LAHORE: The Chief Minister’s Special Monitoring Unit, the Walled City Lahore Authority (WCLA) and Bargad Foundation launched celebrations on 14th August 2017. These included a “Peace March”, inviting youth from all across Punjab, as well as a series of “music for peace” which were held inside Delhi Gate and Wazir Khan Chowk.
The events at the Wazir Khan Chowk included cultural performances by the locals of the Walled City, musical performances, folk songs, national songs, dhamal and qawali.
The local community of the Walled City has been involved in this event and children from different schools within the Walled City prepared fancy dress shows, national songs and dramas for this event. Singers from the walled gathered to perform in this event.
Chief Minister’s Special Monitoring Unit Head Syeda Fatima Zaidi, said, “The cultural heritage of a nation is like the roots of a tree; deeply entrenching its identity and holding it high. We, the Chief Minister’s Special Monitoring Unit, are very enthused at the idea of revitalising the Walled City experience. Walled City Lahore Authority has pioneered the restoration of this beautiful public space through years of dedication and hard work. It is now up to us, the broader civil society to promote this rich cultural heritage. The idea of celebrating our 70th Independence Day through remembering Lahore’s golden past is aimed to not only raise awareness for this particular place but also create a movement in Pakistan that seeks to engage our youth with our history. This is certainly one of the priorities for the Government of the Punjab.”
An inaugural “Commemoration of Pakistan” event for these celebrations was held at the Punjabi Complex, PILAAC. The festival started with a keynote speech by Fatima Zaidi following a panel discussion and a musical programme. It was attended by 500 participants, including university students, parliamentarians, civil society members and celebrities.
Particularly at Delhi Gate, a flag hosting ceremony was held. Other gates of Walled City including Bhati, Lohari, Kashmiri, Sheranwala were also decorated and illuminated for the celebrations of Independence Day.
WCLA Director General Kamran Lashari said that for the first time, this ceremony took place at the gates of Walled City. This was a good initiative by the WCLA team and the locals, he said. I have observed that the locals are enthusiastic about this day and have made it look like a festival, he added.
WCLA Social Mobilization Director Asif Zaheer said: “We had invited all the community members of the Walled City to participate in this ceremony. The flag was hoisted by the elders of the local community. I think such activities give the community a sense of ownership and pride.”
