October 2014 - High Commission for Pakistan, London

Issue:10, Vol: 3 October 2014
PAKISTAN Review
Monthly Newsletter of Pakistan High Commission, London
Prime Minister raised Kashmir issue at UNGA
P
rime Minister
Muhammad Nawaz
Sharif in a wide-ranging
th
address to the 69 UN General
Assembly on 26 September 2014
made an emphatic call for
resolution of Jammu and
Kashmir conflict and termed it
imperative for peace, security
and economic uplift of South
Asia. The Prime Minister also
called upon the international
community to resolve the issue
of Kashmir in accordance with
the wishes of the Kashmiris.
In order to build peaceful
neighbourhood and to resolve
outstanding issues in South Asia,
the Prime Minister emphasized
on constructive engagement and
dialogue. Giving Pakistan's
stance on UN reforms, Mr Sharif
said there should be no new
permanent seats in the Council as
it would be contrary to the
democratic character of this
world body. The Prime Minister
condemned all forms of
terrorism and reiterated
Pakistan's commitment to fighting
this menace. He also underscored
Pakistan's commitment to
highest standard of nuclear
safety but at the same time
advocated for Pakistan's full
access to civil nuclear
technology for development
purposes.
Sustainable Development Goals.
He informed that at the national
level, Pakistan had launched its
Vision 2025, which puts people
first. Mr Sharif also called upon
the international community to
address the challenges of climate
change.
The Prime Minister stated that
peace, stability, and inclusive
economic growth should be our
priorities to achieve the
Pakistan participated in the NATO Summit 2014
A
cting High Commissioner
Mohammad Imran Mirza led
the Pakistan delegation to the
NATO Summit 2014 in Wales on 4-5
September 2014.
Ukraine, Afghanistan and future of the
NATO Alliance were at the top of the
Summit agenda. Addressing the main
session on Afghanistan, Mr Mirza said
Pakistan and NATO shared common
objectives of promoting global peace
and were partners in the international
coalition against terrorism. He
commended NATO's sustained
engagement with Afghanistan and
termed peace, stability and deepening
of democracy in Afghanistan of vital
interest to Pakistan. The Acting High
Commissioner said the government of
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was
committed to the policy of peaceful
neighbourhood and hoped for a similar
reciprocity from neighbours.
Mr Mirza also attended the reception
hosted by HRH Prince Charles and the
dinner hosted by Deputy Prime
Minister Nick Clegg.
Pakistani diaspora appreciated by Deputy Prime Minister
B
ritish Deputy Prime
Minister Rt Hon Nick
Clegg MP has
commended the contribution of
Pakistani diaspora in the
progress of the United Kingdom
and acknowledged that the
Pakistani community has
enriched the country culturally,
socially and politically. Mr Nick
nd
Clegg was speaking at the 2
Integration Dinner organized by
the World Congress of Overseas
Pakistanis (WCOP) in London
on 30 September 2014. He
appreciated Pakistani
community's ethos of hard work
and their successful integration
into the British society while
also retaining their Pakistani
identity. The Deputy Prime
Minister termed UK-Pakistan
relations extraordinarily strong
and friendly and assured his
government's continued support
to Pakistan in varied sectors of
development.
In his address Acting High
Commissioner Mohammad
Imran Mirza appreciated
substantive progress made by the
WCOP in creating better
understanding and fostering
stronger bonds of friendship
between the Pakistani and other
communities across the United
Kingdom. He acknowledged the
British Government for its
generous assistance in health and
education sectors of Pakistan.
Mr Mirza particularly thanked
Mr Clegg for his support to
Pakistan during 2010 floods and
in securing GSP Plus status in
EU for Pakistan. Rt Hon Simon
Hughes MP and Sajjad Karim
MEP and Chair WCOP also
addressed the audience.
