Pakistani Delegates Visit Balkh University, Mazar-E-Sharif, Afghanistan
During the visit to Mazar-e-Sharif as part of outreach and university interaction planned for the group, two members each from the PAJC visited the Balkh University on Tuesday, November 15, 2016. The Pakistani speakers were former ambassador Qazi Humayun and senior journalist Tahir Khan, while the Afghan speakers included former deputy minister for parliamentary affairs Sayed Qutbuddin Roydar and civil society leader Palwasha Hassan. The organizers CRSS and WPSO were represented by Aized Ali and Asila Wardak. It is pertinent to note that the Balkh University is a Pakistan government funded project and was handed over to the Afghan government in 2011.
The PAJC group was greeted and welcomed by the Vice Chancellor of Balkh University, Professor Adul Haq Haqiq. He thanked the organizers to have arranged this important interaction for the students of university to talk about Pak-Afghan relations and understand better with an open mind and neutral perspective. Other faculty members and about 70-80 male and female students participated in the dialogue which comprised presentations by one member each from both sides, followed by an interactive Question and Answer (Q & A) session. Among the students, majority were female students – about 60 percent.
About CRSS University Outreach: As part of CRSS efforts to promote people to people contact, especially engaging the youth of both countries, the Beyond Boundaries track 1.5/II project undertaken by Center for Research and Security Studies, Islamabad (CRSS) also comprised university visits. In this connection, Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Committee members from parliament and the civil society from both countries visited universities in Pakistan and Afghanistan to bridge the gulf of mistrust between the two peoples and foster friendly relations.
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