Hate content in Punjab, Sindh school curricula
Students taking an exam – APP (File Photo)
The primary and secondary schools curricula (being taught to children in public and private schools in Punjab and Sindh) is replete with content that can fan hatred, prejudices, torture, extremism and religious intolerance in society.
The curricula ‘hate material’ is mostly targeted at religious minorities including Hindus, Christians, Sikhs and the neighbouring country, India. There is also a lot of material that has the potential to turn innocent minds against the Englishmen.
Despite hectic and repeated efforts by human rights organisations and impartial educationists aimed at pointing out negativity being promoted through textbooks, especially for the last three decades, the latest textbooks have more hate content than those written previously.
A content analysis report (of the books published by Punjab and Sindh textbook boards) prepared by the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), entitled “Education or Fanning Hate” says the hate content has increased manifold with the passage of time. Many textbooks that had no hate material in their earlier versions, now carry such material both in Punjab and Sindh.
Educationists believe that now the issue of religious intolerance should be discussed openly and that must lead to some action to save younger students from such influences at the outset.
The content analysis report on Punjab textbooks states that there were 45 lines containing hate material in the books published in 2009-11, which rose to 122 lines in 2012. Urdu and Pakistan Studies’ textbooks for Class-VII, VIII, IX and X were found to be the “most-affected” as the hate material swelled from 15 lines to 86 lines this year. In all, 22 lessons in the current primary and secondary schools curricula have hate content.
According to the report, the 2009 textbooks for Class-IX and X Urdu (grammar and composition), Class-IX Pakistan Studies textbook, Class-VI History book and Class-VIII social studies had no hate content but the latest versions of these textbooks have three, three, one and four lessons, respectively, that contain such material. The Class-VIII Urdu textbook had also one such lesson, but in the new book the number has risen to three.
The report also mentions that hate material lessons which were part of Class-VII Islamiyat and Class-VIII social studies were removed from the latest textbooks. It is worth mentioning, as per the report, that Punjab’s textbooks carry no hate content against Sikhs.
Similarly, the hate material lessons in Sindh Textbook Board (STB) books being taught from Class-I to Class-X in public schools has doubled as compared to 2009-11 textbooks.
The STB Urdu books published during 2009-11 for Class-V, VIII, IX and X carried no hate material but those produced in 2012-13 have one, seven, and one hate material lessons, respectively. The STB, however, removed such material from Class-VI social studies and Class-VII Islamiyat textbooks.
The speakers at a seminar on “Biases in Textbooks and Education Policy” lauded the NCJP’s executive director Peter Jacob and researchers Yousaf Benjamin and Attaur Rehman Saman for highlighting the hate content in the textbooks. They said the effort could lead to removal of such material from curriculum to help build a peaceful and tolerant society in Pakistan. Punjab education minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rahman was conspicuous by his absence from the seminar. Educationist Dr A.H Nayyar said the report had precisely pointed out the rot that was pushing Pakistani society and its future generations towards devastation. “Still, there are no signs that these howlers in textbooks will be removed,” he said dejectedly.
Sharing his past experiences, he said, the anti-liberal and anti-secular forces were working systematically in Pakistan and frustrated all efforts being made in the right direction with one subtle entry. “In 1997, we worked hard to develop an education policy and developed seven policy drafts one after another. Then, the eighth draft came from nowhere that carried a chapter on ‘Islamic education’,” he said.
Educationist Dr Baela Raza Jamil said the 1997-like situation was again witnessed in 2009, when Chapter-IV on ‘Islamic education’ was inserted in the education policy from “backdoor”. Within a month’s time, the education policy was approved by the federal cabinet.
She said the National Curriculum made in 2006 was much better in many ways but it was never implemented. Still, she said, textbooks were being produced that carried hate material and fostering intolerance among Muslims against Hindus, Christians, Sikhs and the Englishmen.
Dr Jamil called for original thinking and its promotion at all levels to change the rotten mindset prevailing in society. She also urged joint efforts, even in terms of subtle actions, rather than just talking on the issue in seminars.
Educationist Dr Mehdi Hassan said the whole world was afraid of religious education being imparted to children in local madrassahs. Stating that only four per cent children were seeking education in madrassahs, he added that if the government ensured quality and unbiased education to 96 children in public and private schools then that four per cent would become irrelevant. “Teachers are neither competent, nor educated and trained enough to develop a nation that could compete at international level,” he regretted.
Commenting that the level of gender discrimination in textbooks was very high, he said, the responsibility to develop a tolerant society lied with the teachers and curriculum-makers.
NCJP’s Peter Jacob stressed that hate material must be eliminated form textbooks otherwise incidents like Hindus migration to India and arrest of 11-year Christian girl Rimsha would continue to happen.
He also called for judicial activism and stressed that different discriminatory matters relating to minorities and biased content in textbooks should be taken to courts.
