Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The fourth Pakistan Mountain Culture Festival and International Mother Language Festival concluded on Sunday at Open Air Theatre.

The opening ceremony of the event was held at Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) while a three-day event featured language conference, Mushaira and folk musical performances by 40 renowned artists, poets and artisans from different ethnic backgrounds from Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral region representing their diverse languages Shina, Khowar, Balti, Brushaski, Kalasha, Wakhi and Domaki. During the event, the unique handicrafts and cuisines of these regions were also showcased.

Initiative for promotion of Pamiri Arts and Culture (IPPAC) in collaboration with PNCA, Shandur Welfare Organisation and Idara Baraye Talim o Taraqi (IBT) arranged the cultural event on the theme of “Culture for Peace and Pluralism” to mark International

Mother Language Day 2016 and celebrating the culture of the mountain communities of Karakoram, Hindukush, Himalayas and Pamir.

Renowned artists, musicians and poets from Gilgit-Baltistan, Chitral and Swat Kohistan performed colourful regional dances and singing shows.

IPPAC aims to contribute in the projection of soft image of the country through sustainable development of art and culture. An official of IPPAC said that through various cultural activities, which are the |
need of hour, we could develop the region as one of the potential tourist destination and hence generate economic activities in it.

The initiative aims at building a network and providing a platform to the artists and artisans of the region to exhibit their talent to the outside world and transfer their skills to the young generation through training.

IPPAC aims at creating an endowment fund that strives to work for the well being of the artists and artisans and cater to their financial needs so that they could live a respectable life. When a language goes extinct, a nation’s culture, history, folk culture, civilisation and knowledge go with it.

The official said that out of the 69 languages spoken in Pakistan, 27 have been declared endangered by the UNESCO and are at the verge of extinction. Out of these 27 endangered languages, 18 are native to Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral, he added. He further said that IPPAC’s another core objective is to work for the preservation and promotion of the local languages spoken in these two regions. IPPAC is undertaking projects on audio, visual and written documentation of various languages in this regard, the official added.

Meanwhile, International Mother Language day 2016 was observed across the globe including Pakistan on Sunday with its theme “Quality education, languages of instruction and learning outcomes”.

This underlines the importance of mother languages for quality education and linguistic diversity to take forward the new 2030 agenda for sustainable development.

On the occasion, UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova said, “Mother languages in a multilingual approach that are essential components of quality education, which is itself the foundation for empowering women and men and their societies”.

International Mother Language Day was proclaimed by the general conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in November 1999 and proclaimed 2008 as the international year of languages to promote unity in diversity and international understanding through multilingualism and multiculturalism.

International Mother Language Day is observed every year since February 2000 to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism.

Languages are the most powerful instruments of preserving and developing our tangible and intangible heritage.

All moves to promote the dissemination of mother tongues served not only to encourage linguistic diversity and multilingual education but also to develop awareness of linguistic and cultural traditions throughout the world and to inspire solidarity based on understanding, tolerance and dialogue.

In Pakistan, a two-day Pakistan Mother Languages Literature Festival held at Lok Virsa in federal capital on Sunday which featured a variety of cultural activities in 15 to 20 languages that also included discussions on languages, literature and culture, book launches, mother language symposiums, music events, audio- visual screenings and performances.

Different organisations also held programmes including walks, seminars, and cultural events to highlight the cultural and linguistic diversity.