By Bushra Zulfiqar

As I entered the bustling city, high red minarets of Baadshahi Mosque instantly captivated my attention. This was Lahore, the heart of Pakistan on an early October afternoon. Scorching heat and humidity was still in and out of the air, thanks to the globally warmed and heated climate. As our car passed

by the shrine of the famous Sufi saint Hazrat Datta Ganj Baksh, my young sisters excitedly exclaimed ‘look….Datta Darbar, let’s go to pay our respects’ and as impulsively as it was, we went. The driver had trouble parking the car in an otherwise wide, well constructed road as the sea of people, rickshaws, motorcycles, cars, buses and trucks was in high tides. The next struggle awaiting us before we could set foot into the Darbar was to hand over our pairs of shoes to the administration members and get our number card to be able to claim them on our way back. Thanks to one young fellow who spotted us and chanted ‘welcome to Datta Darbar baji, please come this way’ and nervous by the waves of heat and humans, we silently followed his instructed procedure and made our way inside the long white corridor leading to the area allocated for women.

As I stepped on the white marble floors, my gaze froze at the sight of the green tomb. The first word that came to my mind was peace, absolute and un-deniable. The Darbar offers all the serenity, tranquillity, spiritual soothe and console of the Sufi ideology. Love, the love of God and all His creations irrespective of any class, race, gender and religious discriminations, tolerance, positive thinking and self purification with an unconditional faith in the Almighty are the key propagations and teachings of this great Sufi saint known all over the world as Datta. His shrine is fully reflective of the sacred light of his love for the Lord and just like a prism does, that light of divinity is reflected back towards every eye viewing his green tomb, every eye within. Hundreds of pigeons in an extremely heated up Lahore afternoon remain clunged to the ceilings and walls of the shrine and for as long as I observed, none of them fluttered their wings even once. Pigeons, an interesting and extincting breed who remain metaphors of love, in both real and spiritual realms. I stood there in awe of the pigeons, trying to absorb every ray reflected back towards me that suddenly my senses brought me back to the real life around me. I felt an abrupt disconnect from the spiritual elevation I was experiencing just like the sudden flip of a coin.

There were many of them, hundreds of thousands of women from every age group. Dressed in burqas, veils, shalwar qameez, some were holding onto their babies, some had come in small groups of three to four though literally each head was covered. Some were feeding their children, some were spitting, some were lying on the floor meaninglessly looking through faces and some had lifted their hands and duppattas in reseverance and prayer. The smell of sweat was merged with food (langar) being served at several points and many had taken refuge under the fans installations with heaped plates in their hands. There were loud speaker warnings about the pick pockets and jewelery theft which had become a common crime at this shrine. The shrine which reflected the beauty and sacredness of God’s love suddenly became a classical reflection of all our social evils. This contradiction unnerved me for a moment and I felt a sense of loss, deep loss. The Datta Darbar bleed with all cruel life realities stretched all over the geographical, social and individual space of its visitors. Some of them had come in search of self, others in search of food and shade and some for a look out on money and marketable assets of others. The serene sight of a Sufi tomb turned into that of life, life in it’s full circles that has been rounded by long years of intensified experiences of love and losses, pride and prejudice, animosity and hatred, promises and betrayals, being and not being altogether in the morning, noon and night of life.

As I made my way out of the Datta Darbar, I felt exhausted and guilty, drained after having witnessed a glimpse of the ugly life realities experienced by a landslide majority of this country. I find it hard to disagree with that their state of life is our collective failure as a country, society, nation and more so as humans. The consistent class divide has always been an integral part of our economic structure, social fabric and political process. We like to build up on the weaknesses of others, we exploit the helplessness and vulnerabilities of other humans, we like to keep our esteems and egos high and tall and crush the self respect of others. This dimension of an individual and social realization disturbed me, deeply. As we got back in the car, my young sisters chirped ‘it was so much fun, let’s go for a good lunch now’. I felt too tired to respond

One is old. One is new. One blooms in the heart of green fields. One sprawls out of a sandy desert. One has Amritsar within 30 miles. One has no city within 60 miles. One is in the land of five rivers. One is in the land of one river. One has the canal. One has the sea. One has the gardens. One has the beaches. One is the citadel of culture. One is the bastion of business. One has the heritage of Mughals. One has the heritage of British. One is the fiefdom of Shariefs. One is the fiefdom of Bhuttos. One has a pleasure-house in Heera Mandi. One has a pleasure-house in Napier Road. One has the grave of legendary courtesan Anarkali. One has the grave of legendary singer Noor Jehan. One has french fries as street food. One has dahivadas as street food.

