Sher ali

Midhat Amna : My name is Midhat Amna and I am going to be interviewing Sher Ali today. The topic of our interview is ‘Voices of Pashtun Students in FC College’, in which we will be talking about Sher Ali’s experiences and his challenges. Please tell me about yourself (Sher Ali), where are you from? You…

Sher Ali: So basically I belong to South Waziristan, (uh) which is in ex-FATA( Federally Administrated Tribal Areas)…

Interviewer: Alright.

Interviewee: Federally Administered Tribal Areas. There were seven agencies which were collectively called FATA And they were then merged into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2018, so now we are in a way we are in KPK. And in South Waziristan, district South Waziristan, in Wana, in a village called Sirkikot. I got my matric education from Wana and then I moved to Swabi, Peshawar, for my intermediate…

Interviewer: Alright.

Interviewee: then after my intermediate, I joined FC College Lahore, and this is my seventh semester and i am doing major in English Literature. Hopefully I will be graduated in 2023.

Interviewer: Alright. Please tell us about your family, do you have any siblings?

Interviewee: Sister so, we are just four members in our family. My father, my brother, me and my younger brother. I don’t have any sister which is very unfortunate.

Interviewer: Alright. So in Punjab, there is a tradition of joint families. Do you also have a joint family culture in There (Waziristan)?

Interviewee: Yes joint family there is also a trend of joint family culture there, of course. Over there, joint families is a sort of very closely followed culture, we can say it is…something like that, but we are living in joint families from the very beginning because we are a tribal society who used to live in tribes back then, so that culture is slowly coming down, and now people are moving towards nuclear families which is a good thing, but still the joint family system exists there.

Interviewer: Yeah, of course. So you told us that you received your early education from there (Waziristan), right? So had you planned to take up English Literature when you came here first?

Interviewee: I had never thought about that, because when I was in school…I changed three schools in South Waziristan, because there were some schools till primary level and then some for middle school and then you had to move to the city for further education, because no school would offer Matric degree ( In Waziristan). That was the case with me. I had never thought I would…neither me for my family, because they thought I would become a doctor, an engineer, or a pilot because there is this trend of such education in our area. I don’t know if people have been suffered by these doctors or engineers because everyone wants their child to be a doctor or engineer. The second reason of this is because they want their children to give them back something (wealth) faster. They think that, “if i have a son, then after four years later he will earn money. If he becomes a doctor there will be more income. They are unaware of other fields like Political Science, English literature, which here people pursue very efficiently. People do very good in Social Sciences and Humanities. I never thought that I would…when I first arrived in FC, this was like completely 180 degrees different environment for me. We were taught by a female professor or a female teacher, because in college there was a male teacher and in school, there was no concept or female teacher or woman teachers. So this was a bit different for me.

Interviewer: So you shared that there were only male teachers l, so there is a concept of co-education, including FC. Do you have co-eduction concept in Waziristan?

Interviewee: No, not at all. Co-education over there, co-education may exist till montessori level,Prep, I think third grade or may be first grade but that’s because they are kids so they can study together. By as such, no co-education institute exists, Nor does the people allow it

Interviewer: Sher Ali, we discussed your life in Wana, and where you belong. So now you’re here, and it’s your final year, what are your emotions and feelings?

Interviewee: To me FCCU is like a second home. When I came here first, I realised the system of education is fully different. When I first arrived in FC, I thought I’m in a foreign country. When I took class and interacted with people. So, there was this thing diversity which attracted me and made me…because I couldn’t even speak to anyone (at the beginning ), but in FC I developed the Ability to speak and I started interacting with people, with professors, administrators, and these days I am worried about my graduation and what I will do if I’m not FC…

Interviewer: Yeah...

Interviewee: …Because I’m used to FC now. This is about FC.

Interviewer: Have you ever visited Lahore before you joined FC?

Interviewee: I went to Multan, I only came to Lahore for FC. In Multan, I was a part of Bhauddin Zakariya University for one year where I studied Sociology and that was the worst experience.

Interviewer: How did you think about FC then?

Interviewee: I had thought about FC before. First I applied for admission in GC (Government College University) gave test and interview but I was not selected there, and by then Due date to apply to FC had passed. However, (Bhauddin Zakariya University) has reserved seats for us, There are four seats in every department for those who belong to FATA. I got admitted there in Sociology department but I didn’t want to study it nor was I interested in it. I always wanted to study Literature and English Language, so after that one of my friends told me that admissions for FC have started so I attempted the test and left BZU.

Interviewer: So you mentioned you have studied Sociology as well and now you’re studying Literature…

Interviewee: Yes I studied Sociology in BZU (Bhauddin Zakariya University).

Interviewer: So all these subjects…these social sciences subjects, are they taught in South Waziristan? Are they offered?

