KARACHI, March 20: Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad here on Sunday urged the writers to play their role for checking the spread of extremism in society. Addressing a seminar on “Role of literature in the changing world”, organized by the Pakistan Academy of Letters, he said that the writers should play their role to point out the factors behind the spread of extremism and suggest their remedies. He said that the writers through this valuable service could greatly help the government in promoting peace, love and progress. Writers could give voice to the silent oppressed class, he added.

Dr Ibad said that languages were gateways of friendship and they end distances. Stressing that it is need of the hour to bring the regional languages even closer, the governor asked the writers to promote national unity and patriotism. He said that the world was becoming united on trade and economic fronts in this period of globalization. In this scenario, he underlined the need to chalk out comprehensive strategies for safeguarding and promoting regional languages. “Our classical literary heritage is so strong that we could even survive in the storm of globalization,” he said.

He said that book-reading culture would thrive only when literacy rate would be growing.

Dr Ibad said that the literature and writers were greatly linked with democracy and writers in undemocratic countries were afraid to pen down the truth. “However, we were living in a democratic era, in which the writers were fully free to write and express what they think,” he claimed.

The governor, on the occasion, announced Rs0.2million Sindh Governor Annual Literary Award.

Those who also spoke were Dr Farman Fatehpuri, Iftikhar Arif, Fatima Surraya Bijia, Sindh University Vice-chancellor Dr Mazaharul Haq, PAL resident director Agha Noor Muhammad Pathan and Shahida Hassan.

Later, the governor gave away literary awards to writers of Urdu and regional languages. The Kammal-i-Funn Award went to Mushtaq Ahmed Yousfi. Other award-winning writers in Urdu, Sindhi, Pashto and English languages were Muhammad Khaild Akhter, late Shaikh Ayaz, late Razi Akhter Shaook, Ali Muhammad Majrooh, Dr Fahmeeda Hassan, Iftikhar Arif, Bader Abro, Ayaz Gul, Mazhar Abro, Zuhara Nigah, Hameeda Akhter Hussain Raipuri, Mohammad Lutifullah Khan, Abbass Rizvi, Dawood Rahbar, Zameer Ali Badayouni, Dr Badar Ujjan, Shahnawaz Sodhar, Oja Kumar Jaria and Kamila Shamsi.