Sir Frank Peters

BANGLADESH has passed many milestones in its short history: some good, some not so good, and others woefully disgraceful.

One may applaud or decry the historic happenings of late 2024, depending on which side of the fence you happen to be at the time.

One thing’s for sure, corruption has always reigned supreme throughout the history of Bangladesh, continues to reign supreme despite the efforts of the Professor Yunus lead interim government, and will continue to reign supreme.

It’s seemingly so imbedded in the DNA of the populace on all levels it’s now perceived to be natural, expected, and in many regards acceptable.

So rife is corruption those who participate in the despicable practice embrace it and label it legitimate ‘business’ practices, which makes them not answerable to Allah or man and so, hypocritical as it may be, they attend the mosque services regularly and perform Islamic duties, of sorts, with clear consciences.

Munafiq is a name given to them in Islam. (Munafiq is a person who in public and in community shows that he is a Muslim, but rejects Islamic teachings and principals or speaks against them in his heart. The hypocrisy itself is called nifāq (نفاق) and there are many walking about.)

Since Bangladesh came into being on December 17, 1971 (a whopping 54 years ago), many lessons miserably failed to be learned from the mistakes made by other nations.

54 years of countless talking heads

While libraries could be stockpiled from ceiling to floor with books cataloguing the mishaps, errors and mistakes made, perhaps there is no greater injustice and wrong than that befallen upon Bangladeshi children.

In the 54 years we’ve had countless of talking heads – including Presidents and Prime Ministers of Bangladesh – scream at the media microphones in mass open-air gatherings and such, that the future of Bangladesh is its children – the nation’s priceless, most valued asset.

And in the background, out of earshot, to the jingoistic television, radio and newspaper eye-catching, vote-catching headlines, children were suffering horrifically from being beaten mercilessly by ignorant ‘teachers’ in their schools, madrasahs, and by their parents in their homes.

Many children so distraught seriously contemplated suicide to escape the horrors of their experience while others went ahead and ended their despair.

Momentarily, cast your memory back to 2011. Noble modern day heroes and Bangladesh Supreme Court judges Imman Ali and Sheikh Hassan Arif called to end the barbaric evil practice. The declared it “cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and a clear violation of a child’s fundamental right to life, liberty and freedom”.

Since 2011, however, there have been a number of horrific classroom incidents that have brought great shame and disgrace to the teaching profession.

Parade of horrors

A ‘teacher’ at Srijani Bidyaniketan, run by Patuakhali University of Science and Technology, ordered the students to stand up and sit down while holding their ears as punishment for making noise during recess.

The Dean, AKM Mostafa Zaman, then arrived on the scene, guns blazing, so to speak, but not to admonish the ‘teacher’ for her misbehaviour and wrong-doing.

No, no, no… he confined the hapless pupils to a room in an under-construction building, tied their hands with rope and put 10 house bricks on the head of each. Then beat them with sticks until they fell sick. No doubt there is evil among us, but how is it possible to measure it accurately?

Then there was that ‘hellish nightmare’ at the Talimul Quran Mahila Madrasa in Kadamtali where 14 young girls were literally branded for life with a red-hot cooking spatula by their ‘teacher’ to demonstrate her concept of what hell would be like!

And what about the ‘teacher’ at a Sunamganj school who forced students of Class V to cut their hands and legs with used razor blades until they bled, as punishment for not doing their homework?

Wait… wait… there’s more. Bristi Das. She died 13-days after an alleged cruel beating by her private tutor in Boalkhali upazila of Chittagong. Her crime? – Failing to answer some questions correctly.

Corporal punishment is an act of stupidity, ignorance, child abuse, and an act against humanity. Thank Allah, however, not all teachers are the same (Applause! Applause!)… some children have nothing to fear.

Fast forward to 2025… While ALL previous governments miserably failed in their duty to protect the nation’s most priceless assets (the children) from the horrors and abuse of corporal punishment, Wahiduddin Mahmud, Adviser for Education in the present interim government, is at least making an effort to right the wrong, but is it enough?

My understanding from a news article I read, that the honourable adviser is arranging to have posters erected on the school principal’s notice board requesting ‘teachers’ to refrain from using corporal punishment. If that is the case (I have yet to sight one) it will be of very little value.

Left to their own devices, some ‘teachers’ and imams are evil dictators who cannot control the evil within. They should not be government salaried torturers, they should be removed before they cause more damage to the children and nation and should be replaced by competent, qualified teachers of an understanding and compassionate nature.

Subjecting children to the scourge of corporal punishment is wrong, totally unnecessary, and completely without justification. Corporal punishment can NEVER be justified… in any setting, schools, madrasahs, or home.

It’s been 5,114 days since the noble supreme justices first made it clear that corporal punishment is detrimental to child and nation. How many more days are needed before corporal punishment is banned in all settings?

Sweden banned corporal punishment to its children in 1979. How long more years does Bangladesh need to wake up?

There’s an opinion floating about that says if anyone needs to be given corporal punishment, it’s the government, the Ministry of Education, teachers, and parents for failing in their duty to the child and nation, but however true that maybe, to flog them for saying that would be wrong!

The writer is an, humanitarian, an anti corporal punishment crusader, a former newspaper and magazine publisher and a human rights activist.