Muffled Voices on Campuses

As private elite universities are abuzz with anti-emergency rule chants and making the headlines every day, students of autonomous institutes of higher education like Government College, Lahore University and Foreman Christian College University have also adopted different ways to express themselves politically.

On Saturday last, Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi was scheduled to visit the FC College University to open an academic block, but his visit was canceled at the eleventh hour.

A group of students, wishing not to be named, told Dawn had Mr Elahi arrived here on any working day most of the students would have booed him.

On Monday, when students came to the college and saw banners inscribed with welcoming slogans for the chief minister, they tore a few. Later, they took out a rally in protest against the emergency rule, but a guard whistled at them and made them disperse.

Jawad, a fictitious name, of computer sciences, said students wanted to follow the students of Lahore University of Management Science, Beaconhouse National University and FAST National University, but no one wanted to be expelled.
No visible activities like on-campus rallies, pro-democracy and anti-dictatorship placards and speeches have been reported from these institutes because of 'strict disciplined atmosphere and tight study schedule'.

Jawad said as most of the present setup, including President Pervez Musharraf, Pervazi Elahi and National Security Council Chief Tariq Aziz, consisted of Formanites, and the government had showered a lot of funds on the college, but most of the students were against the emergency.
"We will not take out any on-campus rally because this can land us in trouble," he said. He said the administration was intolerant when it came to studies and discipline. He said he along with a few others would take a day off and join a demonstration led by Tehrik-i-Insaaf Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday (today).

The GCU, Lahore, which has been the institute of Aitzaz Ahsan, the leading voice against emergency rule, and a few incumbent Lahore High Court judges, is also humming with anti-emergency rule sentiments.

A group of graduating students, busy discussing some academic work outside the Bokhari Auditorium, said that they teased blue-eyed students of some teachers as PCO-ed people. Earlier, such blue-eyed people would be dubbed 'Chamchay' or sycophants by other students.

They said they also feared expulsion if they held any on-campus rally and no one would like to afford that cost for protesting the emergency rule.

Inside the hall, an all Pakistan declamation contest on Iqbal's ideology was going on.

Whenever any contestant proclaimed Iqbal's view on democracy, the audience would taunt him or her: "And what about emergency?"

GCU Public Relations Director Iqbal Anjum said they encouraged the students to take up academic and research-oriented activities at campus. He said students could hold any political activity off the campus. He said the GCU also provided an environment conducive for extra-curricular activities wherein students could express themselves.

FCC Chief Advancement Officer Dr Manzur Gill said debates and discussion on the current political situation took place inside the classroom. Such a practice, he said, was healthy to politically groom the students. He said on-campus rallies could not be allowed as students could damage college property or disturb other classes. He said the FC College promoted the culture of research and studies among its students. He said the college had launched many new subjects to make the students socially matured.