Interviewee: South Waziristan has no university, in fact there is no university in the entire FATA. There is a government college there but even that isn’t functional. Over there, people only study till matriculation. After matriculation, those who want to study move to cities, like people come to lahore, some come to FC, Punjab College, some go to Peshawar, for example I went to Swabi, some institutes offer scholarships, Islamia College... so there is education only till matriculation. After matriculation, the percentage, if i take my batch of matric and look into that, it only had 50-55 students. Among them, only 15 or hardly 10 students reached for the university education. The rest leave (education), some complete their FSc from there.. from Government College (in Waziristan), the rest start a business or do some job. The education is only till matriculation, and that is just the ratio of our school over there, since it was funded by government so it was like a model school in our district. The ratio in rest of the private schools is 2:30 , for example if one class has 30 students then only 2 of them will aim for higher education while the rest leave. Nobody over there knows about social sciences. The biggest challenge faced over there is selecting a career, because their minds are being stuffed with medical and engineering since childhood and till matriculation and FSc they don’t know about social sciences, they don’t know whether sociology is a part of social sciences or humanities in which whether English Literature is in humanities or social sciences. They don’t know these differences, and our people push towards professional education, like medical, allied heath sciences, DPT (doctor of physiotherapy) physiotherapy, etc. That’s what they do. They want to learn a skill and start earning as soon as possible, because families demand money. They invest in you, and you have to give back to them. Students who come to lahore, to FC College, or Punjab University, they come here to persue their goals and interest. So to them... so if someone comes here to study politics because he’s interested in politics, and he has some background knowledge about politics. That is why he came to Lahore Otherwise, people who come here don’t know about majors, they don’t know about what to decide and how to take up simple courses. This is the reason.

Interviewer: Did you face any difficulty in the beginning?

Interviewee: Yes, i have face many difficulties at the beginning. Technically, us people are a bit weak since we have no access to internet over there (in Waziristan), nor we have been introduced to online, internet or social media for very long. Yes there were difficulties, as we have mentioned earlier I had no clue about Moodle, I didn’t know how to submit an assignment, or even how to take up Courses that was the biggest problem. When I first arrived, two of my classes were in the morning. One from 8:00 am to 9:00 am, and the next from 9:00 to 10:00 am, and the third class was at 4:00 pm. In between, I would be roaming around the campus throughout the day. If I had known earlier about scheduling, I would have done it and it would have been easier. These problems did arrive at the beginning, and for this reason in FC College we help students who come from remote areas so they can cope with their students and they can go along with the students here.

Interviewer: Do you know anyone from you, Do you any acquaintance with you over here ( in FC)?

Interviewee: There are many people I know. From my district, about 10-12 students are here who are studying Economics, English, Political Sciences, Sociology, these fields. We here... In FC, In science subjects like chemistry and Bio... you will find very few students in there, there aren’t any…maybe 1 or 2 in the Chemistry department. In the entire Chemistry department, in the whole S block, there are only 1 or 2 students. Those (students) who come here don’t study these subjects.

Interviewer: You mentioned in the beginning you had a very “foreign feeling” when you first arrived. Would you like to point out any cultural differences you saw here as compared to there?

Interviewee: There were…I have mentioned earlier that culture here and my hometown is completely different, not just based on dress code and interaction, but in the thought process of people. People think... Over here people think differently and over there they think differently. When I first arrived in FC College, the environment off FC College, the vibrant and liberal environment, made me realise... because I had never imagined that... That environment in Pakistan at least. This is why I said that I thought I am in some foreign University. This is what I thought, these were the differences. Secondly, over here since I studied in BZU, the teachers and professors weren’t as cooperative as they are here. Like, in our UNIV100 class, so there is this whole/separate class in which the advisors advise you how to spend your four years (in university). FC has this feature which no other university in Pakistan has. So I felt that It is a student orientated university. I mean they work keeping in mind the goals and interests of students. This is why I like FC a lot and I adjusted here pretty well. Thirdly, as far as campus politics are concerned, every university has those but FC is quite safe.

Interviewer: Over here, when you came, did Punjabis make you feel welcome?

Interviewee: My first friend that I made here was a Punjabi and he was a Lahori. And the other who became my friends.. a lot of my friends are Punjabi, some are locals here from Lahore and so belong to South Punjab and places like that. In FC, I never felt like an outsider, in FC, if I’m very specific. However when we step outside, problems do arise. Sometimes, someone judges me because….the police judges us, they ask for ID cards and when south Waziristan is written on it, they start questioning us. These things happen. Or people judge me on the basis of cloths and appearance. However, never in FC. Whether it’s teachers, students, or administration…they have treated me like a Formanite and not like someone from Waziristan and they gave no special privilege and that’s why I’m happy. That’s because sometimes people become sympathetic and that hurts a person also…I’m treated as a normal Formanite and I’m happy about that.

Interviewer: Did you accept the cultural differences?

Interviewee: Cultural differences…Cultural diff...well I in Punjab… like jeans are not the culture of Lahore but I still wear them. As far as my culture is concerned….this is a pretty weird Thing, when a person is stuck between two cultures. After 10th Standard, my time was spent more in the other culture. So a confusion arises that which culture I am bend towards. And that... if I am to be very honest, sometimes I think I hate my own culture and when I think about it or some cultural event comes up, then I like my culture. I think we have lost a glorious culture somewhere two or three decades ago. At that time, the culture was completely different from what it is now. We were introduced to some Islamisation policies, something very extremist, even though we had a very liberal culture, even though there was no education back then, we acknowledge that, we were shepherds or whatever, however we were culturally rich back then. There was a specific position of women in society, they were a part of jirgas back then. They enjoyed equal privileges as the men of the society. But there, they were introduced to Islamization, jihad, these and that, because of that, the established culture which was centuries old changed into a hybrid culture which became pretty dangerous. I think, because of that I’m not very impressed with the new culture. I want something like a cultural renaissance in my area.