Tourism can build bridges and contribute to peace:
Senator Pervaiz Rashid
I
2014. He said Pakistan had a
huge potential for cultural
tourism which could pave way
for cultural exchanges among
the people from diverse regions.
n a world struggling for
peaceful coexistence,
tourism can build bridges
and contribute to peace. This was
stated by Senator Pervaiz
Rashid, Minister for
Information, Broadcasting and
National Heritage while chairing
a meeting of the Board of
Directors of Pakistan Tourism
Development Corporation in
Rawalpindi on 23 September
The Minister informed that the
government was taking all
necessary steps to further
explore the avenues for the
promotion of cultural tourism in
Pakistan.
Why Kashmir is still important: Victoria Schofield gave a
talk at Pakistan High Commission
R
enowned broadcaster
and writer Victoria
Schofield has
emphasized the importance of
resolving the Kashmir dispute on
humanitarian level for the good
of all the inhabitants of South
Asia. She has also warned of the
danger of Kashmir remaining a
potential flashpoint, which, with
the rise of extremism in South
Asia could be used by non-state
actors to de-stabilize not only the
state of Jammu and Kashmir but
also the entire region. Victoria
Schofield expressed these views
during her talk at the Pakistan
High Commission London 17
September 2014. Acting High
Commissioner Mohammad
Imran Mirza was also present on
the occasion.
Ms Schofield said that Kashmir
should be on our agenda due to
the following five reasons: 1) Its
status is disputed which must be
resolved; 2) Both the countries,
i.e. India and Pakistan, possess
nuclear arms and any escalation
in conflict can lead to mutual
self-destruction; 3)
Non-state actors,
by fuelling the hate
narrative, can take
advantage of the
lingering dispute
and push the region
into dangerous
conflict; 4)
Humanitarian
aspect of the
dispute calls for an
urgent resolution of
the issue; and 5) The dispute is
resulting into tremendous waste
of resources which could be used
to alleviate poverty in both the
countries by resolving the issue.
While the speaker urged both
India and Pakistan to resolve the
conflict, she also made it clear
that no permanent resolution
could be achieved without
including the Kashmiris in the
process.
S i r Wi l l i a m B l a c k b u r n e
moderated the talk which ended
at a Q & A session. The event
was jointly organized by
Pakistan High Commission
London and The Pakistan
Society and was attended by a
cross-section of British society
and Pakistani community.
Debate in British Parliament on Kashmir
A
Back Bench Business
Committee of the
British Parliament
debate took place on 11
September 2014 on the political
and humanitarian situation in
Kashmir. The debate was
requisitioned on the request of
David Ward, Liberal Democrat
MP for Bradford East while Raja
Najabat Hussain, Chairman
Jammu & Kashmir Self
Determination Movement UK &
Europe, was the driving force
behind the event. The
participants of the debate
included MPs from almost all
political parties in the UK
including Philip Hollobone
(Chairman), Philip Davies, John
Hemming, Khalid Mahmood,
Andrew Griffiths, Bob
Blackman, Gregory Barker,
Steve Baker, Barry Gardiner,
David Nuttal, Simon Danczuk,
J o h n S p e l l a r, S h a b a n a
Mahmood, Jason McCartney,
Paul Uppal, Virendra Sharma,
Stephen Pound and Gavin
Shuker. The Parliamentary
Under-Secretary of State for
Foreign and Commonwealth
Affairs Tobias Ellwood, MP, also
attended the event. Amongst the
prominent guests who witnessed
the debate was former Prime
Minister of Azad Kashmir
Barrister Sultan Mahmood
Chaudhry.
The main objective of the debate
was not only to highlight the
plight of the people of Indian
Occupied Kashmir but also to
declare that it was an obligation
on the part of the British
Government, being the former
rulers of India and the architects
of the map of subcontinent at the
time of its partition, to play a role
in resolving the dispute.
Kashmir is the oldest unresolved
issue on the agenda of the United
Nations. There are a number of
UN Security Council resolutions
which grant the right to selfdetermination for the people of
Kashmir. However, these
resolutions remain unfulfilled
till date due to stubborn attitude
of India. Pakistan provides
political, moral and diplomatic
support to the people of Kashmir
in their struggle for right to selfdetermination.
