Speakers at a seminar here on Monday maintained that establishment of a peaceful society is not possible without active participation of the youth, adding that the younger generation will have to play its role in promotion of positive engagements in order to curb growing intolerance and extremism.
The seminar titled ‘Paigham-e-Pakistan: Role of Students in Establishment of Peace’ was organised by Department of Gender Studies, University of the Punjab, in collaboration with Inter-University Consortium for Promotion of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities (IUCPSS).
A large number of faculty members, students, civil society activists, educationists and intellectuals attended the event.
Speaking on the occasion, Faculty of Islamic Studies Dean Dr Hammad Lakhvi said Islam is the religion of peace, brotherhood, unity, tolerance and equality. He underscored the need to forge unity through promotion of the true message of humanity and coexistence given by Islam in order to establish peace and stability in the society and counter violence, extremism and terrorism. He stressed that the people should be educated according to the teachings of Islam, saying Islam preaches peace and religious tolerance.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs former additional secretary Dr Nazir Hussain said Pakistan is a country having a huge resource in the shape of young population. He stressed the need to motivate the country’s youth to be the ‘agents of change’ by engaging them in the national peace-building efforts, which will in turn also help prevent spread of violent extremism and terrorism in the society. “The young people hold tremendous potential, and, if given a chance, can help build more equitable societies and actively counter violence and extremism. It is imperative for us to invest in youth to tap their full potential and help achieve peace and security,” he said.
Renowned educationist Rana Adeel Mumtaz said the role of teachers is of vital importance in character building of students at educational institutions to achieve lasting peace and tranquility through elimination of extremism, sectarianism and terrorism from the society. He called upon the faculty members to come forward and help determine the right direction for the society which will eventually be helpful in bringing peace and stability in the country.
In their speeches, other speakers including Dr Nudrat Kamal and Ummal Banin stressed the need to toe the path of peace, unity, co-existence, plurality and brotherhood which are a sine-qua-non to progress and development. They also called for organizing such seminars on a regular basis in order to raise awareness among the university students and help them become a productive citizen of the society.