There are two historical facts that are the cause of this hate content. (a) Most Muslims realise that their ancestors were Hindus., (b) Pakistan was carved out of a Hindu majority undivided India. Due to both these historical facts, Muslims have a subconscious desire to prove these two decision of their ancestors right (i.e., converting to Islam and creating Pakistan on religious grounds). Unfortunately centuries after embracing Islam Muslims find themselves nowhere in relation to Hindus with respect to their standing in the world. Also 65 years after partition, India, with all its shortcomings is emerging as an economic superpower while Pakistan is the breeding ground of world terrorism. Thus,to bolster their self esteem, Pakistanis try to put down India and Hindus in any way possible. Teaching children to hate Hindus is the easiest way out for them.
there is only mention of ” hate material” which is rather a generic statement.
when u say ” hate material” ? is it some text written by some human? who is the author of that hate material and what is it exactly?
On the bright side, the country is only 46% literate.
Pakistan is a Islamic state .
It likes to follow Quranic teaching to the core and
thereby people of Pakistan have no say in this.
Free will is not permitted in Islamic way of Life.
Harinder Sahib, What is FREE WILL?……I can not smoke cigarette in front of a Sikh in India, can not slaughter a Cow, can not marry my cousin if I am a hindu or christian…….on and on…and on….I hope you understood what am I trying to say as you seems intelligent person.
Even humans have a thin red line……or else we are animals…hope u get it..and u r an human too..
i hope in the garb of eliminating hate from our text books an becoming enlightened ones, we will not brand mohammad bin qasim as a usurper and plunderer while raja dahir to be a freedom fighter. I smell a rat to be honest by a continuous trend of secular articles in the media. They dont know what they are doing.
Sir, you do not know what you are saying. Maybe you do and so the whole exercise is not to have people like you who believe bin qasim was a great ruler or maybe a freedom fighter.
Dear Doctor Raina, Have you spoken to buddhist in Srilanka and know what do they say about great leaders of Hindustan?
Small streams lead to rivers. Arrest the writer and then follow the lead and arrest the real culprits who are provoking public to kill.
Yeh arrest under what Law. It’s upto the Ministry of Education to censor all such corriculum which is offensive and likely to promote hatred amongst all Pakistanis irrespective of their religion/faith/ethnicity and include material that promote tolerence, harmony and co-existence. Not a bad suggestion, is it?
Thank god the literacy rate is dismal!
You apparently do not know what the Madrassas teach.
The ‘literacy rate’ at religious schools is not so low..
The literacy rate is dismal with people who wrote those books in the first place.
u’ll are all hypocrites. if u’ll hate the jews christian and hindu’s so much why do u’ll want to migrate and go to western countries to live. why do u’ll watch western movies and wwear western clothing. pakistani watch more hindi movies than their own pakistani movies. is this the double standards u’ll have. say one thing and do something else. the molvi’s are the first ones to go to the west. its a good thing they are blacklisted. this is why the west hates u’ll muslims u’ll are the cause. u’ll are causing hatred.
A very angry christian.
I understand fully your emotions and feelings. You are right in your assessment re the Mullahs, but we all, you included who are educated; tolerant and reasonable, should act without emotions and muster support against these evils. Our present and previous responsible officials of Ministries should have vetted the text books before approving them, if they were interested other than in corruption. We are hopeful that a certain change is in the offing.
Yes indeed you are very angry christian. When you get angry you lose your composure and logic. The article is a conclusion of some kind of research. It does not give examples of what is being taught is not appropriate. The problem is that it is easy to cricise but it is very difficult to give feedback for a change or improvment.
God sent his messengers( Prophets) who brought religions to create love and harmony among mankind. But unfortunately our so called ” RELIGIOUS LEADERS” are doing exactly the opposite.My dear ” a very angry christian friend” don’t be so angry we are with you .
ALL NORMAL MUSLIMS.
You really are a very very angry person. I know a lot of people who do not watch Indian movies, a lot of people do not want to go to the west, on the contrary I know a lot of westerners want to go to Dubai because that is where the money is. I do agree that there are some people in India and Pakistan alike who will fit the profile you have painted.
The Christians of Pakistan have served their country quite well and in return there were not treated accordingly. They were teachers, army officers and other highly educated professionals a good majority has already left the country.
I went to a missionary school in Pakistan and can tell you from personal experience, All my teachers were Christians, a majority of which were very decent but a small number of them were very hateful as well. I am talking fifty years ago.
Dear Naz majority of people in Pakistan are very nice regardless of their religion and then there are people who are other wise.
The government of Pakistan has miserably failed to protect its minorities, ironically the minorities all voted for the current political party in power . Need I say more.
