Petty squabbles about how our culture is defined need to be set aside because that very culture is crumbling before the eyes of those who would see it narrowly defined or circumscribed. PHOTO: EXPRESS/FILE
Pakistan has a vast and diverse cultural heritage that stretches back millennia — and we are very bad at looking after it. Whether it has been the crumbling walls of Moenjodaro or Derawar fort, or the ancient Buddhist statuary and iconography that can be found in many northern parts of the country, it is neglected or often simply ignored. A panel discussion in Islamabad on December 11 titled “Dying Heritage: The Tomorrow of Folklore” as a part of the Sustainable Development Policy Institute's annual conference laid bare our deficits. Attention was drawn in particular to the importance of the preservation of language, and history tells us that there is no guarantee that any language would survive the ‘test of time’. Some minority languages in Pakistan would be regarded as endangered. Burushiski, Shina and Khowar (the last is also spoken in Chitral and parts of Swat) are all spoken in Gilgit-Baltistan and all are ‘at risk’ as Urdu and English edge them out in the home and classroom.
The importance and relevance of museums was also stressed, with the Lyallpur Museum Director making the point that museums contribute to the continuous process of learning. Some of our culture is at risk from advancing militarisation and the Swat Valley has seen the destruction of a number or Buddhist artefacts. Oral traditions are no less vulnerable — lullabies, bedtime storytelling and the passing of oral traditions from generation to generation are fading as the information age advances. Unless proactive steps are taken to preserve our culture, it will wither for lack of care and attention, and the colourful diversity of our lives will become greyer and featureless, homogenised, as a result. Languages can be preserved by teaching them in schools, and communities large and small can be engaged in activities that support cultural preservation and the media can raise awareness through creative programming. Petty squabbles about how our culture is defined need to be set aside because that very culture is crumbling before the eyes of those who would see it narrowly defined or circumscribed.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 16th, 2013.
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A very well written editorial. Just a little oversit while mentioning the langauges spoken in Gilgit-Baltistan. In addition to the languages mentioned in the editorial WAKHI is also one of the majore languages spoken in the area and has been included in the list of endangered languages bu UNESCO.
Initiative for the Promotin of Pamiri Arts and Culture (IPPAC) has be striving to preserve and promote the endangred culture and languages of the mountain communities in general and WAKHI in particular.