” Words of Change “ project underlines the importance of using our literary skills to change mindsets. We aspire to use our pens to bring a silent but meaningful change in attitudes of our countrymen.
Pakistan Youth Alliance
LIVIN’ THA CHANGE!
Sahar Azeemi
CEO PYA Magazine Project @ [email protected]
Judges for Iqbal’s Day Online Poetry Competition
GUEST JUDGES:
Fariha Rashed – Fariha is the grand daughter of the great Urdu poet Noon Meem Rashed. Although she has not been published, Fariha also writes poetry in English. Her writing skills never betrayed her as she started her career as a journalist and now owns/runs the South Asian entertainment based print & online magazine called Ink.
Moniza Alvi – Moniza is a renowned Pakistani-British poet and writer. Famous for her piece ” Presents from my aunts in Pakistan “. Moniza has written four poetry collections. The Country at My Shoulder (1993) led to her being selected for the Poetry Society’s New Generation Poets promotion. Most recently she published a series of short stories ‘How the Stone Found its Voice’ (2005), inspired by Kipling’s Just So Stories. In 2002 she received a Cholmondeley Award for her poetry.
Samad Khurram – Samad is a well-known youth activist. He is currently an undergraduate at Harvard University who made headlines by refusing to accept an award from the US ambassador to Pakistan, citing continuing drone attacks in the country. He writes oftenly in newspapers about issues concerning Pakistan and was on fore-front in the lawyers’ movement to restore the judiciary dismissed by former President Pervez Musharraf. He also enjoys a great flavour in english poetry and believes understanding Allama Iqbal is a must for understanding the ideology of Pakistan.
Abbas Zaidi – Zaidi was a born artist. Blessed with multi-dimensional skills, he played the famous role of “Hakim Dada” in “Domestic Crusaders”. Buzzaz the actor made his first effort at an openly accessible, self-published eBook, titled “The Present – A Book of Learning” which earned him the ‘Phenomenal Men of the Web’ award in 1999. Residing now in San Francisco and New York City, he remains an avidblogger, activist, a multi-lingual poet, and a student of the “not-so-obvious”. He currently serves as associate editor of WadiWallah, and is a contributing editor in many publications. He expresses himself : “Write, my dear, and open your ‘self’ to others”
Prof. Dr. Ahmed Jawed – Dr. Ahmed is well-known for a life-time dedicated to “Iqbaliat” and poetry. He is the driving force behind Iqbal Academy, Pakistan. He is widely known for his works on the philosophy and ideology of Allama Iqbal.
Prof. Dr. Aasi Karnali – Dr. Aasi is a research scholar, writer & poet from Multan. Many of collections have been published and widely acknowledged. His domain is “Ghazal” form of urdu poetry which has made him one of the leading urdu poets of Pakistan. The poet also believes in reviving the message of Iqbal in the 21st century through different means.
Ammar Masood – Ammar Masood, heir to the poetic and Persian legacy of well known Urdu/Punjabi poet Anwar Masood, has come a long way from hosting and scripting poetry related shows on TV/Radio to writing prose & poetry himself. One of his famous works include ” Mohabbat ka Neela Rang “. The writer is now compiling another collection of short stories which would be published very soon.
Shahram Azhar – Shahram is the lead singer of ” LAAL ” Band. Though, mostly famous for his mesmerizing voice, he is also an inspirational poet and believes the penetrative message of Iqbal must be understood by the youth. His aspiration of using literary skills to bring about a change in Pakistan can also be extracted through his music.
HOST JUDGE:
Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi – Ali is a prolific youth & social activist. He is the founding force of Pakistan Youth Alliance. An aeronautical engineer by profession and an artist by heart, he is compiling a treatise of his spiritual and inspirational poetry under the aegis of ” Plastic Tears “. He believes art can be a change-agent to reform mindsets of the youth of Pakistan. He also vows to initiate more projects like ” Iqbal’s Day Online Poetry Competition 2009 ” to encourage young artists to use their respective art-forms to reform Pakistan.
PYA has the proud support of DISNA (Dr. Iqbal Society of North America) for this initiative
Pakistan Youth Alliance urges the young poets & artists of Pakistan to use their artistic brains to stir a soft but meaningful revolution in the country.
Lets commemorate Iqbal’s Day, 2009 with a new spirit of poetic patriotism!
