IT was true before and is clearer than ever today. The country’s fight against extremism cannot succeed, arguably cannot begin, until the issue of madressah reform and regulation is meaningfully addressed. Army chief Gen Qamar Bajwa is right: too many madressahs in Pakistan are providing their students with an education that leaves the students ill equipped to find employment or adjust to the modern world. Indeed, it is refreshing that a senior military leader has chosen to speak plainly about a problem, which in many ways is linked to national security, that the country’s leadership, military and civilian, has avoided dealing with. Modernising madressah education is essential but has been made controversial by vested interests that are opposed to state regulation and do not believe in a tolerant, democratic and progressive Pakistan. In the name of religious education, a great disservice is being done to Pakistan’s children by closing their minds before they can learn to make decisions for themselves.

Certainly, the issue of reforming and regulating vast madressah networks that operate in every part of the country is not easy or straightforward. The halting, uneven curriculum reform efforts in the mainstream education systems of the country have demonstrated that consensus is difficult to forge and reforms hard to implement. For example, mandating that madressahs teach basic maths, science or language skills at par with what students learn in public school systems would create a massive demand for qualified new teachers in the country. Furthermore, with the standards of education in the public school system often poor, how will state oversight of the madressah sector improve standards there? Such problems are, of course, not insurmountable and the magnitude of the challenge itself is a reason to push ahead with thoughtful reform and reorganisation of the madressah sector. Generations cannot continue to be lost to misguided and inadequate education.

If the state is serious about reforms, there are two obvious principles that ought to be adhered to: the elimination of hate and the promotion of basic skills. With extremism apparently on the rise in the mainstream education system, especially in colleges and universities, it has become clear that the propagation of hateful ideas can affect even otherwise highly educated minds. Within the madressah sector, the formal and informal imparting of intolerance and dislike for other groups and sects is a much bigger problem. That must first be halted. To promote basic literacy, the management of madressahs and governing boards may have to be changed to include mainstream educationists who can advise and help implement curriculum changes. Such moves are likely to be met with fierce resistance, but as has been suggested it is not for the madressah networks to decide the future of many of Pakistan’s children. The state has a responsibility to promote an education suitable to the modern world for all of Pakistan’s children.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2017