Nothing wrong with watching Indian movies Azhar or adopting good things from other cultures, that is the sign of being progressive. Lets not be so defensive and rigid, Why is the west so advanced because they adopted many idea from other cultures. The point is many Pakistanis including me but not all, would love to migrate to western countries for better life if given the chance. Lets adopt good ideas and value from other cultures
What you sow, So shall you reap !
Indeed! Those who teach hate, and learn hate, will quickly become the hated ones.
Amazing that Pakistan teaches all the hate and yet this country still never produced a Narindera Modi or Dr. Mayaben Kodnani, Modi’s minister of women and child welfare openly defended burning alive of Muslim infants.
Hindu minority of Pakistan do not burn your train carrying Muslim pilgrims or engage in riots.Our Muslim minority is very violent and burnt the train carrying dalit pilgrims.This is not the first time.
There lies the rub. As imperfect as it may be, people like Narendra Modi are voted in or out b the people. The rule of law, however slow, sends culprits like Mayaben to jail. Please tell me howm any of these bigots, mini Modis and Kodnanis that roam around Pakistan are taken to court and eventually jailed. Answer is simple: Zero.
In pakistan…everyone is little modi… little kodnani
Just watch the justification from the indians for killing thousands of Muslims in Gujrat. All the finger pointing at Pakistan for being intolerant is just that they do not practice it themselves.
One act of killings does not justify other killings.
More muslims are killed in pakistan than india . do u think killings of muslims by muslims is justified ? leave modi as he is from india …….think of your own people who are killings hindus , sikhs , christians and even ahmadia and shia muslims , and none are punished so far , no case registered against them . anyone who raised voice againt them are killed . modi is atleast facing court cases , what about those who are indulged in killings minorities , shias and ahmadia muslims ?
And how many pakistanis ever speaks against the killings of thousands of hindus is kahsmir ?
Well nothing of this kind is going to hurt India. Its going to hurt Pakistan itself, and it is happening in Pakistan for everyone to see. Its a wake up call for Pakistan.
This is very alarming news that our innocent minds are being nurtured with hatred material even in public schools…….! what, Still we are living in stone ages when the world has been the global village and the hatred seed is being sowed .
this hatred poured into young minds is coming back to haunt Pakistan
We Indians should also do soul-searching to see if we have any hate material in our school curriculum. Removing such hate material, from both countries, should be done on a priority basis in the interest of long term friendship between the countries. Instead of spreading hate over hate material, let us do something to rectify matters. About Partition, riots, Kashmir, Bangladesh and other issues we should present both points of view in our school books so that the children understand the complexity of the issues involved and the tragedy strife and war can wreak on the population.
Shankar If you married and have kids just go through the primary book their is nothing against this kind.
You’re spot on. However growing up I never encountered any anti pakistani or anti minority material in my text books. The treatment of Muslim figures in pre partition india such as Maulana Azad, Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan and Mr. Jinnah was also unbiased and pretty factual.
Shankar, All my life I have not come accross any hate material in our text books against any religion or even Pakistan. Really proud of Indian education system.
I never came across any hate content in Indian school books. On the contrary, I found that Muslims are generally treated with kid gloves in official and educational documents. Bollywood generally portrays Muslims as good people. Remember Sher Khan of Zanjeer or Abdul of Shaan.
before soul earching your should search for such materials in indian school’s curriculum . will you ?
As you sow, so you reap
Unless we are ready to see that some of our beliefs are simply wrong and believing in them closes our mind to see the truth.We will get deeper into darkness and destruction.
In schools the cirriculum shold focus on building capability in Mathematics, Science, Reading & Writing instead of controvertial teachings.
Schools should focus on building leadership throiugh games like cricket, hockey, soccer.
Schools should encougage students to build puzzles, play games like chess & bridge and read stories because such activites inculcate creative thinking, build imagniation. Entire life is all about reading & writing, not just books.
Schools should teach students Quran & life of the prophet (peace of Allah be upon him) instead of history which may not be accurate. This will make them understand the purpose of life is worship Allah in the wider sense of the word, not merely rituals, rituals are means to an end, and that ultimate vison of life is jannah
With this kind of traning, students will learn to value life, lead a positive life, lead the world by their example, not empty words.
I live in Ft. Collins, CO and have several good friends of Pakistani origin who are all well educated, very nice but had a very negative and wrong opinion of India, Indians, specially Hindu’s and Sikhs. In all our discussions they are trying to sympathize us the Indian Muslims. I tried my best to tell them that we are equal citizens of our country and we Muslims have every right like any other Indian and we practice our religion without any interference at our will. They even called me a liar, traitor and friend of Hindus, now I understand all these people were brain washed from this childhood in their country. Selfish politicians from every country across the globe should learn a lesson from Pakistan’s example.
Well said bro..
Well, you can see what happens in Pakistan everyday. Its the product of this hate that the nation has for all neighbouring nations.
