GO BACK, AFGHAN medical students in Pakistan told. WILL INDIA HELP?
An Open Letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi: These students have worked for years to pursue their dream of becoming doctors and dentists, often under extraordinarily difficult conditions. The situation is particularly vulnerable for female Afghan medical students.
Independent Ink News Desk
Please Help Afghan Medical Students Complete Their Education
Dear Prime Minister Modi,
This is an urgent humanitarian appeal concerning Afghan medical and dental students in Pakistan whose education and professional futures are at serious risk.
Recent reports indicate that Afghan students enrolled in medical and dental institutions in Pakistan have been instructed to return to Afghanistan, with some reportedly given just 24 hours to leave their institutions. Among those affected are students who have already spent several years studying medicine and dentistry, including students who are close to completing their degrees.
The situation is particularly vulnerable for female Afghan medical students.
Returning them to Afghanistan may imply the permanent loss of an opportunity to complete their medical education, given the continuing restrictions on women's access to university and medical education in Afghanistan.
These students have worked for years to pursue their dream of becoming doctors and dentists, often under extraordinarily difficult conditions. An opportunity to complete their education not merely secures their personal future, but is also an essential investment in the future of Afghanistan's healthcare system.
An Opportunity for India to offer Crucial
Humanitarian Assistance
India has a long history of friendship with the Afghan people and has provided educational opportunities to many Afghan students over the years.
At this critical moment, we appeal to the Government of India to consider establishing an emergency educational pathway for eligible Afghan medical and dental students affected by the current situation in Pakistan.
Such a humanitarian initiative could include:
· providing temporary scholarships or enrollment in educational institutes for eligible Afghan medical and dental students;
· allowing students, where it is are academically and legally feasible, to transfer to appropriate Indian medical and dental institutions;
· establishing a mechanism to assess students' completed coursework and clinical training so that they do not unnecessarily lose years of education;
· prioritising students who are in their final years of medical or dental education;
· providing particular consideration and protection for female students who may otherwise be unable to continue their professional education;
· and working with India's medical and educational regulatory authorities to develop a practical and transparent mechanism for continuation of their studies.
We recognise that transferring medical students between countries involves complex issues of accreditation, curriculum equivalence, clinical training, examinations and professional registration. However, these challenges should not prevent governments and educational institutions from exploring a humanitarian solution.
A Future Investment in Afghanistan
Afghanistan urgently requires qualified healthcare professionals. Every student who is enabled to complete medical education represents a future doctor or dentist who can contribute to the health of Afghan communities.
There is also a pressing need for female doctors in Afghanistan since women and children require access to female healthcare professionals. Furthermore, the loss of an entire generation of female medical students would have devastating long-term consequences for the country's health system.
Helping these students would therefore not simply be an act of humanitarian assistance. It would also be an investment in Afghanistan's future healthcare workforce.
A Moment for India–Afghanistan Friendship
India and Afghanistan share longstanding historical, cultural and people-to-people ties. At a time when Afghan students are facing uncertainty about their education and future, India's support could provide them with something invaluable: hope and the opportunity to complete their education.
Years of education should not be lost because of circumstances beyond the students' control. India has an opportunity to demonstrate once again that education can be a bridge between nations and a powerful instrument of humanitarian solidarity.
Please help these students complete what they started.
With respect,
Dr Mohammad Haqmal
Lecturer, University of London
PhD Researcher, University of Oxford
Dr Meha Dixit
Independent Author, Specialisation in Conflict Zones
Author of:
Piece of War: Narratives of Resilience and Hope
Disquieting Edges: Gender and Intersectionality in the Borderlands of Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh
Territory and Turmoil: Ladakh and Gilgit-Baltistan
Formerly worked at Amnesty International and Save the Children, and was a visiting faculty at the University of Kashmir, Srinagar.
Photos: (Top) Women medical students in Lahore. Afghan medical students in Khyber Pakhtoonkhawa, Pakistan
Photo credit: Afghanistan Students Association in Pakistan