After steady improvement in bilateral cooperation in the last few years, this summer has brought mixed news for US-Pakistan relations. While Washington and Islamabad contemplate a resolution to the standoff over F-16 jets deal, the people of two countries had this month an unprecedented opportunity to foster cultural understanding.
The celebrated Lahore Literary Festival came to New York, generating interest and positive vibes from American writers and men of letters for the country’s works in various genres and creative fields.
The mosaic of culture presenting a glimpse into the contemporary music, art, film-making and literature of Pakistan kept the audience engrossed for more than seven hours at Asia Society. For the most part, discussions marked a change in tone and tenor after years of media narrative that often overlooks creative achievements of Pakistan while blaming it for Afghanistan’s longstanding troubles.
“The LLF is the most effective use of soft power, “Kati Marton, an award-winning American author and journalist remarked, while noting that the gathering provided the people in the creative city of New York an opportunity to explore the cultural advancement in Pakistan.
Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi opened the Literary Festival
“We are proud that for the first time a festival of ideas from Pakistan has been taken overseas,” Pakistani Ambassador to the United Nations, Dr. Maleeha Lodhi, said.
“Today, the amazing outpouring of art and literature in Pakistan is the most forceful response to a tiny minority that seeks to impose an alien orthodoxy,” she added. And Ahmed Rashid, a prominent Pakistani author and an authority on the Taliban, said that LLF was being used to counter extremism in the country.
Sessions called ‘The Promise of Pakistan’ and ‘Educating Pakistan,” explored best ways to re-assert founder leader Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s vision for the country — a democracy guaranteeing fundamental rights to all its citizens irrespective of their beliefs.
Among the speakers was former foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khan, who pointed out that growing intolerance and extremism was badly hurting the country, and demanded a consolidation of democratic institutions to provide justice to the people and thereby creating unity.
Raza Runmi, an author and television journalist referred to the Quaid’s policy speeches, and said the father of the nation wanted a liberal and modern state not a religious one.
Syed Babar Ali, a top Pakistani businessman and philanthropist, who was speaking to ABC-TV News’ Amna Nawaz, said the Quaid wanted citizenship not religion as the founding principle of the new state. Quaid’s main motivating factor was to provide opportunity to Muslims that they could not enjoy in an undivided India.
During a discussion on US-Pakistan relations, moderated by New York Times columnist Roger Cohen, Ms. Marton, the author and wife of Richard Holbrooke, the US special representative on Afghanistan and Pakistan, backed reconciliation to resolve the conflict in Afghanistan.
Ms. Marton said Holbrooke wanted to develop strategic ties with Pakistan, not transactional relations.Both Ms. Marton and Rashid strongly criticized the utterances of Republican presidential front-runner, Donald Tump, saying he had no policy.
Compered by Raza Rumi, panelists including Stephen Cohen of the Brookings Institution and Ms. Khar also discussed the role of U.S.-Pakistan relations and Washington’s conduct of relations with the military and democratic leaders in the discussion on The Promise of Pakistan.
Zeb Bangash performing at the Festival
Saleema Hashmi, a leading artist, educator and curator, spoke of the tremendous progress Pakistan has made in the field of arts despite challenges. An array of young artists, some from remote areas of Balochistan, had joined the ranks. Mrs. Hashmi called for greater patronage of artists.
The message from the group discussing Urdu literature — Dr. Azra Raza, the moderator, Tajira Naqvi, Frances Pritchett and Arfa Sayeda — was for the people to read Urdu books so that it stays alive, after papers were read on Esmat Chughtai and Sadaat Hassan Manto.
Bapsi Sidhwa, a prominent U.S.-based writer spoke to the audience on Skype, called LLF a “bold step” and said it was rendering great service to promoting literature.
Pakistan’s Consul General In New York Raja Ali Ejaz presented a Lifetime Achievement award to Sahrah Suleri, a well-known Pakistani author, who could come because of illness. The award was accepted on her behalf by Dr. Raza.
Lahore, Kites and Popular Culture was the subject of discussion in the final session, where Sarmad Khoosat, a film and television personality, spoke about various phases of developments of films and TV plays and the changes they underwent during various regimes in Pakistan. Moderated by Maryam Wasif Khan, the group was composed of Ammar Bellal, and Sadia Sheppard.
Rachel Cooper, Director of Global Performing Arts and Special Cultural Initiatives at the Asia Society, welcomed the gathering to the festival, saying it would help promote and strengthen partnerships among peoples of the two countries. Razi Ahmed, who is LLF’s founder and CEO, said spoke of LLF’s partnership with the festival and said it had brought ideas and showcased Pakisan’s talent.
“For four years now, we’ve had the privilege of bringing some of the most creative and insightful voices in the world to Pakistan’s cultural capital to engage with our writers, artists and audiences.”
