http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/world/asia/04schools.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1
Picture: http://img7.travelblog.org/Photos/100965/429780/f/4183485-Ulugbek-Madrassa--Bukhara-1.jpg
Information taken from Wikipedia, and NY times
Monday, November 2, 2009
Education is thought of as one of the fundamental parts of life in America, however, in other parts of the world this is not so. For instance, in Pakistan, the best education that exists happens inside the walls of the seclusive Madrassahs. The word madrassah is derived from the word "wazn " and "mafʻal" , translating to mean "a place where learning/teaching is done" Currently, Pakistani public schools suffer from no funding, horrible attendance, and non educated teachers. Because of this, parents have begun to turn towards sending their children to a Madrasah. Currently, with 50000 Madrasahs in the country, parents can easily find a school, and drop their children off forever. What most americans fail to grasp, is the concept that these children, although well educated in the Koran, virtually nothing else gets taught. Many believe that the numerous madrassahs in Pakistan contribute to the success of the Taliban. Although the schools themselves to not endorse the Taliban publicly, they teach a world-view that makes militancy possible A researcher named Salman Abid that lives in Punjab stated " The mindset wants to stop music, girls schools, and festivals... Their message is that this is not the real life, Real life comes later- after death" If one were to walk around every day with the mind set that they were not really living, it certainly makes it plausible to volunteer for battle, terrorism, and criminal acts. Looking from the mindset of these people, does it not seem reasonable to be the perpetrator of a car bomb, or other criminal act, when nothing is being lost, and eternal life is being gained?
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As Adolf Hitler said:
ReplyDelete"if you tell a lie long enough hard enough and often enough than people will believe it."
I think that it is terribly sad that these people are taught to believe such things, however much sense they seem to make. And although the quote that Mr. Bonhoffer posted could certainly apply, I have to wonder what happens to the moral compass that we are all born with?
ReplyDeleteWhen you are a child and you steal a lollipop or hit your sibling for the first time, you know it is wrong even if you have not been told it is wrong. With a situation like a Madrasah or even North Korea, those of us who are on the other side of the fence seem to believe that these people simply think the way they think because they are taught to think that way. But surely each individual in a situation like that knows deep down that what he does or what he is told to do is wrong.
North Koreans, for example, are taught that America is the enemy as we have seen through evidence of propaganda such as posters featuring violent images aimed at Americans and our flag. But although I feel bad for those citizens who are subject to such lies and living conditions, I still believe that something in their minds must trigger the response: "I wouldn't want them to do that to me, so how is right to do that to them?" Everyone has a conscience and a heart that warns them that something is wrong.
My point is that although it may be helpful for Americans to understand how these terrorists have seemingly no choice but to turn to this way of thinking in order to receive food and education, we cannot dismiss their actions as results of such brainwashing. I must admit that if I found myself in such a position and I was a Pakistani boy who had been eating grass my whole life in order to stay alive, I would go to one of those schools as would most people. But that would not mean that I was not ultimately responsible for my actions.