Lahore is literally literary. John Milton praised Lahore in Paradise Lost. Rudyard Kipling’s opened Kim outside its old Ajaib Ghar (the museum). Bapsi Sidhwa began Cracking India in its Jail Road. Lahore has history as rich as Delhi’s. it was the capital of Akbar – the greatest Mughal emperor. It was the capital of Ranjit Singh – the greatest Sikh ruler. Lahore is also Pakistan’s principal gourmet destination. Nihari is relished at Bhati Gate. Payas are ordered in Heera Mandi. Halwa Puri is devoured in Railway Road. Kheer is savored in Gawalamandi. Rooftop dinner is enjoyed at Cuckoo’s. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan had called Lahore’s people ‘Zinda Dillan-i-Punjab’. Muhammad Ali Jinnah had called it the ‘Heart of Pakistan.’ After all, it has Minar-e-Pakistan, Pakistan’s India Gate.

But Lahore is too provincial; more Punjabi than even Delhi. Karachi is closer to Bombay and you feel its cosmopolitanism in its salty sultry air. Its people speak in English, write in Urdu, think in Baluchi and dream in Sindhi. As first capital of the Islamic republic, Karachi is known as the city of lights. It is actually the city of load shedding. Never mind. The metropolis is Pakistan’s maximum city. It has fiction writers, fashion designers, globetrotting businessmen, TV actors and glamorous socialites.

It also has Taliban terrorists, underworld dons and gun-wielding thugs. But most people in Karachi are like me and you. They go to offices. They watch films in multiplexes. They text romance-shayiris to their lovers. They take camel rides on the beach. They go crabbing on the sea. They drink Vodka, snort cocaine and hook up sex dates on the Internet. In daily wear, they wear shalwars as well as shorts.

Karachi may not match Lahore’s history but it is a city with many *firsts*. British India’s first telegraphic message was sent from here. British India’s first tramway system was set up here. British India’s first scheduled airline service was started from here. It was the place where Alexander the Great set his camps. It was the place from where Muhammad Bin Qasim led his invading army into the heart of Hindustan. It was the magnet that attracted Indian Muslim refugees with dreams of a better future. It is the magnet that attracts people from all over Pakistan with dreams of a better future.

It is really a city with two cities. Beautiful Karachi – rich, sexy, fast, pulsating and dynamic. Ugly Karachi – poor, uncouth, violent, unplanned, and dangerous. It is the worst nightmare of Pakistan. It is the best hope of Pakistan.

For me, Karachi anytime. Sorry, Lahore.

The target of completing almost a hundred houses a month is difficult to achieve in the difficult terrain of Swat with dispersed housing units and excessive traveling time. Yet, with the help of eager household members, dedicated artisans, and enthusiastic volunteers, almost 130 units are in various stages of construction, with almost 30 units having been completed. The following units are in hand: 22 in Marghazar; 7 in Islampur; 12 in Korey Camp; 15 in Korey Village; 1 in
Chuprial camp; 10 in Biha; 10 in Gwalrai; 2 in Fazalbanda; 10 in Dogalgai; 11 in Chatikal; 2 in Dadpani; 3 in Pir Kalay; 1 in Shirpalam; 1 in Barshirpalam; 1 in Kozshirpalam; 10 in Parthana; 2 in
Salatin; 5 in Naikot; 5 in Peshtonal and 2 in Roringer.

Distinguished visitors from the University of Glasgow, Dr. Peter Meadows, SQA, and Dr. Azra Meadows, OBE, accompanied Yasmeen Lari on a visit to Swat, where they met with Brig. Kazi and Brig. Umair.A review was carried out of HF work in Swat particularly the units undertaken under the Scottish Government grant. The grant supports construction of one-room units, however, it has been decided that a verandah and other facilities will be added by utilizing the funds raised by the Foundation in Pakistan.

During meetings between Lari and Chairman POF Wah, General Shujaat
Zamir Dar along with various POF Wah institutions, collaborations
between the organizations were d i s c u s s e d t o i m p l e m e n t H F ’s holistic approach for long term and sustainable interventions in Swat. The programme will be in continuation of HF’s Green KaravanGhar programme in order to engage communities  particularly women and children in rehabilitation and development activities.

Documentation of heritage sites in Swat was also undertaken. Photographs were taken by Mr.Suhail Zaheer Lari and Mr. Saleem
Bukhari. The heritage documentation formed part of an early recovery plan presented to UNESCO.

