Daily Times

President Arif Alvi on Thursday said that United States should play a leadership role in curbing the spread of fake news, and catastrophes of climate change. He gave the example of the USA as a country which spreads fake news regarding countries’ changing their voting patterns. He said this while speaking in a virtual event organized by The School of International Service of American University Washington DC on November 18, 2021. President of Pakistan Dr. Arif Alvi was the honorable guest speaker. He was joined by Ambassador Akbar Ahmed, SIS professor and Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic studies at AU, for a moderated Q/A with the audience.

The host, Dean (School of International Service) AU, Christine BN Chin started by giving a brief introduction of President Arif Alvi. She said, in 1981, Alvi became Chairman of the first Pakistan International Dental Conference. In 1997, Alvi also became a Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics. He prepared the constitution of the Pakistan Dental Association and went on to become its president. He also served as Chairman of the 28th Asia Pacific Dental Congress. Later, he joined PTI and became the President of Pakistan in 2018. Then, Ms. Christine BN Chin introduced Ambassador Akbar Ahmed as a moderator, who is Pakistani-American academic, author, poet, playwright, filmmaker and former diplomat. He currently holds the Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies and is Professor of International Relations at the American University in Washington, D.C.

The event aimed to address the issues of Pakistan being a nuclear power, home to several ancient civilizations, and a place in which the governments over the decades have alternated between civilian and military, secular and Islamic, democratic and authoritarian. Pakistan has at times had a negative media image abroad. It is surviving not only by managing high stake relationships with Afghanistan and India, but also by dealing with the competing interests of the United States and China.

Ambassador Akbar Ahmed began by saying that historically, tribes, communities and religions have villainized against lands and neighbours for gaining personal benefits.

The conflicts and biases among various religions have always resulted in further conflicts and vilification of each other. He asked President Arif Alvi to express his thoughts over the roots of such conflicts.

President Alvi, in his first public lecture, said Pakistan has a long history of ancient civilizations. He said that Pakistan is a home to Mehrgarh civilization, which is 9000 years old, whereas, Indus Valley civilization, which is 5000 years old, also originated in Pakistan. Mohenjodaro and Harappa are also a part of Pakistan. At such times, Buddhism was the main religion, followed by Hinduism and then Islam.

Ambassador Akbar Ahmed asked the President of Pakistan that how should the tensions be countered among various religions and communities? Mr. Arif Alvi said that the tensions can be countered by bringing the people together. He went on to say that Islam preaches forgiveness. Therefore, we should forgive each other’s past mistakes and learn to live together and think out of the box. He said that world powers are focused on making the weapons of mass destruction out of hatred. Religions are being used for terrorism, attacks, and suicide bombings all over the world. He said that Islam is a peaceful religion and preaches inter-faith harmony. He further said that Pakistan as a nation also propagates the Islamic ideals.

Mr. Akbar Ahmed said that even the intellectuals such as Yuval Noah Harari are saying that humanity is under tremendous danger. Nature’s reaction regarding COVID tells that humanity is in danger. President Arif Alvi added that all religions preach tolerance. He said that we need to rewrite history and the future. He went on to say that there are bigger issues such as global warming, fake news propaganda and COVID that require the world’s attention and diligent actions. He said that much more cooperation between developed and developing countries is needed in these difficult times.

President Arif Alvi further said that Pakistan has a Ministry of Interfaith Harmony as Quaid-e-Azam also reiterated that Pakistan is a home to various religions and communities. Whereas, he said that the so-called secular countries such as India have carried out various anti-minorities legislations. He asserted that the political environment of the world is encouraging and breeding hatred by spreading fake news propaganda against each other. President Alvi gave the example of the USA as a country which spreads fake news regarding countries’ changing their voting patterns. Similarly, India on social media constantly tries to vilify Pakistan.

President Arif Alvi stressed the need of monitoring freedom of speech. He said that the misuse of freedom of speech gives rise to Islamophobia. He said that Islam is a religion of peace. It preaches peace, harmony and dialogue.

Ambassador Akbar Ahmed asked the President of Pakistan, “What are the practical administrative policies of the government of Pakistan to ensure inter-faith harmony?” President Arif Alvi revealed that the government of Pakistan takes quick and diligent actions whenever discriminatory incident takes place against a minority. He quoted the incident of a boy who was tortured enough to deny his God by another boy. He said that the government took swift action against the perpetrator when the incident was reported by the media. He said the same is the case with the recent Hindu temple attack in Pakistan. He said that diligent actions were taken against those who were responsible. President Alvi further said that the government of Pakistan is negotiating legislative bills regarding child marriages and forced conversions, which presently are the biggest concerns of the Hindus living in the Tharparkar area of Pakistan.

Ambassador Akbar Ahmad said that Pakistan is a country rich in sufism. It has many sufi shrines such as that of Baba Bulleh Shah, Sachal Sarmast, Data Ganj Baksh and so on. But they are not as well-known as they should be. He asked the President Arif alvi that is it the fault of the educational institutes that the history and culture of Pakistan is not highlighted enough to promote its soft image in the West? President Alvi responded by saying that Islam preaches Tareeqat, which means brotherhood, and sufi path, and it teaches Shariah (Islamic law). He said that the Prime Minister of Pakistan has taken an initiative by forming a Rahmatul-lil-Alameen Authority. Its aim is to make the country and the world aware of Islam and the life of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). It will focus on spreading the true message of Islam in the light of the teachings of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). It will also commence the research on Muslim heroes. President Alvi remarked that the Prime Minister Imran Khan said a cartoon series will be made to introduce Islamic culture to our children.

Lastly, Ambassador Akbar Ahmed asked the President what features of Pakistan does he want to highlight? The latter said that Pakistan is a beautiful country with scenic views. It has five of the highest mountain peaks in the world. Its imagery attracts tourism. He said that Pakistan is a land of deserts, civilizations, and tourist spots. He said that Pakistan is looking forward to becoming the pathway for trade with Central Asian Countries (CARS). He asserted that Pakistan is also looking forward towards the maintenance of peace and stability in Afghanistan.

President Arif Alvi invited tourists from all over the world to visit Pakistan and make memories of its land and people. He also gave a message to the USA that being a world power, the USA should play a leadership role in maintaining peace in the world. He reiterated that the USA should not unlearn the lessons it has learnt in the past. He said that Sufi and Muslim traditions believe in forgiveness. The USA should also forgive the past mistakes of each other. It should avoid and discourage fake news, weapons of mass destruction and AI that spread hatred. The event ended with this beautiful message.

The writer is a staff member of Daily Times and can be reached at raesaf21@gmail.com