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Celebrating the colours of life


Wednesday, March 11, 2015

By Huma Ahmar

ast Thursday evening


brought back fond memories
of the times we celebrated Holi
and Diwali with our Indian
friends abroad.
The evening also highlighted the rich cultural diversity of the Subcontinent. We
are lucky to
have
such
amazing cultural heritage
and we should be proud to own
and preserve it. By coming together to celebrate happy occasions like Eid, Holi, Diwali,
Christmas we accept and rejoice in the differences and
lead the way to peace and stability in our part of the world.
Songs, laughter and joyous
smiles welcomed us as
walked into the compound of
the Swami Narayan Temple at
Lighthouse, Karachi.
It was such a charged,
charming and festive atmo-

Holi celebrations at Swaminarayan Temple, Karachi: A woman


performs a ritual around a bonfire. Photo: Reuters
sphere. Loved all the colours
together exemplifying peaceflying, merging and drenching
ful coexistence, celebrating
people, dying everyone the
diversity and promoting culsame without discrimination!
tural harmony and it is so
All religious divides were
much fun!
wiped away and we were all
The occasion also served
friends enjoying a happy occato remind us of the similarity
sion together.
of the human spirit across the
My 16 year old daughter,
political line of divide. We
Kiran commented afterwards,
laugh at the same jokes, enjoy
We joined hands and came
the same music and relish the
Colours drench people, dying everyone the same without discrimination

By coming
together to
celebrate happy
occasions like
Eid, Holi, Diwali,
Christmas we
accept and
rejoice in the
differences and
lead the way to
peace in our
region

same culinary delights on


offer. By bringing our children
to such festivities to enjoy the
similarities and embracing the
differences we show them the
value of respecting and promoting tolerance, unity.
Prayers and melody of
bells ringing at the temple,

Swaminarayan Temple, Karachi, March 5, 2015: Holi rituals around a bonfire


Crowds at Swaminarayan
Temple

Celebrating as human beings together

B R I E F S

Indians donate blood for Pakistani patient

tient, said that due to the


timely contribution of
blood, the team was able
to successfully perform a
complicated liver transplant surgery on February
27. Liver transplant patients are generally advised to arrange 10 units
of blood in case of any
eventuality. "But being
from Pakistan, the family
did not have any donors.
The noble act of blood donation by these students
Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi. (Inset) Lucky man: Pakistani Aman Lal really touched us all," said
Dr Vasudevan, a liver
Makhija. Photo: courtesy Mail Online
transplant
surgeon.
his is the best Holi gift to me,' said Makhija, who runs a medical store in Pakistan,
Pakistani liver patient after life-saving said: "This rebirth is the best Holi gift to me by
surgery at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital Indian doctors and students."
in New Delhi enabled by 12 Indian students
"There are about 400 Hindu families in our
donating blood for him, reports daily Mail On- area. We have never faced any problems in
line, in a widely shared story.
Pakistan," he said, appreciating the helpfulness
Aman Lal Makhija, 40, a Pakistani who was of the people in India especially the students.
struggling for his life a few weeks ago, was
"The students even came to enquire about
saved when good Samaritans not only from his my brother's health and have invited me to
home country but also from India came to his take part in Holi celebrations. My family will
rescue. When his liver started failing Makhija, always remain obliged to them," said the pahailing from Pakistan's Sindh province, was tient's brother Jawahar Lal Makhija.
advised to go in for a liver transplant in India.
"The patient was suffering from Hepatitis
He made the trip accompanied by a Pakistani B infection for the last three years and
donor, his brother-in-law Dilshad Ali.
needed an urgent liver transplant. We perWhen an urgent need for blood arose, Dil- formed this surgery on February 27. A part of
shad Ali pasted pamphlets near the hospital, his bother-in-law's healthy liver was transasking people to donate blood for Makhija.
planted in a 7-hour surgery. Both donor and reIt caught the attention of a group of stu- cipient are fine now and will be discharged in
dents preparing to take civil services examina- a week," said Dr Abhideep Chaudhary, a liver
tions from a coaching centre in West Delhi. A transplant surgeon.
group of 12 students came forward to donate
"A Pakistani with Indian blood," comtheir blood for Makhija.
mented Karachi Bishop Dr Ijaz Inayat. "How
Doctors Dr K.R. Vasudevan and Dr Ab- would the hawks on both side decide the nahideep Chaudhary, who operated upon the pa- tionality of this man?"

