Festivals; a solution?: Citizens urged to combat militancy with culture

Over 1,500 attended the event, the largest turnouts in the city in two years .

PESHAWAR:

In an effort to encourage the people of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) to combat militancy and revive their indigenous cultures, the South Asia Partnership Pakistan (SAP-Pakistan) arranged a colorful peace festival on Friday night.

More than 1,500 people, including politicians, academics, civil society members, students, journalists and singers, were present at the event. The festival was the first event in the city in two years to see such a large turnout.

“The purpose of the event is to encourage peace-loving individuals to engage in positive cultural and political events” said SAP-Pakistan Regional Program Coordinator Allah Noor Afridi.

Former provincial minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain of Awami National Party (ANP) spoke of the previous K-P government’s policies of tackling extremism. It had suggested launching a full-scale military action in Waziristan in 2009, said Mian Iftikhar.  Appreciating the present government for launching a military operation in Waziristan, he added, “There should be no dialogue with people who have killed innocents”.

Jaffer Shah, an MPA from ANP, touched on the philosophy of Bacha Khan, “It was relevant then but is even more relevant in the current situation. Shah said, “Each individual must play a role in making the nation a civilised one.”

Taking the stage

Renowned poets such as Iqbal Shakir, Abaseen Yousufzai, Zafar Khan and others recited their latest works related to peace and Pukhtunkhwali. They were appreciated by the huge crowd at the venue.

The festival provided an opportunity to promote arts and crafts from Chitral all the way to Khyber. These included handicrafts such as traditional dresses and utensils, musical instruments and precious stones.  Popular Pashto singer Sarfaraz Khan sang at the event, while the line-up also included Chitrali music and traditional dances.

“Where communities live in fear and uncertainty on a daily basis, the peace festival will motivate individuals,” said Ijaz Khan, one of the youngsters at the event “Each individual has to contribute if they want to bring peace to Pukthun areas.”

Published in The Express Tribune, September 21^st, 2014.