Defence Day of Pakistan commemorated at
Pakistan High Commission
P
a k i s t a n H i g h
Commission, London
commemorated the
Defence Day of Pakistan to pay
homage to the martyrs who laid
their lives for the country. A
Defence Day reception was held
at the High Commission on
9 September 2014 to mark the
occasion. It was attended in large
numbers by Defence Attaches,
representatives of the Foreign &
Commonwealth Office,
prominent members of Pakistani
community, think tanks notables
and media representatives.
Addressing the audience, Acting
High Commissioner
Mohammad Imran Mirza
highlighted the significance of
the day and paid rich tributes to
the people of Pakistan,
terrorism and said in our
pursuit of regional and global
peace so far over 50,000
Pakistanis had laid their lives
and the economy had suffered a
loss of $100 billion.
Defence & Naval Adviser,
Commodore Mushtaq Ahmed
SI (M) welcomed the guests
and highlighted the importance
of the day. Army & Air Adviser
Colonel Zulfiqar Ali Bhatty
gave a brief insight on
Pakistan's ongoing military
efforts for peace and stability.
particularly the Defence Forces
for safeguarding the sovereignty
of the country. He underlined the
basic tenets of Pakistan's foreign
policy which are friendliness and
goodwill towards all the nations
of the world as outlined by the
founder of Pakistan Quaid-iAzam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Mr Mirza also highlighted
Pakistan's unprecedented
sacrifices in global war on
A candle light vigil and oneminute silence were observed in
the memory of martyrs and a
group of school children sang
popular national songs to mark
the occasion.
Pakistan Army Cadet's outstanding performance at the
Sandhurst Military Academy
I
n keeping with the
outstanding traditions of
the P akis tan' s A rmed
Forces, Cadet Saheer Ullah
Khan graduated from the Royal
Military Academy (RMA)
Sandhurst with flying colours.
He won three awards: “The
O v e r s e a s Aw a r d ” , “ T h e
Queen's Medal Table” and
“HRH Prince Saud Abdullah
Faisal of Saudi Arabia Prize”.
In a spectacular ceremony, the
awards were presented by
Community in
Manchester
briefed on floods
in Pakistan
akistan Consulate General
in Manchester organized a
community meeting on 22
September 2014 to brief the
community on the damages
caused by recent floods in
Pakistan as well as the relief and
rehabilitation efforts being
P
General Sir Peter Wall GCB
CBE ADC Gen.
The Sovereign's parade took
place at Royal Military
Academy (RMA) Sandhurst
on 08 August 2014.
undertaken by the Government
of Pakistan. Consul General Dr
Zahoor Ahmed made a
presentation that was attended
by a large number of Pakistani
community elders, elected
councillors and businessmen.
The attendees were informed
about the human casualties and
other material losses during
the flood. The Consul General
urged the participants to
donate generously through the
government channels or
private charities to provide
relief for the flood affectees.
Literary Evening with Dr Muhammad Kamran
T
he Consulate General of
Pakistan at Manchester
organized a Literary
Evening on 18 September, 2014
in the honour of Dr Muhammad
Kamran, Head, Department of
Urdu Punjab University Oriental
College Lahore. The Consulate
General in collaboration with
Circle of Literary Friends (CLF)
organized the event which was
attended by prominent poets,
artists and community leaders.
Community Welfare Counsellor
Sajid Mehmood Qazi welcomed
the guests and introduced the
objectives of the Evening. The
president of the CLF Mr M.
Anwar recounted the cultural
traditions created and promoted
by CLF through organizing
literary evenings and mushairas
since long. Mr. Sheraz Ali
Lecturer Urdu Department
University of Manchester read a
short paper on the academic and
literary achievements of Dr
Muhammad Kamran.
Dr Kamran in his keynote
address highlighted the
importance of Urdu language as a
mark of national identity and
cultural pride for the British
citizens of Pakistani heritage. He
recited many of his poems and
also read some interesting
excerpts from his latest
travelogue entitled, 'Gaaf Say
Gurya Jeem Say Japani'.
