By Syed Arif Hussaini

Feudalism’s Aversion to Education

July 15, 2005


Voices were raised mainly by the traditional groups of Pakistani politicians when the Musharraf government laid down that a person aspiring for a seat in the federal or in a provincial parliament would have to be at least a university graduate to qualify as a candidate.
Although this condition was generally acknowledged as having been laid down to ensure a minimum caliber for public representatives, its vehement opposition particularly by the landed aristocracy underlined the continuing bane of politics being dominated in the country by rural landowners.
Feudalism and education are anathema, indeed, to each other. One derogates the other in the present-day Pakistani social milieu. In Europe, on the other hand, where feudalism was the prevalent system during the middle ages, from 800 to 1350 AD, the feudal barons and the church were instrumental in setting up educational institutions including several universities. These pulled Europe out of the Dark Age that followed the fall of the Great Roman Empire and put Western Europe in particular on the path leading to renaissance, enlightenment, science, technology and industrialization.
Emperor Charlemagne, the most prominent intellectual and king of the age of feudalism, who ruled over Europe for almost half a century, 769 to 814, considered literacy and learning essential to the rebirth of the Roman Empire of his dream. He commanded every cathedral and monastery of his kingdom to establish schools. “Take care”, he ordered, “to make no difference between the sons of serfs and of freemen, so that they might come and sit on the same benches to study grammar, music, and arithmetic.”
The path followed by the feudal aristocracy of Pakistan, after Independence, was totally regressive. The peasants and serfs were deprived of educational facilities and treated like slave labor. The Sardars of Balochistan were the most oppressive.
Fifty-eight years after Independence, one is surprised to find that the tentacles of feudalism have become firmer and harsher. Feudal dynasties now control half a dozen political parties including ML (Q), ML {N). Ironically enough, the so-called People’s Party is headed by a prominent aristocrat/landlord, Benazir. She talks all the time about elections but has opted to be the chairperson for life of her own party! That is in keeping with the feudal spirit.
The end of the British rule in South Asia also marked the beginning of the end of feudalism - the British system of indirect control - in all countries of the region with the glaring exception of Pakistan. Education has perhaps been the biggest casualty of this act of omission.
The exigencies of the early years of the new state, allowed the establishment to put on hold land reforms. The feudal elite, with the connivance of civil and military bureaucracies, managed to establish their hold on the country’s politics. The rapacious rural aristocracy became the biggest force for the maintenance of status quo in politics and policy making. No wonder, the first general elections could not be held before 1970 - 23 years after the creation of Pakistan.
The feudal lords of West Pakistan, masquerading as socialists under Bhutto’s People’s Party, refused to hand over power to a commoner from the Eastern wing despite the fact that the latter had won an overwhelming majority in the parliament.
Bhutto was their leader then and his daughter, Benazir, heads the coterie now. Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, a blue-blooded landlord, held the fort for her, till his death, as Benazir was unwilling to return to her country to face the corruption charges against her in courts of law.
During the entire history of the country, education has remained sadly neglected. Educational reforms, whenever carried out, such as those of President Ayub or of Prime Minister Z.A. Bhutto, touched the issues only superficially without developing a questioning mind among the youth of the country to challenge the feudal domination.
The result of such a criminal neglect of the educational sector is that today nearly a third of 5-9 year olds are out of school and literacy rate is 38 per cent only. Allocations for education have lingered for years around 2.3 per cent of GNP per annum as against a minimum of 4 per cent recommended by the UN.
Here in the US, highest priority is given to education. Readers of this column would recall that the single most significant factor in their ability to reach this country has been their education back home.
Reverting to the situation in Pakistan, one finds that now the students who opt for science subjects fail to apply a scientific approach to their subject, as the educational system stifles their imagination, creativity and curiosity. It is the spirit of inquiry that makes a nation, and its absence mars it and relegates it to the dustbin of history.
Pakistan is producing now less than 100 PhDs, as against 5,000 by India!
Education is not, lamentably, considered crucial, the very life-blood for the society’s survival and progress.
The generation that came to Pakistan from India carrying with them a high value for education has gradually faded out and their children too have absorbed the feudalistic spirit of getting something for nothing. Or, they have managed to leave the country for foreign lands where they could labor and live well, unhindered and unsuppressed by the ruling elite.
The unskilled, semi-skilled workers too managed during 1975-90 to reach the Middle East to earn respectable wages. Their remittances enabled their families to send their children to schools. But, the rapacious politicians and their corrupt bureaucratic minions had, meanwhile, set up a system of ghost schools to misappropriate government funds. Ten per cent of some 42,000 schools in Sindh, for instance, had become schools on paper only. The percentage in Punjab was no better. The children of the workers in the Middle East, particularly those hailing from remote villages, had acquired the means to go to schools but there were no schools within easy reach. So they went to the religious schools attached to local mosques where they could hardly get the education that would enable them to eke out a living. The supremacy of the landlord remained undisturbed. The opportunity went to waste.
In this depressing scenario, the projects launched by the present government hold out a ray of hope of change in the obnoxious system.
Expansion of educational facilities from elementary school to post-graduate levels, registration of religious schools, introducing secular subjects in their syllabi and enabling them financially to hire teachers for the new subjects, expansion of higher-level education in science and technology in concert with other Muslim countries, are some of the salient features. But, the most important factor is the change in the value system and the mindset concerning education.
The negative and hypocritical approach of the landed aristocracy will have to yield place to genuine appreciation of the need to spread education in the country. That can come only when the elected representatives are themselves educated. Some Pakistani newspapers have published lists of prominent landlords who are non-graduates. Some have not even crossed high school level!
Being thus sidelined would hopefully awaken them to the reality that the days of inheriting power and pelf by birth have come to an end. If they do not see the writing on the wall, the wind of change will sweep them down into dust.
- arifhussaini@hotmail.com

