Recently Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani made a statement regarding modernizing education in Pakistan.
Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani said Turkey’s secular and modern education system could inspire Pakistan to change its methods and system to face the challenges of extremism and terrorism. In an exclusive interview published in the leading English Turkish newspaper, “Turkish Daily News” Prime Minister Gilani spoke about the reforms planned by the democratic government. He said, “I sent my team of educationists here to study the system (in Turkey).”
This is not the first attempt by a government to mutilate the already crippled education system in Pakistan. Number of attempts was made earlier to secularize the country which has left the country in total paradox. Rather than fixing the real issues of education system, the successive governments continue to use it as their tools to manipulate masses to serve their own hidden agendas.
Let’s look at the Turkish model and historical context. Secularization of Turkey started towards end of Ottoman Empire and became state policy with the most controversial reforms of Kamal Ataturk. He led the secular reforms to abolish the last known Caliphate. Under his leadership all religious institutes were either shut down or taken over by secular state. The religious education was outlawed and any sign that reflect religion even symbolically was declared unlawful. The secularism was pushed down the throat of Muslims with brute force with guns and tanks.
The religion was declared “uncivilized” and any religious gathering was declared anarchy. Shariah law was replaced by European legal code. Religious education was removed from schooling; Islamic hijra calendar was replaced with Gregorian calendar used in Europe. Any dress that symbolized religious value was outlawed and women were not allowed to cover their heads.. not to mention mass kidnapping, harassments and killing of religious leadership.
The spirit of nationalism was created to replace spirit of One Muslim Ummah. Arabic was removed from government, schooling and even from mosque. The Arabic Adhan (call to prayer) was replaced with Turkish Adhan. Even the word “Allah” was not tolerable and was replaced with a Turkish word “Tanri”, meaning god (and not Allah). The word Tanri means good of blue skies came from ancient turkey culture when their ancestors worshiped nature. Hence to reduced the overwhelming impact on heart for saying “Allah” or “Al-Illah” which gives a meaning of Allah’s supreme authority over affairs of people’s life and Allah’s sole authority as Law giver.
The mosques were all taken over by the secular royalty, who appointed their own prayer leader, and sermons in the mosques were replaced by secular royalty material or whatever was suitable to please secular royalty and give it legitimacy. Of course Muslims in Turkey and all over the world made noise and cried, but their voices were merely a scream of sheep before they are chop-chopped.
Secularism was dumped on Muslim with brutality, bombs, guns and tanks. Such dumb that apparently no Muslim ever accepted it without a bomb. Secularism is always spread by brut forces with guns. Even though that Ataturk declared official religion to be secularism, religion remained a strong force in Turkey. If ever a free choice is given to Turk to choose the religion between Secularism and Islam, world will witness it that they will choose Islam. Know why? because Islam was not spread with Gun and bombs.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his leader Zardari, who is also an internationally renounced crook, are now known to be perusing same policies as of their predecessor the royalty General Pervaiz Musharraf. Apparently his crookedness is too well known that no one is willing to lend money to him, in the name of saving Pakistan. Perhaps its good omen for Pakistanis that they don’t get boxed again with IMF and World banks, which if they cut the check now is likely going directly to Swiss Zardari account. Such is the credibility.
If one recalls, not so long ago in year 1999 another royalty General Pervaiz Musharraf showed same ambitions when he visited Ankara and touched down the grave of Ataturk and declared him as his inspiration and hero, the savior of Muslims and father of nation..
There is just yet another attempt to push the secular agenda, and somehow rid the country of any reminiscence of Islamic values, culture and education. And use any excuse or fault and blame it on Islam to rid it. To ensure that they cut people’s ties with Islamic Education and naturalize any impact Quran can have on people’s life.If the Prime Minister is serious to solve education problems, why would he not announce free education for all in the country, why does he not announce establishing new universities and research centers? Why not setup new schools in remote villages. Rather his focus is really to rid the Islam from education, not to improve the education. What can one expect from self proclaimed lords?