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PAKISTAN: Disabled student has been allegedly denied admission to a medical college based on his condition

December 15, 2006

[NOTICE: To facilitate your intervention of the urgent appeals issued by the AHRC, we have developed a new automatic letter-sending system using the "button" below. However, in this appeal, we could not include e-mail addresses of many of the Pakistan authorities. We encourage you to send your appeal letters via fax or post to those people. Fax numbers and postal addresses of the Pakistan authorities are attached below with this appeal. Thank you.]

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

15 December 2006
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UA-402-2006: PAKISTAN: Disabled student has been allegedly denied admission to a medical college based on his condition

PAKISTAN: Discrimination on the basis of disability; violation of the right of education
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding a 23 year-old man named Mustafa Rehman who had his college application rejected based on his disability by the King Edward Medical College in Lahore, Punjab province, Pakistan. Even though he is qualified for admission, he has allegedly been denied entry by the university admission committee. The university’s actions are illegal under Pakistani law which clearly states that people who are disabled have a right to pursue higher education as long as the student does not suffer from "mental retardation".

CASE DETAILS:

Mustafa Rehman who suffers from a lumbers disability has been a candidate for admission to a medical college in Punjab, Pakistan. He was denied admission to the medical college on the pretext of this disability despite even though this is in clear violation of the law. Dr. Sirjuddin who is an official in the Ministry of health has reaffirmed the notion that no educational institution can bar a candidate from seeking admission based on disabilities except for cases where the candidate shows mental retardation. 

Mustafa's had lodged his application under the admissions category reserved for people suffering from disabilities, as specified by the Government’s Medical colleges of the Punjab, Pakistan. This category is explicitly reserved for students who suffer from disabilities.

Based on Mustafa’s qualifications, he was invited by the college to sit the college’s entry exam in December 2002. After successfully writing the exam and waiting for almost 5 months, Mustafa was then called for an interview. It was then allegedly determined by the college that his admission should be rejected allegedly based on his disability.

Mustafa was first operated on in the first years of his infancy. He later underwent surgery when he was six-months old and later at the age of 5 years. He passed his FSc (Fellow of Science) examination for pre-Med administered by the Federal Board of Secondary and Intermediate Studies and was a Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) candidate whose entry test scores had passed with 740 out of 1100.

Furthermore, Mustafa claims that many of the candidates who sat the exam with him have already been granted admission in spite of the fact that their percentages were as low as 63 per cent. Mustafa mentions that he has seen the scores in the merit list and that many of the applicants have sought admission on the basis of their political contacts and families' influence. 

Mustafa then went to the Lahore High Court and lodge a formal complaint that was not ruled upon for another 8 to 9 months. The court passed its verdict on 31 October 2003 and dismissed the admission application on the grounds that the court did not have any jurisdiction over the admission committee’s decision.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

In Pakistan, the FSc is a higher secondary school certificate program which is equivalent to high school. It is a prerequisite for admission to the medical college for any candidate who aspires to seek admission to the professional colleges. They also must take the preliminary examination followed by an aptitude test usually called Entry Tests. This system was introduced in 1996 as an extra burden on students which itself contradicts the examination system of the aptitude tests.  The exams are then followed by an interview which determines whether a candidate fails or passes the admission procedure.

The Ministry of Education in Pakistan has also been pursuing a duel examination policy on the basis of which results to the medical colleges can be manipulated and well deserving candidates are denied admissions on the basis that there needs to be more room for the children of the influential parents.

Meanwhile on 8 December 2006, the division bench of the Sindh High Court passed a verdict in a similar case of a disabled woman who was denied entry on the same grounds as Mustafa.  That is, she suffered from a physical disability and had no political connections that could secure her admission. Fortunately, the high court decided in favour of the girl and demanded her entry on the basis of merit and not by unfair means .The court was told by the consul of the victim that she was not mentally retarded so she should not have been denied admission. Therefore, in similar vain Mr. Mustafa must have the right to appeal his court ruling based on this verdict.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write to the relevant authorities listed below and demand their urgent intervention.  Please urge them to conduct a prompt and independent inquiry as to why Mr. Mustafa Rehman had been denied the admission. Also urge the authorities to identify those responsible and take legal action against them as well as to ensure that due respect of the rights of the disabled are practiced and protected in the country. There should be a system of equality before the law in all matters regardless of political affiliation. Furthermore, please ask the authorities to maintain a system of checks and balances so that the rights of the disabled are not discriminated upon.

