2,400 schoolchildren in Pakistan and India become part of exchange for peace

Two non-profit organisations start an exchange for schoolchildren in an effort to target the next generation.

KARACHI: Two non-profit organisations on both sides of the border have started an exchange for 2,400 schoolchildren in an effort to target the next generation.

The Citizens Archive of Pakistan (CAP) and Routes2Roots launched “Exchange for Change” at the Marriott Hotel on Monday with Sherry Rehman as a guest speaker.

“Aloo paratha must be shared,” remarked Rehman, while commenting on how important it was to share cultural similarities that must not be forgotten. “We have a cycle of hope to create and a cycle of fear to break. We share much more than we don’t.”

The project will take place in four stages over a year. It will consist of a sustained exchange of written, visual and oral histories between schoolchildren, from the ages 10 to 14, from 10 schools across Pakistan and India. In the first stage, the children will send handwritten letters to each other about topics of common interest and opinions about history.

This will be followed by an exchange of postcards on their neighbourhoods. The students will also take and share photographs of historical monuments in Mumbai, Delhi, Karachi and Lahore and in the final  stage there will be a collection of oral histories from their parents and grandparents.

CAP President Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy explained that that they hoped to “achieve cross-border affinity through dialogue”. Project directors Alia Hashmi and Anum Zakaria told The Express Tribune about how the children, teachers and organisers were optimistic about the project. “This is the first time an initiative like this has been taken and we’re all very excited,” they said.

Amean J, a photographer and board member of CAP, told The Express Tribune how the visual nature of this project will help the younger generations take notice of everyday things that otherwise occupy the periphery of their minds. “Children who carry cameras will now be photographing things they take for granted, like the food they eat or regular household things that are part of their culture to share with their new friends across the border,” he said.

Sarah Elahi of CAP’s Outreach Programme explained how there are too many misconceptions regarding Hindus and India in Pakistan, and vice-versa. “Most people here don’t even know that a Hindu, Prof Jagan Nath Azad, wrote Pakistan’s first national anthem on a request from Mr Jinnah,” she said. “It was later replaced by the one we use today.” She told The Express Tribune how children at the outreach schools reacted with “Tobah, tobah” [God forgive me] when asked to do some simple role-playing as Hindu children before Partition. Exchange for Change is working towards eradicating such pre-conceived notions about the ‘enemy nation’ in both countries.

Back to school

Schools from Pakistan

The City School

Links School

Ilm School

SMB Fatimah Jinnah

Saving Group Schools

Schools from India

Sanskriti School

St Paul’s School

Balwant Rai Mehta Vidya Bhawan Senior Secondary School

Mehta Vidya Bhavan School

Shushuvan School

Mahatma Gandhi Memorial High School

Published in The Express Tribune December 14^th, 2010.