Interviewer: That’s completely justified. When you came here, you witnessed so many women studying in FCCU. When you go back during your vacations, do you feel a bit weird?

Interviewee: I…when I came to FC…the metropolitan cities for example Lahore, big cities, people aren’t very judgemental as small cities like Multan or Peshawar or some other small cities. People here pursue their own goals, individual citizens pursue his or her goals which impresses me a lot. When I go back (to my home), over there when I see females, especially students, female studens suffer lot to get education. They have to accompany a male to anywhere they go, and despite that if a female goes forward then the cultural and religious constraints step in, which hurts a person when. They think that they’ve studied till matriculation, after that... their families start asking them to give up education and discourage them, or some other excuses rather cultural and religious constraints, This is why. when I saw FC... even you’ll realise that there very few Pathan female students. However, this year five female students came to FC and I convinced FC administration to give them scholarships….

Interviewer: really…

Interviewee: Over here, contribution of female students is close to zero When we (Pashtun) use to party over here, there were only boys. We give welcome party to the newly arrived students. We also give graduation party. So i said to rector that... we have cultural and religious constraints, there are, we acknowledge that, I agree that our culture have these flaws which were introduced recently and were not a part of our culture before. Earlier, we did not even have any knowledge about religion. Some people just stepped in and said acknowledge it and we did, or we had no knowledge. There are these financial issues, people are poor there. They prioritise education of a male child. They think that rather than sending their daughter to lahore for studies, it is better to educate their son to get some reward in return. So FC gave fully funded scholarships to Pashtun female students, under Women Empowerment Programme. 5 girls have arrived newly and there may be 4 others. This is the ratio in FC. The male students are 120 or 130.

Interviewer: How did your life change after joining FC? How would you describe your life now?

Interviewee: I think, after joining FC, I think I discovered myself. We used to study an Islamic education course, Islamiyat 101, and there a teacher, who’s amazing, and even has a book “Faith, Spirituality and Character”, and teaches about that... and that is a very good book.so (in that book) he talks about transformation, “how can a person can transform him or herself”. So when a person comes to FC... he is bound to think... I feel like i am different. But why am I? And looking for those aspects and then working on them. When I first arrived, I was a shy person. I front of someone... could never speak in front of female or opposite gender. However, I started working on it. I started interacting with people and I would fail sometimes, but then again, today I think I have transformed myself in that sense. I am a different person from the person that was in 2018.

Interviewer: Sher Ali, what are your plans for the future? Would you like to stay in Lahore in the future…

Interviewee: I would like to stay in Lahore…

Interviewer: It’s your second last semester.

Interviewee: Yes, it is my second last semester. My plans for the future also include Masters degree, i am thinking about... so I’m planning to go abroad in case I get a scholarship. If not, then I’ll stay in Lahore for Masters. After that, I’ll pursue academia or business somewhere.

Interviewer: alright. So did the lifestyle here suit you? Do you wish to spend the rest of your life in Lahore or in Punjab?

Interviewee: Yes I want to, because I have in a way adopted the culture of Lahore and I know how to live here. I really like living in a city because I don’t like living in villages. I feel uncomfortable there. I think we should live in places where our mentality is compatible. I don’t... I have no one to talk to in south Waziristan, my mentality and my friends mentality are very different and I don’t think it is their fault. I have to go there and make them understand that this thinking is not valid if you want to be happy in your life. But the think is that every person has an individual life that they have to spend. So what I’m planning is, In Sha Allah, in terms of cities, Peshawar would be more convenient for us. I think Lahore is too different linguistically in terms of language my family or the people over there hardly understand Urdu but they will be comfortable with Pashto. So either Dera Ismail Khan or Peshawar…and I’m thinking of shifting my family to Lahore. First Peshawar or D-I-Khan if not there then to lahore.

Interviewer: That is so progressive honestly. That is indeed very progressive. That is very thoughtful as well.

Interviewee: I think they should do it too, I mean the people over there. They should move to cities as lives in cities is completely different and a person truly observes lives in cities. So I am thinking so…the rest we will work on it.tell other people to come to lahore In Sha Allah I’ll make an effort.

Interviewer: In Sha Allah. In Sha Allah. Thank you so much Sher Ali, you gave this interview with so much honesty. I got to learn so much from you also. Thank you so much for contributing.

Interviewee: thank you. Thank you for having me.

Interviewer: is very valuable input you’ve given and I really want to validate you and whatever you’ve said and I want to assure you that whatever you’ve said will make an impact, In Sha Allah. Thank you so much Sher Ali.

Interviewee: Thank you for having me. Thank you.