Speakers at a series of seminars on Wednesday pledged to express national unity to promote a soft image of Pakistan at the international level, as envisaged by the founder of the country Quaid-e-Azam. The seminars titled “Is Parcham Key Saey Taley Hum Aik Hein’ were held at churches in different cities like Peshawar, Quetta, Faisalabad, Sukkur, Hyderabad, Lahore, Sialkot and Karachi in connection with the Christmas celebrations. In their speeches, the speakers maintained that Pakistan is facing multiple threats of grave nature internally and externally at present, which is also distorting its image abroad. They said the unity and interfaith harmony are the key to success at this critical juncture. They renewed the pledge to transcend race, ethnicity and religious beliefs and participate in the development of the country to make Pakistan a socially and economically peaceful place to live.
The speakers said Pakistan’s national flag and its white color reflects the country’s commitment to peaceful and harmonious co-existence between majority Muslims and minority religions. They said religious harmony and tolerance of religious beliefs is a vital part of the teachings of Islam. They said Pakistan belongs to all the communities residing in it regardless of religion or creed. They said all the world religions teach peace and harmony, and referred to the message of the Father of the Nation Quaid-e-Azam in which he had stated that Pakistan belongs to all communities residing in it.
They were of the view that only a tolerant society based on the principles of interfaith harmony can ensure social inclusion by providing all citizens equal opportunities to grow irrespective of their religion or faith, adding that interfaith harmony is the way forward towards peace and prosperity in the society in line with the spirit of Paigham-e-Pakistan and Sayaban-e-Pakistan initiatives of the government of Pakistan. Separately, a Paigham-e-Pakistan conference was held at Jamia Ashrafia in Lahore in connection with the birthday celebrations of Quaid-e-Azam. In their speeches, the participants maintained that the best way to pay homage to the Father of the Nation on his birth anniversary was to adhere to his principles of ‘Unity, Faith and Discipline’ which were a beacon of light for making the country a truly Quaid’s Pakistan. The speakers called upon Ulema to play their due role in promotion of unity, peace and tolerance in the country. They said that Islamophobia is a lethal plan against Muslims by few negative elements who have a very clear idea about Islam’s message of peace but they are trying to deteriorate its image. They termed ‘Paigham-e-Pakistan’ a vital narrative for the Muslim world and said that Ulema have an unprecedented role in promotion of the narrative.