Send your poetry ( english and urdu ) along with contact info and NIC numbers to [email protected] before 15th November, 2009. One person can make one attempt each in Urdu and English & ONLY Inspirational/Patriotic Poetry will be considered.
1st Prize: 10,000 Rs ( Each in Urdu & English )
Runner ups: Collection of Iqbal’s Poetry
A panel of renowned artists & poets alongwith upcoming poets ( 10 member judges panel ) will select the best effort. Names & Profiles of Judges will be made public in a few days
” Nations are born in the hearts of poets, they prosper and die in the hands of politicians.” –
– Allama Muhammad Iqbal
And 2morrow..
Today is filled with anger, fueled with hidden hate.
Scared of being outkast, afraid of common fate.
Today is build on tragedies which no one want’s to face.
Nightmares to humanity and morally disgraced.
Tonight is filled with Rage, violence in the air.
Children bred with ruthlessness cause no one at home cares.
Tonight I lay my head down but the pressure never stops,
knowing that my sanity content when I’m droped.
But tomorrow I see change, a chance to build a new,
build on spirit intent of heart and ideas based on truth.
Tomorrow I wake with second wind and strong because of pride.
I know I fought with all my heart to keep the dream alive. . .
Light At The End of The Tunnel
Written by: Hira Sohail
The beautiful Swat valley, commonly referred to as “Heaven on earth” by tourists from across the globe became a haven of extremism when Taliban stormed in from all corners and jeopardized the life of a common man. Statistics indicated an unprecedented internal displacement of nearly 3.5 Million people. The lush green mountainous valley converted into a warzone.
The sudden displacement turned into a national tragedy, which became a mammoth challenge for Government to handle. Disasters like this, test the character of a nation. Pakistan was in need and Pakistanis stood up once again. Passionate youth from all parts of the country decided to move forward to greet our calamity-stricken brethren. One such organization, which stood up to help their countrymen in need was PAKISTAN YOUTH ALLIANCE.
PYA, the brainchild of Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi, was formed during the Emergency rule with the sole purpose of providing the youth with a platform, to voice their opinions about issues at national level. But this time, they did not have time to protest or hold a rally, they saw 35 lakh people needed material help more than mere emotional support so they started to fundraise for Swat affecters on the streets. Interesting to note here is that, these kids saw a national tragedy unfolding long before anyone else did. Their swat relief campaign started in mid of February, 2009.
Unlike others who just make promises and change their stance when the real test arrives, PYA volunteers promised to work for their Swati brothers and sisters until they go back to their homes. Donation camps were setup throughout the country. Belonging to different fields of life, these patriotic youth vowed to fundraise for the entire week and make the delivery every Sunday. Students after school and office-going youth after office hours, volunteered their selves to beg for their countrymen.
The chain of weekly relief efforts kick started in Bahria town Islamabad and first delivery was made within 24 hrs of holding a donation camp. People on the streets had never seen youth, apparently from the apathetic elite begging for such a cause before. They trusted them more than known NGO’s and started donating in large amounts. The process of collecting funds and delivering the relief items to IDP’s in Mardan, Swabi and adjoining areas continued for 9 weeks. The last delivery was made in Swat when no relief organization dared to travel there. Delivered items included beddings, utensils, ration packs, clothing’s, water coolers, electric fans, mattresses, toys, mosquito repellants and medicines of worth 35 lakh Rupees.
The work of PYA was acknowledged by people from all walks of life including national and international media so much so, that a BBC team travelled to Pakistan to make a documentary on them. In midst of this national tragedy, optimists saw light at the end of the tunnel. Youth of Pakistan is awake and it will serve the country, through sweat and blood whenever the need arises.
Like Iqbal said:
Ways of world have changed
Tune is new, instruments have changed;
Free your mind from mental slavery
Make the young, masters of the old.
http://www.pakmediarevolution.net/website/archives/1931
THE LAND OF PURE, ARE YOU SURE ?
She had to feed her kids at home
She could not move in streets alone
Oh’ not in fear of US drones
Her pride was robbed by her own!
The land of pure, she was not sure!
His fathers dreamt of such a land
A place they’d refer to as home
But in his sons, the poor land
Yearns for souls it calls its own!
The land of pure, he was not sure!
