Little patriots gather to celebrate Pakistan’s birthday

“It’s the birthday of Pakistan!” roared a bunch of kids as they sat for a storytelling session at the Mohatta Palace.

KARACHI: “It’s the birthday of Pakistan!” roared a bunch of excited kids as they sat for the storytelling session at the Mohatta Palace on Saturday.

As Independence Day came during Ramazan, the children did not get the cake that they are so used to eating at all birthdays.

“Why is there no cake?” Umair asked in confusion as he sat in the corner holding a flag. He was sure that a cake will be brought soon, the same way as it happens on all his friends’ birthdays.

Mohatta Palace reflected hues of green and white as hundreds of parents turned up with their kids to celebrate the Independence Day at a children’s exhibition set up by The Citizens Archive of Pakistan. The “Birth of Pakistan” exhibition opened on March 23 this year and shows the initial stages of struggle and development that went into gaining the independence of the country.

Asif Noorani narrated self-witnessed tales of Pakistan’s independence and its early days in the storytelling session and recited poems as well. The session was followed by questions from the audience and face painting. The circular flag was the most favourite among the children.

For the little patriots gathered at Mohatta Palace, Pakistan is where they live and they prefer it over countries because of “the shady trees”, “the beautiful grass”, “flowers and plants”, “because they can eat every food here” and because “the homes here are not that bad”.

“I like Pakistan because it rains over here,” said seven-year-old Nibhan, who has visited Canada and Dubai and feels that Pakistan is still better. Nibhan wants to be a policeman when he grows up so that he can put all nuisance makers in the country behind bars.

Ten-year-olds, Saif, Mekayl and Ali, said that they like Pakistan because of the restaurants and their family. “I like Arena the most, so Pakistan is not a bad place but they [Pakistanis] don’t know how to play cricket,” remarked Ali.

Seven-year-old Mashal and five-year-old Iman changed their minds about Pakistan ever since they visited Singapore. “There is so much rubbish on the roads here,” Iman clarified.

However, they both added they would like to conserve water and grow more plants to make Pakistan as green as Singapore. Mashal and Iman’s mother was shocked to find out her daughters’ opinion about Pakistan but she agreed that it was all the more important to educate and inform them about their country.

Sadia’s family was among the few people who dressed up in green for the occasion. Even though her children were brought up in Canada, they are still curious to learn about Pakistan but never have any interactive platforms.

“I am celebrating Independence Day for the sake of my children as they need to learn about Pakistan and become solutions for the problems of this country,” Sana said, adding that the floods have left little cause for celebrations.

Another parent asserted, “It is extremely important to hold such events as children must have a positive outlook towards their country.” She said that there is no other place in the city where children can learn about the historical development of the country and because of this, the children of today are growing increasingly ignorant about their country.

There is a great difference between us and the present generation, believed Alam, another parent. “We were way more patriotic and used to decorate our homes with flags and ribbons,” he pointed out, wondering why this was not the case anymore.

Durre Shahwar, a class-III teacher at the Bay View Junior School, thinks that that kids today are severely lacking in patriotism. “It is because the elders do not practice what they preach,” she explained. Even though most parents came to the event to highlight the importance of Independence Day, Shahwar saw many of them stepping over the flag.

In the past five months, at least 9,000 schoolchildren and 3,000 others have visited the exhibition, which is expected to continue till September 23, said Kiran Junejo, coordinator of the Oral History Project, The Citizens Archive of Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 15^th, 2010.