Four batches of students of NCA, Lahore, have now completed their assignment and have done commendable work. Students were involved in various activities and were encouraged to interact with the local community. The student volunteers as well as HF teams have been provided outstanding security and facilitation by the Pakistan Army.

A large number of important historical buildings built by local merchant classes Sindhi Hindus, Parsis and Christians at the time of the British rule are located in different areas of Saddar Town. The buildings of Radio Pakistan, Richmand Crawford Veterinary Hospital, Mama Parsi School, Denso Hall and Khaliqdina Hall are a few of these wonderful historical structures.

Sindh Culture Department, the official custodian of these buildings, has so far declared 600 historical buildings as protected heritage sites under the Sindh Cultural Heritage Protection Act 1972; however, nothing has been done for the preservation of these buildings. Many of these buildings are now hidden behind modern plazas and in the absence of proper renovation on the verge of collapsing.

Heritage lovers demand the restoration, renovation and preservation of these national assets.

Courtesy: Daily Times

It feels like it’s almost every week we’re reporting on a heritage site somewhere in the world coming under threat from land developers or big industry. Taxila, in the Punjab province of Pakistan – which contains fragile ruins dating back as far as 2,600 years – is the latest, and the reason is almost laughable: local plants digging and blasting for gravel, of all things. Seriously, were the prize a precious resource like oil or gas you could almost understand. But surely chucking a new bed of chips on folks’ driveways isn’t a matter of immense urgency, worth risking the destruction of centuries-old monuments?

Okay, so it’s not as simple as that, and lots of jobs are undoubtedly dependent on the plants. But what price can be put on a finite resource like a country’s physical heritage? Not an especially high one in this instance, it seems, because the Pakistani powers-that-be have practically invited the predicament. Taxila is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and has been protected under Pakistani Federal law since 1982. Yet, presumably under pressure from the gravel mining industry, officials have repeatedly reduced the borders of the conservation zone, in 1984, 1986, and 1989, to allow heavy trucks and huge machines practically onto the doorstep of ancient Buddhist temples and stupas.

Every major monument in Taxila has shown signs of fractures and stresses from the shockwaves emitted by blasting and quarrying, according to a Pakistan Environment Protection Agency report, quoted on the website of Pakistan’s oldest English-language newspaper Dawn. “Continuous quarrying and blasting in close proximity of these ancient sites for the last many decades have caused substantial loss to these monuments,” it reads. “A slow degradation can be observed in all 24 excavated archaeological sites and monuments of Taxila valley, cracks and inclination in the structures are quite visible.” Even the Taxila Museum has suffered, with shock waves causing precious artefacts to fall off shelves and break.

The Pakistan EPA has made a strong appeal for all work in the area to cease immediately, and for the stone crushers to vacate the area. It’s their hope that the land, specifically the Margalla Hills range, can be turned into a national park, and developed with public facilities – running and cycle tracks and the like – giving people a vested interest in the area. How easy gravel-hungry big-business will prove to shift remains to be seen.

Courtesy: Heritage key

ISLAMABAD: A workshop was organised on ‘21st Century Skills for Museum Professionals’ here at the Lok Virsa (LV), Shakarparian on Wednesday to highlight significance of museums in the modern age.

Information, Research and Communication (IRC) Unit of Embassy of the United States of America in collaboration with Lok Virsa (LV) organised the workshop. Around 25 museum personnel, researchers, archivists and other professionals attended the workshop.

LV Executive Director (ED) Khalid Javaid, in his opening address, welcomed the participants and thanked the US Embassy for providing an opportunity to people associated with museums and libraries to learn.

Highlighting importance of the museums, the ED said, “Museums have a great significance in people’s lives because they creatively depict and portray cultural environment of people. We can rightly call museums rich treasures of our glorious cultural heritage.”

Sharing efforts made by LV to promote museums in Pakistan with participants, Javaid said, “LV is proud of having established the first ever ethnological museum in Pakistan showcasing the country’s living cultural traditions and lifestyles of people.”

Explaining LV’s future projects, he said, “Presently, we are actively working on a proposal to introduce a subject on museums at the National Institute of Cultural Studies (NICS), a newly established venture under private-public partnership.

He said that for this purpose, assistance had been sought from Germany to provide services of an expert, who would not only teach students at NICS but also hold regular workshops and training sessions for persons employed at different museums in Pakistan.

“I think it would be of great help to all of us working for the promotion of museums in Pakistan,” he expressed the optimism.

IRC Director Afshan Amir briefed the gathering on the resources and services of the IRC Public Affairs Section, while Reference Specialist Umar Farooq gave a presentation on ‘21st Century Skills for the Museum Professionals’. He also displayed popular websites of museums in the United States.