Dead people walking in the malls
Loveless streets and hateful halls
Some call me crazy, for some I am blind
But I cannot see the love they find
The land of pure, I am not sure!
Blame the boots drunk in gains
Or feudal lords with no shame
Books of history still preserve
Nations get leaders they deserve
The land of pure, we are not sure!
Behind our weak and selfish stand
Inside our numb and faithless hides
We watched them play with our land
We watched them rape our countrys pride!
The land of pure, we are not sure!
Everything is wrong, the common song
But did you care to stand along
By your words, then why complain?
And point at others, when you are to blame!
The land of pure, you are not sure!
Can you feel this spark inside
As I lay my pen to rest
Lets vow to fight with reverent pride
And put our last hope to test!
The land of pure, LETS BE SURE!
If you consider yourself as dead
Donot get out of your cozy bed
And if you dream for change like me
Lets live the change we wish to see!
The land of pure, LETS BE SURE!
Pakistan Youth Alliance: A helping hand for IDP’s
It was on February 16, 2009, much before operation ‘Rah-e-Rast’ had begun, when few young individuals came on the streets of Islamabad and Lahore to raise money for the women of Swat who had been deprived of the right of education. When others were only protesting against the growing effect of ‘Talebanisation’ in Swat, these individuals were in fact on the roads to do something about the next generation of Swat who were likely to grow up without the light of education if the situation persisted. In no time, they were able to collect Rs 250,000 for the burnt schools in Swat from the streets of Lahore.
When the war drums started beating and tanks began rolling in Buner, these young individuals were sitting in a TV show vowing to put aside their differences on whether they support the operation or not, and to launch an effective relief campaign for the internally displaced persons. Their faces wore determination and compassion, and they appealed to the youth to step forward, and to live the change instead of demanding one. These individuals were from Pakistan Youth Alliance, a youth based and youth administered non-political organisation.
Having a history that starts from Musharraf’s Emergency rule, PYA had stood up when and before no one even cared. A group of youth were more politically and socially aware then their peers, which realized the dream of having an unbiased platform for the youth of Pakistan, different from the “student unions” which were used by political parties to realize their shady motives. Casually dressed in jeans young boys and girls, ostentatiously representing the ‘urban elite’ which is often labelled as apathetic, were out there in scorching heat of noon in Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar and Karachi, when they ought to be sitting in their air-conditioned homes. It was a heart warming sight as they had not only set up camps at various market places but they also reached personally to people and asked them to contribute generously. It all started from Bahria Town, Islamabad where Rs 100,000 were collected in few hours on May 16, and they targeted Mardan Khas government school on the very next day to distribute the relief items. The first relief effort was successfully completed in 36 hrs, and the spark they ignited had to spread amongst masses and turn into a big fire
With every passing day their ranks started to swell as more and more young people joined the cause and donations started rising. They held fundraising campaigns during the whole week in different cities, and on the weekends instead of sitting on comfy sofas at some eating place they reached those far lying schools of Mardan and Swabi which were holding fresh refugees. PYA had representation of local young individuals who knew the region well, and this made the task of need assessment easier. In this manner they touched hundreds of families. On their second trip they distributed relief items of worth more than half a million rupees in schools of Mardan Khas and Daula Zai.
This practice continued for the weeks to come as they also reached families in the areas of Shakrial in Islamabad and Topi, Swabi.
Their work still continues as they believe that these relief efforts must not be worn out by time. The work of PYA has been acknowledged by various segments of media and people belonging to different walks of life. By posting pictures, documentations and receipts on various social networking websites like facebook, they were open to all to ensure transparency and accountability, which appealed greatly to the donors. The pictures of young kids of Swat smiling celestially and wearing tags and shirts of PYA have often replaced apathy with the feeling of empathy in the hearts of many. They proclaim to “ Live the change “ instead of just proposing it and how well have they lived up to their words.
What is enthralling about these people is that they are not an outgrowth of some political party or a NGO. PYA comprises of bright young individuals belonging to various universities, or who have different jobs, and they know no divides on the lines of sectarianism or provincialism. Rather than limiting themselves in daily drudgery, they take some time out of their daily routine to ponder how they themselves can be the change they believe in.
As Wordsworth had written about the French Revolution, “Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive… But to be young was very Heaven.” The current wave of youth activism is a silent revolution, not a rebellious one indeed. And it is very heaven to be young these days.
