Karachi University faculty marches on with Balochistan talk despite admin’s opposition - Support Pakistani peoples struggle for democracy
KARACHI: Although the gates of Karachi University’s
Arts auditorium were sealed off by the administration, a scheduled session on
‘Baloch Missing persons and the Role of State and Society’ was held on
university premises on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, KU refused to let faculty members use the Arts
auditorium to host the seminar, saying seminars related to sensitive issues
were not allowed at university premises. Ahead of the session, Rangers and Police thoroughly scanned
cars, not allowing outsiders inside the university. “No outsiders were allowed today and the people attending
the session were brought in professor’s cars,” campus security adviser Dr Muhammad
Zubair told The Express Tribune. Regarding the attendance of Baloch activist Mama Qadeer,
Zubair said, “Mama Qadeer did not enter the building this morning.” “He may have been hiding here from last night, we are trying
to investigate,” the campus security adviser added.
The organiser, Dr Riaz Ahmed, a professor at the Department
of Applied Chemistry, gathered people in the arts lobby, where he said he
appreciated their resolve for standing up to raise their voices against the
“brutal killings of Baloch”.’ “We are taking Sabeen’s vision forward,” he said, dedicating
the talk to her. “She gave up her life for unsilencing the voice of Baloch
missing persons,” Dr Riaz added. The crowd included students from KU as well as Institute of
Business Administration, NED University and civil society representatives.
This, Riaz said, “is a sign that we are not afraid.”
“The administration is weak, which is why they have closed
these doors today,” the professor said, pointing towards the Arts auditorium’s
locked gate. “After seeing this huge crowd, the administration should be
ashamed and should open up doors for healthy discussions and talks,” he urged.
On April 30, the university registrar sent a letter to the
organiser, Dr Riaz Ahmed, who is a faculty member of the department of applied
chemistry. He conveyed the administration’s decision, saying that the “request
cannot be acceded by the competent authority under the prevailing
circumstances”. On Tuesday, another letter was sent to Dr Ahmed, reminding him
that “organisation of seminars related to sensitive issues was not allowed in
the university premises as per policy”.
For his part, Dr Ahmed told The Express Tribune that the
seminar would in fact take place at the scheduled time and venue. “From what I
can gather from my sources, none of the security agencies have asked to cancel
the seminar,” he reasoned. “It is only the KU administration that is stopping
us.” Further, students and faculty of the Lahore University of
Management Sciences (LUMS) issued a statement on Tuesday criticising the
Karachi University’s decision to cancel a talk, titled Baloch Missing Persons
and The Role of State and Society.
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