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Dons in dialogue to deal with ragging and sexual violence in univesities
View(s):University academics, officials and student counsellors are discussing ways and means to prevent ragging and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Sri Lanka’s higher-learning institutes.
A ten-day dialogue got underway on Thursday at Colombo’s Galadari hotel with academics and university administrators from Sri Lanka’s 15 universities. Also attending the dialogue are academics and student administrators from India.
During the dialogue — organised by the University Grants Commission (UGC) in collaboration with the Association of Commonwealth Universities — the participants will recommend new laws, policies, institutional mechanisms and reforms to regulate and reduce ragging. They will also come up with training programmes for staff and students.
Declaring open the dialogue, UGC Chairman Mohan de Silva said sexual and gender-based valance was hidden in universities while ragging which was visible had been accepted as a norm.
“Parents and students have suffered for decades. There is a national outcry to stop the menace of ragging. That is why we are promoting a policy of zero tolerance for ragging and will critically analyse the problem. We will adopt a legally valid process to minimise ragging,” Prof. de Silva said.
Prof. Raj Kachroo, founder trustee of the Aman Satya Kachroo Trust, an independent anti-ragging movement, said the main issue in India was the lack of a complaining mechanism to find out or become aware of the incidents and act on them.
“How can we expect a student to complain to his vice chancellor when he is reluctant to tell his parents the torment he undergoes,” he asked.
He said independent mechanisms were needed to to make the government aware of the situation and bring about corrective measures. Prof. Kachroo said they launched an on-line system for making complaints and this helped to collect information and consult students and parents separately.
Addressing the participants, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that the rule of law must apply in the university premises. He said marshals and senior student counsellors cannot tackle the issue alone. He said there should be a separate counsellor for student complaints on ragging.