Rashid Ahmer, an Archaeological Conservator, shared with the audience his experience of visits to various museums in the United States.

Professionals took keen interest in the workshop and shared their views on museums and archaeological research in Pakistan.

Talking to Daily Times (DT), a participant said, “This was an excellent get together of professionals dealing with museums and libraries in Pakistan.”

Meanwhile, Ministry of Culture Additional Secretary SM Tahir also attended the workshop. He highly appreciated role the US Embassy played in creating awareness among the museum personnel and library staff by organising the workshop.

He assured them Ministry of Culture’s full cooperation and assistance for the continuation of these workshops in future as well.

The workshop concluded with remarks by an American diplomat who highlighted contribution of the US Embassy to the preservation of historical sites in Pakistan.

Courtesy: Daily Times

A unique display of handicrafted products by valiant women of Swat and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa titled ‘Reviving Livelihood through Handicrafts in Post-conflict Areas’, being organized under the aegis of Heritage Foundation, UNESCO and UK Aid in collaboration with Lok Virsa, kicked off at Lok Virsa, here this Saturday. The inaugural ceremony was performed at Lok Virsa Heritage Museum at which Ms.Sitara Ayaz; Minister for Culture and Social Welfare, Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, was the chief guest at the occasion.
Prominent speakers and guests included H.E. Mr. Robert Kvile, Royal Norwegian Ambassador to Pakistan, Director UNESCO Dr. Warren Mellor, CEO Heritage Foundation Yasmeen Lari and executive director Lok Virsa Khalid Javaid.
In his welcoming speech, Lok Virsa’s chief executive Khalid Javaid congratulated UNESCO and other participating organizations for their on-going efforts to revive the dying craft heritage of Swat and livelihood of traditional practitioners, particularly craftswomen related to various specialized craft fields. He assured them full cooperation of his institution, being a federal cultural body, for all such projects and activities that are meant for the welfare of the craftspeople and preservation of crafts not only in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province but in the entire country.
“Lok Virsa is a pioneering institution in the field of craft heritage that has always tried to encourage all individuals and organizations interested to work for documentation and preservation of Pakistan’s rich cultural heritage. It was Lok Virsa which published the first directory of craftspeople in Pakistan after having undertaken extensive fieldwork”, ED Lok Virsa explained.
Explaining achievements Khalid Javaid said “our milestone contributions include establishment of first National Museum of Ethnology – Heritage Museum at Islamabad showcasing Pakistan’s living cultural traditions, initiation of first of its kind Artisans-at-work Festival known as Lok Mela aiming to revive endangered traditional skills, recommendations to the government for grant of highest civil awards to artisans and folk artists as well as holding of artisans training workshops and craft exhibitions marking national occasions”.
“The major thrust of our work is to promote provincial harmony and national integration highlighting the contribution of our people in building future Pakistan”, ED Lok Virsa maintained. He also acknowledged the cooperation of Royal Norwegian Government for promotion and projection of Pakistan’s traditional culture and folk heritage saying “most of Lok Virsa’s important programmes that were threatened to close due to financial constraints have been revived because of generous support extended by the Norwegian Government, for which we are indebted to the Norwegian Embassy at Islamabad”.
Talking about Heritage Foundation, Khalid Javaid said “I would like to mention here specifically the excellent work done by Heritage Foundation, in particular its CEO Mrs. Yasmeen Lari for the rehabilitation of the victims of earthquake disaster in 2005. They have also done a good job in conserving historical and cultural buildings in Karachi. I had a previous experience of working with Mrs. Lari in the cultural tourism project that we jointly did for UNESCO. Her contributions in the field of art & craft are praiseworthy”.
UNESCO Director Dr. Warren Mellor and CEO Heritage Foundation Yasmeen Lari also spoke on the occasion and shed light on the salient features of the project. Speaking as chief guest, provincial minster Sitara Ayaz highly appreciated the role of the organizers for focusing on the craft heritage of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with special reference to Swat valley. “Our government is determined to take every possible step and to support any initiative that can lead to create better opportunities for the common masses, in particular womenfolk”, minister assured.
Talking informally about the role of Lok Virsa, the minister said “It is a unique cultural body at the federal capital whose programme activities such as folk festivals directly serve to promote craftspeople and perpetuate traditional skills. This is my third visit to Lok Virsa to attend a cultural event and every time I was greatly impressed with the work done by this institution.” According to the organizers, the project “Reviving Women’s Livelihood in Swat” was initiated in mid February 2010. focusing on capacity building within mohallahs, 500 women have been trained in twelve Karavan Mini Craft Centres established in union councils of Islampura, Mingora, Barikot, Saidu Sharif, Charbagh and Landikus. 327 women have been trained to make highly salable embroidery products within their homes, 110 women in khaddi (looms) for home-based handloom production and another 53 women for making handmade yarn. All 500 women have been provided all the tools and equipment including sewing machines, khaddis and charkhas, as well as toolkits to enable them to produce quality products.
As part of the programme assistance greater outreach has been provided for the revival of one khaddi centre in Islampura, one vocational training centre in Odigram, a women’s sewing centre in Landikus and one pottery centre in Charbagh. For ensuring sustainability and regular income, linkages to urban consumer markets are being developed such as permanent outlets in Islamabad and Karachi, capacity building of local representatives for promoting sales and establishment of permanent green women centre in Islampura.