 



PREVIOUSLY

Desire and the Culture of Instant Gratification
March 23 - Memories & Nostalgia
Deeper Malaise of Pakistan Polity
BJP’s Debacle in the Battle for Ballots
Feudalism’s Aversion to Education
Forgetfulness -a Prank of Old Age or of Hyperfocus
The Taliban and Beyond
Meetings of World Economic Forum and Its Counterweight
BJP Fails Again to Frame Pakistan
Indo-Chinese Relations in Perspective
Taj Mahal and Indo-Pakistan Standoff
Grandma, Grandpa
'The Clash of Civilizations' : A Questionable Thesis
In the Gadgeteer's Dreamland
Emergence of MMA on Pak Political Landscape
Chechnya and Moscow's Hostage Crisis
Turkish Elections in Historical Perspective
Iraq's Oil Wealth
America: A Nation on Wheels
"Jinnah & Pakistan" - A Worthwhile Book
Afghanistan Merits More Attention

The Siren Song of Sale and Savings

In Memory of Dr. Hamidullah

Tackling Murphy at the Airport

Musings of a Superannuated Man

US Economy: Will Bush's Plan Work

Tempo of Life in America

The Genius behind the Mouse

The Media Mogul Who Manipulated Men and Events

Hearst and Disney: A Comparative Study

Nothing but the Truth

War on Iraq Imminent and Inevitable

Mahathir's Interesting Views

Portents of a New World Order

March 23 - Memories & Nostalgia

Rachel Corrie & the Spotted Owl

Lost in Cyberspace

The American Nice Guyism

Connecticut - A Nursery of Men

On a Visit to Canada after Half of Century

Some Legal Aspects of the Iraq War

Bureaucratic Antics

Rhode Island: An Oxymoron, a Paradox

The Mystique of California

Comic Operas in Islamabad & in Texas

Khyber Knights: A Fascinating Book

G-8 Summit Skirts Touchy Issues

In Memory of a Versatile Genius

Hillary Clinton's Cleverly Crafted Book

Chitranwala Katora and Chutkiyan

The Yak Shows : The Trash Talks

The Giants of Sequoia National Park

Reflections on Pakistan's Independence Day

Aziz Kay 'Sifarati Maarkay And Mujtaba Kay 'Safarnamay'

