BEIJING: Pakistan said Tuesday that the Culture Ministers meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization will set the tone for future co-operation among the countries of the region.
"Pakistan stands committed to this objective and I assure you that you will not find us lagging behind in the culmination of this objective" said Federal Secretary Ministry of National Heritage and Integration Asaf Ghafoor while addressing the 9th Cultural Ministers Meeting of the SCO here.
The focus of this gathering is promotion of arts and that to our diverse and shared cultural heritage, he noted.
"We all need to note that our culture is not only our heritage but the legacy to our children and generations to come", he said adding it is our duty to preserve and protect these treasures.
He pointed out that the focus of this august gathering is to promote arts and our diverse and shared cultural heritage.
There is indeed dire need to focus on this cultural strength and harness its potential to the fullest for the benefit of the people of this culturally rich region in particular and the world in general, he maintained.
He said that from Mohenjodaro to Yangshou (Dalian) and from Taxila to Lungshan Wen Hua (dragon mountain) we share heritage of civilizations that not only represent our precious cultures of past but also demand future line of action to develop our cultural affinities.
There are significant evidences that many religions including Islam had their roots from this area that is now known as cradle of civilization.
"They influenced the development of culture in the form of painting, music, literature, art, architecture and various other disciplines all of which have made a profound impact on the individual and collective life of modern man," he observed.
He said that the famous Silk road that was inaugurated almost 200 BC by Han Dynasty was a main source of cross-continental journeys but now 65000 km long this road is certainly more than a trade route as it has played a vital role in the cultural interaction among various nations.
Trade from Silk route had a tremendous contribution in the development of Chinese, Indus, Egyptian, Persian, Arabian and Roman civilizations he added.
It was not only the trade of necessities and luxuries such as silk, satin, and other fine fabrics, musk, perfumes, spices, herbs, medicines, jewels, precious stones, ivory, gold, silver, glassware, wine, carpets, textiles, but also new technologies, religions and philosophies travelled through this route to blend the traditions of various countries and societies, he observed.
The Karakoram Highway, he said jointly built by Pakistan and China was playing significantly role of cultural interface today.
"While we are looking for commonalities of civilizations, we better respect the diversity and practices to promote them as this is the true beauty of pluralistic culture of our societies, he said adding that we must commit ourselves to open new avenues for guiding our communities and the world's diverse people's into a partnership for well being of the humanity and that is the ultimate goal of these meetings of officials from Shanghai Cooperation Organization on Culture" Asaf noted.
There is an urgent need to preserve and conserve this archeological heritage of our region and the peoples of this continent have to take ownership of this task and take up this challenge with commitment and sincerity, he said.
Individually, Asaf said we may not be in a position to shoulder the responsibility yet collectively, I have no doubt, we can accomplish this mission.
He expressed his profound appreciation to the people and the government of China for holding this Conference, the deliberations of which, he said will go a long way in promoting our regional culture.
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