6 years ago on the 16th of December, at least 141 lives - including those of 132 children - were lost in a horrific terror attack on a school in Peshawar, Pakistan. It was a year after the attack when The Citizens Foundation (TCF) launched their ‘141 Schools for Peace’ initiative aimed at building schools as tribute to the innocent lives lost. I was in my second year of high school when my friend Myra and I decided to host a fundraiser for TCF, one of Pakistan’s leading organisations in the field of education for the less privileged.
Our fundraiser was incredibly popular with loads of students coming from various international schools in Singapore to show their support and donate to what was an extremely moving initiative. I remember feeling a huge sense of accomplishment when our day of fundraising was over 5 years ago- but the everlasting trauma since the attack has been far from over. My understanding of the attack today brings many things to mind, but what I find most striking is the significance of responding to this shocking instance of terrorism with something as fundamental as building more schools.
Launched in 1995, TCF is a non-profit organisation which aims to transform the state of Pakistan’s education system. Following the tragic massacre in Peshawar, TCF launched their ‘141 Schools for Peace’ initiative. 5 years later they have built a total of 64 schools to date*, and nearly half of these schools are secondary schools, which is of great importance considering the dearth of high quality secondary schools in Pakistan. Although they haven’t reached their target yet, TCF is currently responsible for providing quality education for 145,000 students and has continued to sustain TCF communities and schools despite the disastrous effects of COVID-19.
According to a report published by Human Rights Watch, over 22.5 million of Pakistan’s estimated 50 million children are out of schools. There are a number of reasons for this, including a lack of investment in education by the government and the cost of education which some families are unable to afford. But one the most devastating challenges Pakistans’ schools face is attacks on schools carried out by the Taliban and other militant groups. Although the most disturbing school attack is said to be the Peshawar shooting, militant violence has disrupted the education of hundreds and thousands of children in the last decade. The attack that truly spotlighted Pakistan’s education crisis was the 2012 shooting of Malala Yousafzai, Nobel prize winner and activist. Her shooting demonstrated the threat posed by the Taliban and made clear that achieving progress towards education in Pakistan requires action beyond tackling domestic terrorism.
Responding to the Peshawar shooting, Ahmed Rashid explained to The Independent that the Peshawar shooting is just one of many attacks by the Taliban in response to 1) government attacks on its members and 2) the fear of education within Pakistan’s schools- specifically female education.
“I think the second message is to do with Malala [Yousafzai]. Remember that Malala has been receiving accolades from all over the world, and remember she was shot by the Taliban and she has been advocating education for all, and the Taliban have been very strongly opposing her view on education. So they are sending a very strong message that ‘we don’t like your schooling system and we want an Islamic schooling system’.
Although the shooting of Malala and the school shooting in Peshawar are two separate incidents, they reveal the several layers to Pakistan’s education crisis. From detrimental gender norms to the issue of Pakistans ‘ghost-schools’ and the growth of radicalism in its most neglected regions- Pakistan’s education system is in desperate need of reform.
TCF’s response to build more schools to combat extremism is incredibly important for the future of Pakistan’s schools and education system. The 64 schools they have built so far are part of the growing network of 1,652 school units across Pakistan, and in response to the pandemic they have ensured the continuity of learning through their Distance Learning and Support Programme. You can read more about it here.
Although I can’t hear the name of the city without my heart dropping I am certain that TCF will achieve its target through which the dream of a safe, equal, and empowered society can be envisioned for Pakistan and its youth. You can make a donation towards the construction and operational support for TCF school-units here.
*Many thanks to Sania Sufi, Chief Executive Officer of TCF, UK for providing updates on the schools
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Fourth Floor is a West London based collective dissecting the world and promoting young creatives across the globe.
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