California's Political Circus

Lali Chaudhri's Provocative Short Stories

September: A Witness to Wars

America in the Quagmire of Iraq

Collapse of Another WTO Summit

A B C D: American-Born-Clear-Headed Desis

The Pangs of Waiting

Chechnya: A Ray of Hope for Peace

American Job Exodus to China

Islamabad : Its Beauty & Oddities

Welcome Proposals to Break Indo-Pak Logjam

Benazir's Case and the Corruption Scenario

Predicament of Pakistan's Polity

When Memory Starts Faltering

Terror in Turkey Unrelated to Nation's Cultural Conflict

The Siren Song of Sale and Savings

Wrinkles in US-China Relations

Wrinkles in US-China Relations

Saddam Crawls out of a Hole to Ignominy

Saddam Crawls out of a Hole to Ignominy

When Memory Starts Faltering

A Day in the Company of Mujtaba Hussain

Hyderabad Presents a Panorama of Progress and Change

Conflict over New World Economic Order

Pakistan's Nuclear Scandal

Urdu in Hyderabad Deccan

A Good Book on a Great Man

Gay Marriages in Vivacious San Francisco

The Passion of the Christ - A Well-Sculpted but Fuss-Causing Film

A Treat of Mujtaba's Wit and Humor

Predicament of Pakistan's Polity

The Murder of Sheikh Yassin: Israel's Hidden Agenda

Army Action in Pakistan's Tribal Belt

Would the NSC Buttress or Besiege Democracy?

Desire and the Culture of Instant Gratification

Swiss Court and the Benazir-Zardari Plunder Saga

Pakistan and the International Economic Forums

Why Do US Follies Keep Piling up in Iraq?

The Tamasha at Lahore Airport

Indian Elections and Subsequent Developments

Bush Flaunts His Faulty Policies on Iraq

Post Civil War America and Post-Independence Pakistan

Bureaucratic Antics

Tackling Murphy at the Airport

Asma's Fascinating Book on Islam

APPNA Qissa - 25 Years of Activities of Pak-American Doctors

Bureacratic Antics

Nightmare in Sudan

In Pursuit of Terrorists

Why Turkey's Entry into European Union Is Blocked?

Forgetfulness - A Prank of Old Age or of Hyperfocus

Kremlin's Inept Tackling of Chechen Extremists

Who Should Get My Vote In November Election?

Bush vs. Annan on Legal Status of Iraq War

Rethinking the National Security of Pakistan

The Brief Message

Desire and the Culture of Instant Gratification

Is Iran the Next Target?

Dollar vs. Euro -A Question of Hegemony

Zardari’s Release Indicative of Reconciliation?

The Siren Song of Sale and Savings

Christmastime – A Festive Occasion

Pak-China Ties Keep Growing Firmly

American Shopping Malls

Tsunami - an Asian Disaster

Dr. Cohen’s Thought-Provoking Work on Pakistan

Alice in the Freeland

Balochistan: Crisis & Conflict

Iran the Next Target, but

The Common Man

Chechnya: Chaos to Continue in the Caucasus

Global Warming and Emulators of the OstrichA

Treat of Mujtaba’s Wit and Humor

Reflections on the Idea of Pakistan

‘Engaging India’ - A Valuable Book by Strobe Talbott
Memories & Nostalgia

American Nice Guyism

Balochistan at the Verge of Revolutionary Changes?

India as Seen by Early Muslim Chroniclers

India, China Leading a Resurgent Asia

The Pain at the Petrol Pump

Mujtaba Husain - a Humorist Par Excellence

Musings of a Superannuated Man in America

The Pangs of Waiting

Chaos and Killings in Uzbekistan

Prospects of the Pain at the Petrol Pump
French Voters Reject Proposed EU Constitution

Why Turkey’s Entry into European Union Is Being Blocked

What Ails Thee, My Native Land?

The Deeper Malaise of Pakistan’s Polity

Resistance to Change in the System


Editor: Akhtar M. Faruqui
© 2004 pakistanlink.com . All Rights Reserved.