This University In Pakistan Imposed A Ban On Male-Female Friendships. What Even?

This University In Pakistan Imposed A Ban On Male-Female Friendships. What Even?

There is an age when rebellion runs in your very veins. And that age is teenage. In this precarious age, we get attracted to things that we are “prohibited” from doing. It’s probably why when you sneak in a bottle of wine on your 19th birthday (not encouraging!), it feels more thrilling than drinking on your 28th birthday. This is probably why we rebelled against dating guidelines and time curfews. When we’re young, we’re just a bunch of hormones, all ready to rebel against whatever seems to give us enough drama. Parents these days know better that forcefully controlling their children. So when we heard of Bacha Khan University in Pakistan putting a ban on boys and girls walking together, I was like, is this the 1970s?

The university passed out a circular that prohibited the students from indulging in “un-islamic” and “uncultural” activities such as being friends with the opposite sex. The circular read: “It is hereby notified for the information of all students that the unethical activities around the university are in surge, undue/un-Islamic/uncultural relationships are strongly discouraged. Let the students be very clear that coupling of male and female students is not allowed, if students are found anywhere in the campus coupling, strict disciplinary action would be taken against them. (sic)” What do you even mean by “campus coupling”? Unless students are indulging in sexual activities on the campus, how does the management even have the right to dictate how should they handle their relationships?

The circular also read, “The parents of the students would be called-in to the university and fine will also be imposed. Hence therefore to avoid any untoward situations, no male and female students correspondence should occur. (sic)” Are you banning cross-sex interaction in 2019? This is ridiculous. Men and women are supposed to co-exist and it’s not all just about marriage and sex. As two sections of the society, we need to understand each other and be comfortable around each other. I personally believe that men who grow up with women as siblings or friends have much better understanding of us. Also, there’s so much to learn from each other. When the students graduate, are they going to monitor them individually?

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Even if the students are attracted to each other, that’s natural. While expecting the culture to be open about pre-marital sex is a bit far-fetched for now, banning all interaction is probably the worst way to deal with a problem like this. Why do we need such policing and will it ever stop?

Akanksha Narang

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