Student Politics

The academic hours were just concluding at the campus. By the bus stand, several groups hung idly, chattering loudly and waiting for the departure time. Suddenly, apparently over something too trivial to be noticed by others, two students had a row. The row soon swelled to an angry argument with both students now backed by their respective group of supporters. Before long, a fight had started with both groups making liberal use of sticks and whatever handy tools they could lay their hands on. Minutes later the head of a student organization jumped in to take the side of a certain group. Considering the powerful presence of his organization in the university, the other side backed up. However, before sunset, another student organization, amalgamating the communities of several cities was promulgated, with the sole aim of countering the other ‘forces’ in the university.

The scenario occurred at a government university months after government’s restoration of student unions in universities and its vow to support them. As both proponent and opponents of this act have apparently done their time on the issue and continue to ignore it right now, the situation becomes deteriorating in universities, particularly the government-ran universities.

The act by the government, done in the conventional spirit of mere wordiness has deeper and direr implications than those that are discernable currently. Whereas the right to organize and represent such an organization is done duly by the students’, the responsibility to look to its proper practicing lies entirely with the government which is, once again, playing a blind eye to this issue of vital importance.

Ever since Gen, Zia’s totalitarian regime, students have been looking forward to their proper representation in educational institutions. They inevitably need such a representation to carry their concerns to the university administration over issues ranging from fee increments to transportation problems to objection with teaching methods etc.

However, with the dissolution of students unions back in the 80s, the sole mode of student representation was rendered illegitimate by the state, leading, at one hand, the absence of a proper and effective channel of communication between students and the university admin and at the other, a suppressed version of student politics. Which was more antagonistic in its containment and much more uglier in its disposition. Thus the creation of the popular sentiment of student politics being a despised notion, both by the mainstream media and the majority of the students.

While the mingling of party politics in recent times did overshadow nearly all major goods that are actually a part of student politics, in theory, one can still not deny the effectiveness and need of student’s organization at campuses. One can hope that government restored them to their legitimate position in the same spirit–however, such a prospect would be highly optimistic since the lack of any later developments over it has evidently displayed government’s lack of interest to the issue.

And so, while the decision by the government did good to the students, it has lent a free hand to the formerly under-ground organizations at the campuses to resurface and carry out their intents now with a token of legal approval to their existence. This, as cited through the example at the start of this article, has given birth to a sense of power to the students, one which is totally mismanaged and therefore, highly vulnerable to the exploitation at the hands of the same elements which have been marring the notion of student politics in the past years. Party representatives can once again be found chattering with groups of students at university canteens and it is more often than not that the ‘literature’ of such parties is seen in hostel rooms. So-called organizations have formulated already over-night, after the government’s lifting of the ban. And antagonistic sentiments can be sensed in the air once again.

The question is what exactly the government foresaw when playing such a move, apparently with no planning whatsoever. Having pushed the academia once again into the hands of party-powered student politics, one wonders what was to be accomplished off it. Was it done on the sole premise of the interests of the student wing of ruling party?

However, despite all the cynicism, there still is time to correct the wrong that has been done, before the trend catches up and institutions are yet again found being turned into battlefields. The government needs to enforce such reforms to the system of student politics which shall ensure its existence as a healthy and beneficial activity. This can be accomplished by formulating student councils in each university, hosting top scorers, active students and other candidates selected through a carefully devised criterion. Such councils may then act as the representative bodies of the students. Since such representation is needed not only to establish a proper medium of communication between students and university admin, but also to stir students and bring them to the national stage to play their active part on issues of national, social concerns, government must consider the issue seriously. Finally they must take real measures to handle the situation.