End of World War II commemorated

Russian ambassador Alexey Dedov, Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid and other guests cut a cake during a ceremony held to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Russian Ambassador Alexey Dedov hosted an event at a local hotel to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. While welcoming guests, the ambassador stood alongside the envoys from Central Asia, which were part of the Soviet Union at the time. The Allied Forces and the Soviet Union defeated Nazi Germany in May 1945 and the war continued in the east for a few more months. More than 25 million Russians died in the war.

“Tajikistan sent more than 300,000 soldiers to fight in the war,” said ambassador Sherali S. Jononov.

Kyrgyzstan embassy’s Chargè d’affaires K. Toktorbaev said that his country sent many sons and daughters to fight at the front. “More than 70 received Hero Awards after the war,” he added.

“The Victory Day of the ‘Great Patriotic War’ as it is called in Russia, is more relevant than ever,” said Ambassador Alexey Dedov.

The chief guest at the event was Information Minster Pervez Rashid. During his speech, he highlighted the tragedy and cruelties of all wars and said that it is important to proactively work for peace at all times.

“In Pakistan, we appreciate the significance of the end of the war which hailed a new era in the history of the world. The war ended Nazism and Fascism in Europe and gave the continent a fresh start,” said former Pakistani ambassador Khalid Khattak.

Another former diplomat commented that it was unfortunate that many missions of western countries did not participate at the event at the senior level, mainly due to Russia’s disputed relationship with Ukraine.

“Many ambassadors seem to not have come and sent mid-level diplomats instead.” He added that envoys of neutral European countries such as Austria were attending.

Guests were entertained by Russian music, film clips from the war were played and posters had been displayed in the hall along with thousands of red roses. A scrumptious meal with Russian and Pakistani dishes was also served.

DAAD director says goodbye

Ursula Saarbeck, DAAD director, stands with Cultural Attache of the German embassy Dan Tidten, his wife, daughter and Pakistani academics.

“When I came to Pakistan six years ago, I had to start from scratch and establish the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) office in Pakistan,” said the outgoing DAAD Director Ursula Saarbeck at a farewell reception organised by Dan Tidten of the German embassy.

“We were first housed in temporary rooms, and I am thankful to those who helped us that time. Now, we are well-established,” said Ms Saarbeck, who received praise from the embassy for her work. She reciprocated and said that she had worked with several embassy staff members, dealing with her field, notably scholarships and research cooperation, over the relatively long time she has been in Pakistan.

“I am not ranking any of the diplomats; they were all good,” she quipped. DAAD is a German government body, but is not part of the embassy and works independently like the Germany Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ). Today, the two agencies have offices in the same building in Islamabad.

“There are some 500 academics on our list of recipients of DAAD support, and about 300 have already returned to Pakistan,” said Urusla Saarbeck.

Former recipients Prof Dr. H. Soomro of the regional ECO Science Foundation, expressed great admiration for DAAD’s work. Prof B.S. Chowdhry from the Mehran University of Engineering at Jamshoro, stressed the importance of DAAD’s work in supporting academic linkages. “We strongly believe in cooperation in the sciences and it will help Pakistan develop faster,” he said.

Imdadullah, who is currently on a three-year PhD scholarship in Germany, sent an email expressing gratitude for having received funding from DAAD. Initially, he stayed in Berlin for a four-month language course, and six months ago, he went to the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy at Erfurt University.

“When I came to Erfurt, one of my supervisors told me that the time I would spend on my DAAD scholarship would be the best years of my academic life. Make good use of it; read, think, debate, write and everything else which is part of a young scholar’s life, he told me,” Imdadullah said.

Another student who had received a DAAD scholarship and was later employed as a teacher at a German university said that there are many positive stories.

“I loved Germany so much, I stayed a long time and became a German citizen. But now I am working in Pakistan,” he said.

Academic discussions continued in small groups and good food was enjoyed by the guests. Many stayed longer than the two hours, the reception was planned for.

“I hope this was a nice send-off for Ursula who should leave with good memories,” said a Pakistani DAAD colleague.

— Text and pho­to by Atle Hetland & Shahbaz Chaudary

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play