Bargad in collaboration with Punjab Institute of Language, Art, and Culture (PILAAC) and Punjab Youth Affairs Department, Government of the Punjab and Punjab Chief Minister’s Special Monitoring Unit (SMU) organized a festival, “Commemoration of Pakistan” at Punjabi Complex, PILAAC to celebrate Pakistan's 70th Independence Day.
The festival was consisted of an inauguration session, a panel discussion on Way Foreword for a Peaceful Pakistan, and a musical programme. It was attended by 500 participants, including university students, parliamentarians, civil society members and celebrities.
Minister of Education, Mr. Rana Mashood Ahmed Khan while congratulating the organizers remarked, "Celebration of Pakistan's 70th Independence Day with such grandeur represents a progressive and peaceful Pakistan. We, as a nation, are developing at a rapid pace. To keep up, a message of harmony and tolerance needs to be spread time and again.”
Mr. Nayyer Iqbal, Secretary, Youth Affairs Department commented on the energy of the youth and encouraged their participation, "In order to celebrate the true essence of Quaid's Pakistan, the youth requires to actively engage in affairs of the society and State. For that, assist each other in every way possible to promote open-mindedness and equal opportunities for all citizens."
Director General (DG) PILAAC, Dr. Sughra Sadaf said that PILAAC would never miss an opportunity to highlight the heroic efforts of our forefathers. Executive Director Bargad, Ms. Sabiha Shaheen briefed about the “Ten Days for Pakistan” campaign which also included this festival. She said that the campaign is an effort to promote togetherness, diversity and unity and to celebrate the true essence of Quaid-e-Azam's Pakistan. After her address, a panel discussion on the topic, "Way forward for a peaceful Pakistan" was held. The panellists included: MPA Dr. Nausheen Hamid, SMU Head Fatima Zaidi, Professor Dr. Ghazala Irfan, Professor Shahid Gul, Secretary General Hindu Sudhar Sabha Aroon Kumar and Serviceman Aziz Massih.
Head of the Chief Minister’s SMU, Ms. Fatima Zaidi added, “Pakistan is a land of diverse people with diverse backgrounds, we must celebrate this diversity in order to celebrate what makes Pakistan special.”
MPA Dr. Nausheen Hamid contributed to the discussion by highlighting the efforts that can be made to promote equality through parliamentary forums and legislative drafts. By doing so, we will be successful in fulfilling Quaid-e-Azam's vision of a peaceful Pakistan.
Dr. Ghazala went on to speak on the importance of understanding and accepting differences of opinion stating: “Society is a series of contradictions, to understand a societal aspect we must look at both sides of the story. Belief that only and only your perspective is right leads to an inability to understand one another. Through dialogue we can learn to not only understand but also accept diversity.” Mr. Aroon Kumar stated that involving the marginalised portion of Pakistan's population will ensure many more prosperous years to come.
In the end a musical programme was staged in which the bands B-square and Solar Canvas enchanted the audience. Dr. Sughra Sadaf, Taranjeet Singh and Tahira Habib moderated proceedings of the festival.
The festival was part of a campaign, entitled “Ten Days for Pakistan”, which is running in the month of August to commemorate the Pakistan’s 70th Independence Day. The purpose of this campaign is to celebrate inclusion, diversity and unity. Apart from holding of the festival, other features of the campaign include “Arz-e-Pakistan March” in Lahore on 13th August, 2017.