Please rectify your self, its india who has problem with al ofl its neighouring nations Pakistan, china, Bangladesh, Sirilanka. Apart from india pakistan is friendly to all of its neighbours. I have seen indian channels, and movies beleive me they are full of hate contents lot more then pakistani media and text books. Point is we are atleast pointing out the negative things in our society and indians are not….
Dear Mr Ali, I am an Indian and I still agree with you when you say that we do have problems with neighboring countries. But we are straight forward and put the issues on table and resolve with them. That’s simply the reason why all of them respect us and have good relations with us. In India, you’ll never find a text book that has a word against any religion or any other country, including Pakistan!
Please continue to be in denial. Please compare India’s standing in the world with that of Pakistan.. Many Pakistans when abroad introduce themselves as Indians to get acceptability and respect..
We have political problems with our neighbours but we do not hate Bangladeshis , Sri Lankans or Chinese.Mind it.
Why do you have problems with all your neighbours….India is a common factor in all the trouble in this region..
i dont know what are you talking about, i had hindu and christan friends when i was in school and collage. we play together and we eat togherther…. there was no haterd at all and there was no discremination in schools.
You are correct Ahmed. I left Pakistan in 1973, and during those times the level of ignorance and hatred towards hindus, christians and sikhs, not to mention various muslim sects, was nowhere near what it has been whipped up to be now.
The seeds were sown then, the fruits appear now…
So it is all made up and not cause for concern?
I think they are brain washed from their child hood and some terreble incidents in India against muslims ,created by greedy polititions makes them belief more strongly that hindus are against muslims in India.Some problem with muslim communities in India is , they don’t value modern education,so they are not as successfull as hindus. From My personal experience a very good friend of mine in old delhi, we use to work together in a shop. he lived with his parents,while i was renting.I improved my education and changed few jobs saved money and moved to overseas with family, this year I met him after 25 years,now he owns a small business,have 6 children and all drop out from school ,they all live in same house of his parents ,all 4 sons work in same business ,he looks 10years older of his age and still struggling, other side I own my house in a western country and my all 3 children are university graduates and I have enough for my retirment
Then why did Shabana Azmi and other Muslim actors say they were discriminated in Bombay and not allowed to buy property…..
most of offensive comments against Pakistan are from Indians on this forum….then they are blaming us for hatred…everybody can see where the real hatred is > India.
Every action has a reaction
Sorry if that is the impressive we’ve been leaving. Digital media knows no boundaries but we’re visitors on your site
what we see on Dawn is nothing. Visit Hindustan Times and you will see their real face. I am sure all Indians exactly know what i mean. I am yet to see a post by a Pakistani using a entirely abusive word for “India”. By contrast they are free to use the worst possible phrases without any check. More enlightened Pakistanis should take out the time to have a close look across the fence.
We seem to have a India complex. Do we need to compare ourselves with India all the time. We should rather look at ourselves and be able to decide what is right or wrong for us. But it seems we are all Bonkers.
Worthless piece of writing – not because it is necessarily incorrect; it is because no examples given of what the writer is referring to. Mention of specific texts in specific chapters or page number of specific books would have proved what the writer is saying is true or not. Plus, it would have enabled readers to form their own opinion. Very unprofessional when no sources are quoted; and an important matter such as this would just be forgotten; what a shame!
It started in 1976 with Islamic studies becoming mandatory for everyone, whole Pakistan knows about it accept people living in denial, it is not a matter of proving it is a matter of acceptance and correction. This article is not point to what is potential problem for future, it is pointing out cause of existing hatred against minorities living in Pakistan.
as you sow , so shall you reap. nc usa
Bravo to Dawn for acknowledging that.. Dawn has initiated laudable efforts to awaken its citizens against systemic ” fundamentalization” of Pak public by extremist forces .Best of luck..
.Even 4% of students going to madrassahs are not less dangerous.. Just imagine 4 people becoming suicide bombers.
It is wrong to blame madarsa people for ills of Pakistan. Most of the Muslim countries and specially Pakistan has been and is being ruled by College educated mostly non religious people. They should be blamed for all the ills of Pakistan. The religious educated people are in power only in Iran, Lebanon and in Afghanistan and lately in Egypt and only they are successfully spear heading the fight against Imperialism and are gaining respect.
rewrite the whole text books of india and pakistan.and teach the truth about the the partition of the sub continent.it was the congress that wanted partition and it was mr. jinnah who was against it, but accepted it as the second best, again it was india that dismembered pakistan; because india never recognized the sovereign independent existence of pakistan.
Agree
Why does pakistan need india approval.
very well spoken…the choice for most muslims is between militantly secular despots and dictators or narrow minded fanatics who have a very rigid view of islam…however the brotherhood is quite in the middle..and the need of the hour…