Human chain for Holi in Karachi

n a widely appreciated gesture of solidarity


with Pakistan's Hindu community, the left-wing
National Student Federation formed a human
shield outside the grand Swami Narayan Temple in
Karachi during Holi celebrations last Friday night.
"If the State cannot provide protection to minority communities, the public has to take a stand,"
said Central Organiser NSF Khurram Ali. "Previously, members of minority communities used to
come out and protest alone but with so much intolerance in society, the general public needs to join
minority communities."
Symbolic gesture: Human chain at Swami
NSF had along with the Pakistan Youth Alliance Narayan Temple, Karachi. Photo: Muzammil Afzal
(PYA) earlier organised a show of solidarity with
Shias at the Shah-i-Najaf Imambargah, attended by notables like Dr. Jaipaal Chhabria, President
of the Pakistan Hindu Forum and lawyer and political activist Mohammad Jibran Nasir.
"When we showed solidarity with Shias at the Imambargah, Dr. Jaipaal Chhabria stood wit
us so it's only fair that as a group, we extend the same courtesy to Pakistan's Hindus who face
various kinds of persecution," said Fawwad Hasan, NSF General Secretary Karachi.

THE FIRST STEP


LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK

Feedback, contributions, photos, letters:


Email: amankiasha@janggroup.com.pk
Fax: +92-21-3241-8343
Post: aman ki asha c/o The News,
I.I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi

bonfire, a rainbow of colours,


friends having fun, children
buying toys, families enjoying
food, songs and dances, all
wrapped in an aura of excite-

Pakistan India talks:


let the process continue

The Indian foreign secretary's visit to Pakistan last


week marked the first high-level meeting since talks
broke down between the two countries last year
akistan and India last week
agreed to end the tension on
the Line of Control (LoC) and
Working Boundary and narrow down the differences in
"a spirit of friendship and cooperation,"
reported veteran reporter Mariana
Baabar in The News after the meeting of
Indian Foreign Secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar with his Pakistani
counterpart Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry.
The Pakistan Foreign Office
spokesperson termed the visit "an icebreaking development". Jaishankar
called on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif,
Adviser to PM on National Security and
Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and Special
Assistant to PM on Foreign Affairs Tariq
Fatemi after one-on-one and delegationlevel talks. This was the first interaction
between the two sides after 2012.
The Indian foreign secretary handed

Huma Ahmar is an
educationist and researcher
based in Karachi, Pakistan.
Email:
humahmar@yahoo.com

cerns and interests in an open manner.


We agreed to work together to find a
common ground and narrow down the
differences," Jaishankar told the media.
Aizaz Chaudhry, together with High
Commissioner Abdul Basit and
spokesperson Tasneem Aslam, said that
terrorism was a threat

