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Speakers at the Second Pashto International Conference urged the Pashtuns to work for the promotion of their language and culture and solve their problems by using modern means.
Pashtun thinkers, experts in different fields and intellectuals from North America, politicians and a large number of men, women, children and youth attended the conference on Sunday, according to a statement.
Pashtun American Community Association (PACA), which organised the conference in Springfield Virginia, United States.
“Pashtuns live a very hard life across the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan,” former MNA and Awami National Party (ANP) leader Himayatullah Mayar told the participants.
He urged the American Pashtuns to not only work for their language and culture but for bring peace and stability in the region as well.
“Pashtuns in America are very concerned how to grow their children in a Pashtun environment and how to teach them the language and culture”, Khalid Khan and Dr Razaul Hasan of the PACA told the conference.
Khalid said it was a big challenge. Raza said, “We are discussing ways and means to keep the language and culture alive and to promote it.”
Speakers discussed a range of topics, including the role of the media, the importance of learning physical sciences, challenges faced by the Pashtun women and how to develop civic sense and volunteerism etc.
Senior Editor and Communication Director at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism in New York Jehangir Khattak highlighted the role and importance of the media in promoting culture and language.
“Pashtuns don’t have their own media,” Khattak said. He further said that only a few print media outlets are owned by Pashtuns. He urged the Pashtuns to focus on having their own media, which is “run and managed by the Pashtuns”.
Dr Almas Khan, a professor at Virginia Tech, stressed the importance of learning physical sciences in Pashto. He also focused on the challenges and opportunities faced by the community in this regard.
“Pashtuns can solve most of their problems by having a scientific approach to issues,” Almas told the conference during his detailed presentation on how to use physical sciences and how to apply them to resolve problems.
Zebu Jilani, a Pashtun volunteer and intellectual, stressed upon the Pashtuns in America to play their role in the society by participating in volunteer activities. She said that she had given back to the community by such activities and all Pashtun should come forward to give back to the society.
She urged the Pashtuns to help the PACA not only by giving time but also by providing financial resources so that it could continue the activities for the benefit of the community.
Rana Mohmand, a Pashtun poet from Afghanistan, highlighted the challenges faced by the Pashtun women.
She urged the Pashtun women to come forward and solve their problems and work along with men. She further said that women should play their own role.
“The basic purpose of the conference is to create an awareness among the Pashtun nation about their language and culture”, Qasim Yousafzai, a PACA member and moderator of the conference told the media.
He said, “Languages and cultures are disappearing from the world very fast.”
He further said, “Every Pashtun should work hard to keep this language and culture not only alive but also promote it by all possible means.”
He said that language and culture had become a very low priority and “in order to promote it and create awareness, it is the responsibility of every community member to play his or her role”.
Earlier, Asnaf Qadir, another PACA board member, informed the participants about the conference. He presented the whole agenda, including speeches, the youth show and mushaira to be followed by music.
Amjad Ali, PACA youth director, presented a youth show, including poems by Pashtun children, paintings and a variety of other presentations.
The youth show was followed by a mushaira where Pashtun poets presented their poems and enthralled the participants of the conference.
Engineer Mohmand, a California based Pashtun singer, received great appreciation from the participants of the conference.
He sang popular songs of Amir Hamza Khan Shinwari, Ghani Khan and others.
Meanwhile, Pashtun children presented the Pashto anthem, ‘a zama watana de laloono khazane zama’. PACA board members Dawood Khan and Zeeshan Babar had composed the anthem.
Pashtun thinkers, experts in different fields and intellectuals from North America, politicians and a large number of men, women, children and youth attended the conference on Sunday, according to a statement.
Pashtun American Community Association (PACA), which organised the conference in Springfield Virginia, United States.
“Pashtuns live a very hard life across the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan,” former MNA and Awami National Party (ANP) leader Himayatullah Mayar told the participants.
He urged the American Pashtuns to not only work for their language and culture but for bring peace and stability in the region as well.
“Pashtuns in America are very concerned how to grow their children in a Pashtun environment and how to teach them the language and culture”, Khalid Khan and Dr Razaul Hasan of the PACA told the conference.
Khalid said it was a big challenge. Raza said, “We are discussing ways and means to keep the language and culture alive and to promote it.”
Speakers discussed a range of topics, including the role of the media, the importance of learning physical sciences, challenges faced by the Pashtun women and how to develop civic sense and volunteerism etc.
Senior Editor and Communication Director at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism in New York Jehangir Khattak highlighted the role and importance of the media in promoting culture and language.
“Pashtuns don’t have their own media,” Khattak said. He further said that only a few print media outlets are owned by Pashtuns. He urged the Pashtuns to focus on having their own media, which is “run and managed by the Pashtuns”.
Dr Almas Khan, a professor at Virginia Tech, stressed the importance of learning physical sciences in Pashto. He also focused on the challenges and opportunities faced by the community in this regard.
“Pashtuns can solve most of their problems by having a scientific approach to issues,” Almas told the conference during his detailed presentation on how to use physical sciences and how to apply them to resolve problems.
Zebu Jilani, a Pashtun volunteer and intellectual, stressed upon the Pashtuns in America to play their role in the society by participating in volunteer activities. She said that she had given back to the community by such activities and all Pashtun should come forward to give back to the society.
She urged the Pashtuns to help the PACA not only by giving time but also by providing financial resources so that it could continue the activities for the benefit of the community.
Rana Mohmand, a Pashtun poet from Afghanistan, highlighted the challenges faced by the Pashtun women.
She urged the Pashtun women to come forward and solve their problems and work along with men. She further said that women should play their own role.
“The basic purpose of the conference is to create an awareness among the Pashtun nation about their language and culture”, Qasim Yousafzai, a PACA member and moderator of the conference told the media.
He said, “Languages and cultures are disappearing from the world very fast.”
He further said, “Every Pashtun should work hard to keep this language and culture not only alive but also promote it by all possible means.”
He said that language and culture had become a very low priority and “in order to promote it and create awareness, it is the responsibility of every community member to play his or her role”.
Earlier, Asnaf Qadir, another PACA board member, informed the participants about the conference. He presented the whole agenda, including speeches, the youth show and mushaira to be followed by music.
Amjad Ali, PACA youth director, presented a youth show, including poems by Pashtun children, paintings and a variety of other presentations.
The youth show was followed by a mushaira where Pashtun poets presented their poems and enthralled the participants of the conference.
Engineer Mohmand, a California based Pashtun singer, received great appreciation from the participants of the conference.
He sang popular songs of Amir Hamza Khan Shinwari, Ghani Khan and others.
Meanwhile, Pashtun children presented the Pashto anthem, ‘a zama watana de laloono khazane zama’. PACA board members Dawood Khan and Zeeshan Babar had composed the anthem.
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