The government is to go ahead with its controversial “leadership” programme in military camps for university entrants from tomorrow despite serious concerns expressed by students, parents and academics, a senior official of the Higher Education Ministry said yesterday.
In addition to these concerns, the Supreme Court on Friday requested the authorities to consider the possibility of putting off the leadership training at military camps at least by one week until a fundamental rights petition against it was taken up.
However, Higher Education Ministry Secretary Sunil J. Nawaratne said the government would go ahead with the training programme as scheduled.
“We have not postponed the residential training programme. The government is spending Rs. 125 million for it. Training sessions have already been worked out while food supplies, t-shirts and stationery for 10,000 students have been bought,” he said.
This year 22,000 students have qualified to enter universities. The secretary said training for the first batch of 10,000 students would begin tomorrow and end on June 12 while the second batch of 12,000 would begin their course on June 16.
He said 28 Army, Navy and Air Force training camps in Ampara, Anuradhapura, Boossa, Diyatalawa, Embilipitiya, Kandy, Kalutara, Minneriya, Mahiyanganaya, Panagoda, Polonnaruwa and Trincomalee would be used for the training.
The secretary assured parents of the security of the students attending the camps. “There will be female forces personnel as well as university wardens to take care of the female trainees. Muslim students will be provided facility for daily prayers and allowed to wear the traditional dress,” he said.
However, Dr. Mahim Mendis, a senior Social Science lecturer at the Open University said the course had not been planned in consultation with academics. “The training programme in military camps may not be suitable for university students. We expect university students to be free thinkers and not carry any militarized attitudes or attributes. Even in Western countries not all students are subjected to such training. It should be the personal choice of the individual,” he said.
Dr. Mendis said primary and secondary levels in schools should essentially provide facilities for personality development and leadership training instead of doing it at university entrance level. |
E-mail
