A federation of private schools in Pakistan has written to the Shehbaz Sharif government urging it to impose a strict ban on the sale of artificial weapons, including toy guns, in the country, news agency ANI said Saturday citing local media. According to the report, the All Pakistan Private School Federation, a group of registered organisations for private education institutions, claimed that playing with toy guns leads to ‘psychological repercussions’ in children.
In a letter sent to the government on Friday, APPSF president Kashif Mirza said toy guns were also encouraging criminal activities amongst children in Pakistan.
Mirza attributed the increase in violence in Pakistan to youngsters playing with toy weapons.
In 2017 the former Karachi commissioner had also written to the Sindh home department to prohibit the sale of toy guns. According to him, these artificial weapons were being used by street criminals and negatively impacting children’s minds. In 2015 the Sindh Assembly had passed a resolution banning the manufacture and sale of artificial weapons.
In 2014, six Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists stormed inside an Army Public School in Peshawar and killed more than 140, including over 130 students and school staff. The incident remains one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in the history of Pakistan.
In the aftermath of the incident, toy guns were banned in the cities of Peshawar and Kohat in Pakistan’s restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to discourage the growing trend of arms and violence among the children.
In April this year, three Chinese teachers were killed in a suicide attack in Karachi university. Shaari Baloch alias Bramsh, a 30-year old female suicide bomber, detonated herself near the university campus.
Less time to read?
Try Quickreads
-
China’s Xiaomi accuses ED of ‘physical violence’ threats during probe: Report
Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp has alleged its top executives faced threats of “physical violence” and coercion during questioning by India’s financial crime fighting agency, according to a court filing seen by Reuters. The next hearing is set for May 12. Xiaomi declined to comment citing pending legal proceedings. The company’s former India managing director, Manu Kumar Jain is now Xiaomi’s global vice president based out of Dubai and is credited for Xiaomi’s rise in India, where its smartphones are hugely popular.
-
North Korea likely launched submarine missile, South Korea says
North Korea fired an unidentified projectile into the Sea of Japan on Saturday, the South Korean military’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. The latest launch comes just three days after Pyongyang last fired a missile, as warnings grow that it may conduct a nuclear test.
-
UK PM Boris Johnson rides out voter anger at ‘Partygate’
If Boris Johnson’s Conservative critics were waiting for proof that “partygate” and a U.K. cost of living crisis have damaged his premiership beyond repair, Thursday’s local elections did not provide it. Electoral Calculus had projected they would lose about a third. Boris Johnson Braces for Local Poll Backlash Over ‘Partygate’ More worrying for Johnson will be criticism of his overall strategy. Big Names Yet the strategy carries risks for some Tory MPs.
-
Long Covid risk worse after Delta than Omicron, shows data
The odds of reporting fatigue, shortness of breath, difficulty concentrating and other persistent symptoms were 50% lower following infections likely caused by the omicron BA.1 variant than those likely caused by the delta strain, the Office for National Statistics said in a report Friday. The difference was only found among adults who were double vaccinated when infected. Among those who were triple vaccinated, the difference wasn’t statistically significant.
-
Russia should withdraw to pre-invasion position- Zelensky on talks: 10 points
Russia has to withdraw to the pre-invasion position, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday as he expressed his willingness to hold peace talks with a caveat. Speaking at a meeting at London’s Chatham House think-tank on Friday, the Ukraine leader insisted that “regaining the situation as of the 23rd of February” — the day before the invasion — is a prerequisite for talks. Here are ten updates on the Ukraine war: 1.