the educational
sector. |
