By Anum Chaudhry
The greatest asset of any nation is the unfettered minds and hearts of its people.
Generally,I observe that people criticize and express negative image of Pakistan but Pakistan is not all about terrorism, corruption, unemployment, bad leadership, etc.
The good points of Pakistan have been hidden in this layer of violence. I feel that it’s our duty to defend our country’s honor and bring to light the best of Pakistan that was hidden for the last 70 years. With the prophets of doom prophesying Pakistan’s end and the world media crying itself hoarse about the ostensible failure of Pakistan as a State, it is easy to escape those aspects of Pakistan that make this country what it actually is, i.e. a truly great nation.
Being Pakistani I am proud of geniuses who proved themselves in front of whole world like Arfa Karim, Ali Moen Nawazish, Haroon Tariq, Moosa Firoz, they all are Pakistani’s. We not only have corrupt politicians but we have great people full of fire and enthusiasm like Late AbdusSattarEdhi. The Edhi Trust runs the largest ambulance network in the world and is completely free; it is run entirely on donations. Of-course this is no small achievement. In medicine, not only have we have produced world class doctors that now practice all over the world, we also have state of the art medical facilities that offer services at a fraction of the cost that is charged for similar facilities elsewhere. To name a few, these facilities include Aga Khan, South City Hospital, SIUT, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital, Burns Center, Kidney Center, Services Hospital Lahore and Indus Hospital among others. To elaborate on some of the points mentioned above, I want to point out that Shaukat Khanum Hospital is the world’s only free Cancer hospital. Similarly, the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) is the worlds only kidney and liver transplant hospital that treats patients entirely free of cost.
These institutions did not come into being as a coincidence. Rather, hard work and visionary leadership have been the primary force behind these successful projects which is very typical of a lot of development work that is currently going on in Pakistan.
Yes, Pakistan is the first Muslim country to attain the nuclear power Boasting seventh largest collection of scientists and engineers; it is no wonder Pakistan is the first Muslim country to have access to nuclear weapons that ensure that it is safe from any external threats.
I am fond of music and can proudly tell anyone that Most of South Asia’s master musicians in every genre are produced in Pakistan. Whether it is the world famous qawwali of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the ghazals of Iqbal Bano, Farida Khanum or Mehdi Hassan, pioneers of pop music in the subcontinent such as Nazia and Zoheb Hassan or bands such as Junoon, Fuzon and Atif Aslam, it seems the only music produced in South Asia comes from Pakistan.The national anthem of any country plays a vital role to unite and motivate the people. The tune, words and the music have huge importance in the anthems. In the ranking of national anthems, Pakistani anthem is the best among the top three of the world as the other two countries are Germany and Russia. It encourages and inspires the people and unites them to do something special for the country. The poetry of this anthem is not only in Urdu but also it includes words from the other local languages Pashtu, Punjabi, Baluchi, Arabic, Persian and many others.
If I talk about sports than football is the most played game of the world and perhaps all the people do not know where the footballs are made. Everyone would have seen the German brand Adidas but you will be surprised when I tell you that the secret behind this brand lies in the hard work of rural women of Sialkot, Pakistan.Moreover, Pakistan is one of the few countries in the world where you’ll see all kind of landscapes and weather, from the majestic mountains of NWFP, Northern Areas, and Azad Kashmir to the lush plains of Punjab to the deserts and beaches of Sindh and Baluchistan.
Despite our many tragedies, we remain one of the happiest people in the world. The Chacha at the Wagah border continues to make us smile with his contagious patriotism. The Pakistani flag continues to flutter atop roofs in all corners of our country. If only we were not obsessed with what we’ve not been given and instead channeled the greatest gift that God could give a nation – the ability to persevere despite the odds – our best days would’ve already been here. In end I would pray all of you to love this country as a blessing of God, stand united, guard its identity and geographical boundaries, work day and night for its better and exalted image. Pakistan Zindabad.