[Current Affairs] January 28, 2021 Top Pakistan Current Affairs for Entry Test Preparation

2. Higher education body green-lights online exams

What’s going on? The Higher Education Commission (HEC) will let universities across Pakistan conduct exams online, but online exams aren’t a requirement. Universities can hold online exams if they want to. The HEC made this decision after hundreds of students protested against in-person exams. Student protests broke out at various universities in different cities, mostly Lahore. Education Minister, Shafqat Mahmood, stressed that universities should come up with appropriate procedures asap and maintain educational standards while holding online exams.

The details: In a statement, the HEC said universities need to remain “vigilant” if resorting to online exams, and apply “adequate safeguards,” (i.e. finds ways to supervise students and keep an eye on plagiarism). However, exams for courses that require physical skills (i.e. medicine, engineering, lab work) still need to take place on campus.

The context: As we already know, schools across the country shut down campuses to prevent the spread of COVID-19. As a result, universities implemented “distance learning” (i.e. educating students online). Students are worried about failing if they’re forced to take in-person exams on campus. They don’t think online classes were sufficient enough to prepare them for in-person exams. In some cases, online courses were allegedly incomplete, meaning, students didn’t get to learn the full syllabus. Basically, students are arguing their exams should be online, just like their low-quality classes were.

Timeline of events: News coverage of the student protest has been all over the place.

• On Friday, January 22, students from public and private universities protested outside Governor’s House in Lahore. They demanded the cancellation of in-person exams, and a fee reduction for the online semester. Protestors claimed that private institutions charged sky-high fees without completing syllabuses for online courses.

• On Monday, January 25, a protest against in-person exams at University of Management and Technology (UMT) Lahore went seriously wrong. The Progressive Students’ Collective (PSC) tweeted that the Punjab Police baton charged and critically injured student protestors, including PSC’s Lahore president, Zubair Siddiqui. PSC also tweeted that police arrested Siddiqui. However, police officials claimed they didn’t baton charge, torture or arrest anyone.

• On Tuesday, January 26, the PSC tweeted that the Punjab Police baton charged students at NFC Faisalabad who were protesting against in-person exams.

• On Tuesday, January 26, PSC once again tweeted about another student protest at the University of Central Punjab (UCP). PSC claimed that security guards at the university beat students who were protesting at the main gate. PSC alleged that security guards attacked peaceful student protestors.

Looking ahead: Now, the PSC is claiming that at least 36 students were arrested at the UCP protest. Their team of lawyers are reportedly trying to get them released. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) even said it’s gravely concerned about the arrest of at least 36 students. The HRCP also claimed that private security and police personnel injured several students – two critically.

The bottom line: Young people in Pakistan are trying to make themselves heard. In addition to protests at universities, students all over the country are speaking out on Twitter to demand online exams (e.g. #StudentsKoInsafDo, #StudentsWantOnlineExams, #StudentsRejectPhysicalExams). Lawyer and activist, Jibran Nasir, thinks the resurgence of student protests in the country is an important political development, especially since more than half the population is made up of young people.

4. Pakistani suspect admits his role in American journalist’s beheading

Remember British-Pakistani Saeed Omar Sheikh? In a new development, he admitted his limited involvement in the killing of American Journalist, Daniel Pearl, and said his “minor role” doesn’t deserve a death sentence. Sheikh didn’t specify what exactly his “minor role” was. However, he alleged that a Pakistani militant named Atta-ur-Rahman (i.e. Naeem Bukhari) killed Pearl. Sheikh made this disclosure in a handwritten letter addressed to the Sindh High Court (SHC), which was recently submitted to Pakistan’s Supreme Court.

• Backstory: Sheikh was convicted in the murder and kidnapping of Pearl. The gruesome incident took place in 2002, while Pearl was researching Pakistani militants. In April last year, the SHC set aside Sheikh’s murder conviction, and said he’s only guilty of kidnapping Pearl. The SHC sentenced Sheikh to seven years in prison for kidnapping instead. However, since Sheikh was already in prison for 18 years on death row, the SHC decided it’s time to let him go. Pearl’s family and the Pakistani govt filed an appeal in Pakistan’s Supreme Court to challenge Sheikh’s acquittal. The Supreme Court is hearing the appeal.

• Tell me more about Bukhari: Pakistani forces reportedly arrested Bukhari in 2016. He was allegedly involved in attacks on Pakistani air bases, Karachi’s airport, several regional intelligence headquarters and police installations between 2009 and 2015. Bukhari was also a member of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militant group. According to a recent report by the Associated Press, Bukhari has already been executed in connection with other attacks.