To support this appeal, please click here:

Sample letter:

Dear ___________,

PAKISTAN: Disabled student has allegedly been denied admission to a medical college based on his condition

Name of victim: Mustafa Rehman, 23 years-old, House No 422, Street No 5, Colony Mehar Wazir, Nowshera Rd, Gujranwala – 52250
Alleged perpetrators: Dr. Mumtaz Hassan, Principal and Chairman of the Admission Committee, Kind Edward Medical College, Lahore, Punjab province, Pakistan
Period of denial of education: Since 31 October 2003 to date

I am writing to express my utmost concern in the wake a 23 year-old man named Mustafa Rehman who had his college application rejected based on his disability by King Edward Medical College in Lahore, Punjab province, Pakistan.

Even though he is qualified for admission, he has allegedly been denied entry by the university admission committee. The university’s actions are illegal under Pakistani law which clearly states that people who are disabled have a right to pursue higher education as long as the student does not suffer from "mental retardation".


I have learned that Mustafa Rehman, who suffers from a lumbers disability, has been a candidate for admission to a medical college in Punjab, Pakistan. He was denied admission to the medical college on the pretext of this disability despite even though this is in clear violation of the law. Dr. Sirjuddin who is an official in the Ministry of health has reaffirmed the notion that no educational institution can bar a candidate from seeking admission based on disability except for cases where the candidate shows mental retardation. 

Mustafa had lodged his application under the admissions category reserved for people suffering from disabilities, as specified by the Government’s Medical colleges of the Punjab, Pakistan. This category is explicitly reserved for students who suffer from disabilities.

Based on Mustafa’s qualifications, he was invited by the college to sit the college’s entry exam in December 2002. After successfully writing the exam and waiting for almost 5 months, Mustafa was then called for an interview. It was then allegedly determined by the college that his admission should be rejected based on his disability.

I understand that Mustafa was first operated on in the first years of his infancy. He later underwent surgery when he was six-months old and later at the age of 5 years. He passed his FSc (Fellow of Science) examination for pre-Med administered by the Federal Board of Secondary and Intermediate Studies and was a Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) candidate whose entry test scores had passed with 740 out of 1100.

Furthermore, I know that Mustafa claims many candidates who sat the exam with him have already been granted admission in spite of the fact that their percentages were as low as 63 per cent. Mustafa mentions that he has seen the scores in the merit list and that many of the applicants have sought admission on the basis of their political contacts and families influence. 

I understand that Mustafa then went to the Lahore High Court and lodge a formal complaint that was not ruled upon for another 8 to 9 months. The court passed its verdict on 31 October 2003 and dismissed the admission application on the grounds that the court did not have any jurisdiction over the admission committee’s decision.

Given that Mustafa's denial of entry falls under the legal provisions provided for the physically disabled and as it is in violation of the basic norms of the constitution of Pakistan which allocates a 6 per cent quota in the educational sector to all those who suffer from physical deformity, there should be no discrimination made against him. I urge you to grant admission to Mustafa on the basis of merit, as it is clear that he has right to study at the college based on his entrance scores. Finally, I urge you to consider the verdict of the Sindh High court as a model on how educational institutions must not discriminate based on physical disabilities.

I look forward to your urgent intervention in this matter. 

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTER TO:

1. General Pervez Musharraf
President
President's Secretariat
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 51 922 1422, 4768/ 920 1893 or 1835

2. Choudhry Pervez Illahi
Chief Minister of Punjab
Chief Minister House
Lahore
Punjab province
PAKISTAN
 
3. Lt. General (Retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi
Federal Minister of Education
Room # 205
D Block
Pakistan Secretariat
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 51 920 1392
Fax: +92 51 920 3245

4. Mr. Imran Masood
Minister of Education
Punjab provincial government
Punjab Secretarait
Lahore
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 042 921 0320
Fax: +92 042 921 8038

5. Mr. Muhammad Wasi Zafar
Minister of Law, Justice and Human Rights
S Block
Pakistan Secretariat
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 51 920 2628
E-mail: minister@molaw.gov.pk

6. Joint Secretary for Law, Justice and Human Rights
S Block
Pakistan Secretariat
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Tel: + 92 51 920 2819
Fax: + 92 51 920 3119

7. Lt. General Khalid Maqbool
Governor of Punjab
Governor House, Mall Road
Lahore
Punjab province
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 42 9200023
E-mail: governor.sectt@punjab.gov.pk 

8. Secretary of Law and Parliamentary Government of Punjab
Punjab Secretariat
Ravi Road
Lahore
Punjab province
PAKISTAN
E-mail: law@punjab.gov.pk

9. Mr. Vernor Munoz
UN Special Rapporteur on the right to education
Attn: Isabelle Sevin
Room 3-042
c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9117
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR RIGHT TO EDUCATION)

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-402-2006
Countries :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.