The committee directed Lok Virsa to invite skilled women from all over the country for a month of one or two to showcase dying art and crafts and project these in Pakistan and abroad. “This would enhance participation of women from all the provinces to showcase their work and promote sale,” the committee observed.

The committee also expressed concern over complaints of artists and crafts people regarding boarding and lodging facilities provided to them by Lok Virsa.

The committee met at Lok Virsa Library room on Tuesday and discussed Lok Virsa activities and effects of PEMRA rules on Pakistani films and cable operators.

Shireen Arshad Khan chaired the meeting. Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA) Director General Tauqir Nasir, Museum and Archeology head Dr Fazal Dad Kakar, Minister for Culture Pir Aftab Shah Jilani and secretary culture Moinul Islam Bukhari were also present. Lok Virsa Executive Director Khalid Javed gave a presentation on Lok Virsa activities.

Javed said the National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage was striving for the documentation and preservation of Pakistan’s rich cultural heritage.

Replying to a question, he said over 10,000 people visited Virsa museum and its other departments on monthly basis.

He said museum’s shops were given to artisans on ‘first come first serve’ basis under public-private partnership and their sale was good.

The committee also discussed effects of PEMRA rules on Pakistani film industry and cable operators. DG PEMRA Shahrukh Hasan briefed the committee about functioning of PEMRA.

The meeting was marred by late arrival of committee chairman Muhammad Raza Hayat Harraj, who arrived over an hour late to preside over the meeting.

The committee members said if the committee chairman was late over an hour, how could he handle and look after the affairs of the ministry and gave proposals.

Courtesy: Dailytimes

KARACHI: The worst floods in the history of the country after destroying villages, infrastructure, and public and private property, also pose a serious threat to the prehistoric archaeological sites of Sindh. On August 16, the water crossed the Indus Highway and entered the Laki Shah Saddar town, submerging more than 24 small villages near Manjhand town in district Dadu. By Wednesday afternoon, the waters inundated Aamri, a prehistoric archaeological and national heritage site of Pakistan. The floodwater has already damaged portions of the 5,000-year-old Mohenjo Daro that is on the list of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation of world heritage sites. Earlier, Sindh Antiquities Department Secretary Kaleem Lashari had warned that if the government does not make any arrangements, the floodwater would damage some of the world’s most ancient archaeological sites in Sindh. But despite the warnings, no arrangements have so far been made to protect these sites. Riaz, a resident of Aamri Town, told Daily Times that the floodwater from the River Indus started pouring in two days ago and by Wednesday it had entered the ruins of Aamri and inundated major portions of the prehistoric site. amar guriro

Donations received were both monetary and in kind. With the resources collected, HF has been able to distribute 250 packages to different families, bringing the effort to the half way mark. We hope that further donations will help us achieve the distribution of goods amongst the families identified through our network in the region.

The Heritage Foundation with the help of its various partners hopes to meet the target of helping 500 families in the area of Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in not only providing immediate relief but in the long term rehabilitation goal. The undertaking of such a task requires the continual support of various groups and volunteers.

The second phase of The Swat Relief Programme will begin once the water has begun to recede. A survey and experimentation process is being carried out to develop a module for incremental housing that will be constructed in bamboo, stone and matting. The initial 10’x 15’ room will be built under the supervision and guidance of The Heritage Foundation, with the anticipation that this simple building methodology will be easily understood and adopted by the people of the affected areas and therefore implemented in additional rooms.

The third phase for rehabilitation envisages long term development with emphasis on livelihood for women. The focus will be on traditional crafts as well as agro-based products, e.g. organic farming, rain water harvesting, fish farms, mushroom growing etc. The methodology will be similar to the strategy that has been adopted for community development in HF’s programme area in the Siran Valley, Hazara.