PESHAWAR: Expressing their concern over the government’s decision to deport Turkish teachers from Pakistan, the teachers, students and parents have urged Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to review the decision.

Speaking at a joint press conference at Peshawar Press Club on Thursday, scores of people led by the students’ parents said that the Turkish citizens employed in the Pak-Turk School in Peshawar had nothing to do with the conspiracy against the Turkish government and they were just doing their job in Pakistan.

They said that in the prevailing situation they feared their arrest by the Turkish authorities soon after entry into their country. The speakers demanded of the government to treat the Turkish teachers like Afghan refugees so they could take a decision about their future and evade any action by the government.

Some teachers, including Mr Ishrat and Waseem Iqbal, stressed the need that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif should reconsider his decision about deporting the Turkish citizens as it was a matter of serious concern equally for the parents, teachers and students.

Parents of students say the teachers should be allowed to stay in Pakistan

They said that the teachers and other employees belonging to Turkey were very straightforward people and had no concern with the internal politics of their country.

“They should be allowed to stay in Pakistan or honourably sent back to their country at least to save image of our country at the international level,” they said.

Referring to an announcement of the interior ministry that all the 450 Turkish nationals, including 108 teachers of the Pak-Turk International schools and colleges, would leave Pakistan, they said it was a one-sided decision proving that Pakistan had no solid foreign policy.

The teachers said that 20 Turkish citizens were living in Peshawar who also included children and women, adding that some of them were ill and needed medical treatment.

Similarly, the parents said that they were fully satisfied with the standard of education and had no objection in this regard.

In Lakki Marwat, the residents held a demonstration on Thursday to protest the government’s decision to deport the Turkish staffers of Pak-Turk schools in the country.

The protesters, including the activists of Pakistan Peoples Party, gathered at Kargil Chowk and expressed their resentment over the government’s decision. They said that the decision had been taken in haste and it would affect the future of thousands of students.

On this occasion, district nazim Ishfaq Ahmad said that the decision to close down Pak-Turk schools and deport the staff had spread a wave of unrest among the parents of students.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2016