Frere Hall library and everything it could have been

KARACHI:

While the extensive gardens around Frere Hall are a popular spot among local picnickers, TikTokers, fitness enthusiasts, children, and all who enjoy basking under Karachi’s setting sun, the building itself appears more like a glum haunted house in the distance.

Unbeknownst to many in the lively crowd out front, this British colonial-era structure is also home to the Liaquat National Library, which is believed to be the grandest in the city. This Hogwarts-esque public library is known to house more than 50,000 books including a collection of manuscripts and a newspaper archive dating back to the year 1958. However, other than the occasional tourist who loses his way or decides to stop by for a quick browse and an Instagram-able photo op, the library’s only loyal visitors are the pigeons who’ve made their nests in the building’s crevices.

That being said, the library’s dusty fate, in a city like Karachi that so severely lacks community and collaborative spaces for students and young people, seems rather unsettling. It’s huge, it’s accessible, it operates from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM six days a week, and features a sizeable collection of literature from all walks of life.

So one evidently wonders, what is it that has kept the Liaquat National Library confined to nests and cobwebs, keeping it from becoming the city’s student hotspot?

The reasoning lies in the city management’s arguably primitive understanding of public libraries and their function in building resilient and sustainable urban spaces. In much of the developed world, libraries are seen as places where the social economy thrives.

They are community spaces that are open to the public and serve to strengthen local ties and provide access to culture, information, and opportunities. “Regrettably, however, our city managements just see libraries as a collection of shelves for books. And in today’s day and age when any book can be downloaded digitally at the click of a button, it’s understandable that our libraries are losing purpose, “ remarked Alina, a local journalism student visiting the facility as part of her school assignment.

According to Muskan, who is an international student pursuing an MFA in film in the city of New York, there is a stark contrast between public libraries in Karachi and elsewhere around the world. “Karachi does not see the library as a community or collaborative space, which is the very purpose that has kept them alive and buzzing in the west. In Karachi, most public libraries are gender-segregated, lack an internet connection or digital access, and are not the most comfortable spaces to indulge in research,” she opined.

Muskan’s reflections on the state of public libraries back home, although seemingly painted with a wide brush, still present a strikingly accurate picture of the state of affairs at the Frere Hall library. A survey conducted by The Express Tribune reveals that despite its collection of 50,000 books, over 10,000 titles are too timeworn to survive being read from page to page. These are stored on the library’s second floor which is inaccessible to the public and appears as though it is the cinematic landing ground for owls delivering magical mail.

Speaking on conditions of anonymity a worker at the facility revealed that the library no longer has access to restrooms, which remained closed for many years. “If nature calls, you just go to the toilet at the nearby mosque,” he added.

According to sources privy to the matter, the library was transferred to a guardian board during the tenure of former mayor Wasim Akhtar. “They eventually closed down the library for over three years, in a bid to digitise and renovate the building. Former administrator Iftikhar Shalawani later canceled the deal and reopened the library. However, when it reopened, there was no evidence of any digitsation or renovation that took place,” the source informed.

On the other hand, however, Sindh Public Libraries Director-General Nazakat Ali Fazlani, when asked to comment on the status quo was keen to inform that libraries in four cities of Sindh including Karachi are connected to a network of e-libraries around the world. “A hall in the Liaquat Memorial Library on Stadium Road has been set up called Lincoln Corners.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 29^th, 2022.