cooperation should guide us as we want


a peaceful neighbourhood," Chaudhry
said. No details of the findings of
Samjhauta Express case have yet been
shared with Pakistan, he added.
Regarding the continued shelling at
the Line of Control and Working Boundary, Chaudhry advised
making full use of the existing mechanism of the
hotline between the two
DGMOs, sector commanders and flag meetings.
Since officially Jaishankar was in town for
a meeting on Saarc issues, Pakistan announced that it would
host the 19th Saarc
Summit to which all
Saarc leaders would be
invited.
d
an
an
st
ki
audhry of Pa lamabad
Ch
"We
discussed
A.
z
za
Ai
s
Is
arie
Foreign Secret India at the Foreign Office in
ideas and initiatives to
of
ar
S. Jaishank
take Saarc forward.
15. Photo: PID
on March 3, 20
Pakistan will be the next Saarc Chair
not only to Pakistan and India but and India would like to work with Pakfor the whole region.
istan to help Saarc achieve its potential,"
"In Pakistan, there is a strong com- said Jaishankar.
mitment to eradicate this threat. While
Pakistan also raised the issue of the
India raised its own concerns, we also need for more people-to-people conraised the issue of Samjhauta Express tacts, including religious tourism, mutuand (Indian involvement) in Fata and ally-beneficial trade and discouraging
Balochistan. The spirit of friendship and hostile propaganda.

Gujarat fishermen in Pakistan


for release of seized boats

ollowing up on Pakistan's decision to


release boats seized
from Indian fishermen, the Pakistan
High Commission in Delhi has
issued visas to eight Indian
fishermen community leaders
and an official of the Gujarat
fisheries department to enable
them to visit Pakistan and take
the matter further.
Pakistan Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif had announced
the decision on the eve of his
visit to Delhi in May 2014 for
the swearing-in ceremony of
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The issue was again raised
when the Indian and Pakistani
Prime Ministers during the
SAARC summit in Nepal,
November 2014.
An eight-member delegation of leaders of fishermen

over a letter from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Nawaz Sharif.
Sharif welcomed the meeting between the two foreign secretaries in
Islamabad and hoped that the process
would continue. He underlined the importance of enhanced cooperation
among the Saarc member states.
Discussions held at the Foreign Office focused on bilateral and regional
issues, including like Jammu and Kashmir, Sir Creek, Siachen Glacier, water issues, tension at the LoC and Working
Boundary and terrorism.
Jaishankar said that the talks were
held in a constructive and positive atmosphere, where he reiterated India's concerns on cross border terrorism, including on the Mumbai case and emphasised
that ensuring peace and tranquillity on
the border was vital.
"We engaged on each other's con-

ment and joy!


Surely the celebrations
were not so different across
the border!
Aman ki Asha!

Fishing boats, India. File photo


community and an official of
the Gujarat fisheries department is now visiting Pakistan
to complete formalities to
bring back 57 seized boats anchored at Karachi, reports the
Press Trust of India (PTI).

Indian Member of Parliament Parimal Nathwani had


written to Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif urging him
to expedite visa processing to
the delegation. Assistant Director, Gujarat Fisheries de-

partment, Dr P. C. Malli told


PTI that Pakistan High Commission office has informed
the fisheries department that it
has issued visa to the members
of the delegation for one
month, for Karachi city.
Both countries limit the visits of the others' citizens to
cities rather than issuing visas
valid for the entire country.
In the letter to Sharif, MP
Nathwani had said it was imperative to bring these seized
fishing boats back on humanitarian grounds as they serve as
a means of livelihood to hundreds of fishermen and their
families.
The eight-member team
comprising leaders of fishermen community and an official of the Gujarat fisheries
department "have been camping in Delhi for last one week

and awaiting visa," he had


written.
Documents related to the
seized boats had already been
sent to the authorities concerned in Pakistan, said Malli.
"The delegation will try to
complete all the formalities
for bringing the boats back."
The visit was necessary to
verify and check the sea worthiness of the seized boats.
They all require minor or
major repairs before the Indian authorities can physically
take them back.
"Either Pakistan can release the 114 fishermen who
are lodged in jails there to
ferry the boats back or grant
visa to an equal number of
fishermen from Gujarat who
can go to Karachi for repair
works and bring them to
India," suggested Malli.

A peace initiative whose time has come...

Destination Peace: A commitment by the Jang Group, Geo and The Times of India Group to
create an enabling environment that brings the people of Pakistan and India closer together,
contributing to genuine and durable peace with honour between our countries.

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