Prominent poets who recited
their poetry included Ghazal
Ansari, Basir Kazmi, Ms
Sabeena Khan, Makhdoom
Amjad Shah, Dr Qaiser Zaidi and
Zahid Arif. The poets received
thunderous applause by the avid
lovers of poetry. The event
concluded with a vote of thanks
by Consul General Dr Zahoor
Ahmed who promised to
continue promoting Pakistani art
and culture in the UK.
Dr Muhammad Kamran, Consul General Dr Zahoor Ahmed and Basir Kazmi
Festivals of Pakistan
G
iven our rich cultural
heritage, it is no surprise
that there are festivals
throughout the year marking the
significant milestones in the
cultural life of Pakistan. Festivals
inject life and vigour into our
wear the traditional Ajrak and
Topi and enjoy mega musical
events and cultural shows all
over the province.
The Horse and Cattle Show in
Lahore in March each year is
definitely one to visit. It was first
held in 1954 and was initially a
military fanfare but now includes
cattle races and dances, tent
pegging, folk music, cultural
floats and traditional games.
Then there is the Sibi Mela in
Balochistan. Held in February in
this historic town the festival
traces its roots to the 15th century.
Like in Punjab, it showcases the
culture of the province with
similar displays of races and
handicrafts but in the more
dramatic open surroundings with
mountains to the north and desert
to the south.
The most colourful of the
festivals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
is the Kalash Spring festival of
Joshi in May where the local
people celebrate the coming of
spring with much dancing and
merriment as they offer thanks
and pray for a successful year
ahead.
For Gilgit-Baltistan the highlight
is the Shandur Polo Festival in
July where teams from Gilgit and
Chitral compete for the coveted
trophy over three days. During
the day there are cultural shows
from both Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
and Gilgit-Baltistan as the pass
marks the boundary between
them. The evening easily takes
you into the early hours with
much singing and dancing long
after the polo has finished.
people and keep traditions alive
for future generations. Festivals
have now become significant
tourist attractions in Pakistan.
Here are some examples.
Sindhi Cultural Day or Ekta Day
as it is known is held in the first
week of December. Many would
These are but a few of the many
festivals of Pakistan.
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan at Pakistan High Commission
W
orld renowned
Pakistani singer
Rahat Fateh Ali
Khan, was hosted over an
exclusive dinner at the Pakistan
High Commission London on 2
September 2014. He was
received by Acting High
Commissioner Mohammad
Imran Mirza and other officers
of the High Commission. A
select gathering of notables
from Pakistani and other
communities attended the
dinner. After the dinner, Rahat
Fateh Ali Khan presented some
o f h i s p o p u l a r
songs and received thunderous
applause from the audience.
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan is an
acclaimed Pakistani singer. He
is nephew of legendary Ustad
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Rahat is
equally accomplished in
Qawwali and Ghazal singing.
He is popular as a Bollywood
and Lollywood playback singer
and has millions of fans in
Pakistan and India as well as
around the world.
The evening at the Pakistan
High Commission was
organized to acknowledge
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan's
immense contribution in
introducing the exquisite
Pakistani music to the world.
Honour for Pakistan Women's Cricket Team
P
akistan Women's Cricket
Team has won gold medal
in Asian Games 2014 at
Incheon in South Korea. Captain
Sana Mir, after the victory, said
that the team effort paved the
way through. Pakistan retained
the women's Twenty20 cricket
gold medal by defeating
Bangladesh in the final.
two wickets for 13 runs.
Bangladesh, making a strong
dash for the revised
Duckworth-Lewis target of 43
from seven overs following a
heavy downpour during the
break, scored 38-9 to lose by
four runs. Skipper Sana Mir,
Sadia Yousuf and Nida Dar
claimed two wickets each.
Pakistan, electing to bat after
winning the toss, were restricted
to 97-6 by a steady Bangladeshi
bowling attack. Bismah Maroof
top-scored with 24 and legspinner Rumana Ahmed claimed
President Mamnoon Hussain
and Prime Minister of Pakistan
Muhammad Nawaz Sharif
felicitated the team on their
outstanding performance.
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