Honorable Mr. Burhan Kayaturk,
Member of Parliament & President of Pakistan-Turkey Friendship Association,
Excellency Serdar Cam, President
of TIKA,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Assalam-o-Alaikum and Good Evening!
It is a great pleasure for me to
welcome you all.
We are honoured by your
presence at this opening ceremony of the Photography Exhibition, which is a part
of the 69th Independence Day celebrations of Pakistan.
At the outset, I wish to express
our gratitude to the Ankara Buyukşehir Belediyesi for their valuable support in
co-organizing this Exhibition.
We are also delighted to have
Mr. Serdar Cam, President of the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency
(TIKA), as the Chief Guest.
We gratefully acknowledge the
tremendous work that TIKA has done in Pakistan under Mr. Cam’s dynamic
leadership.
Our deep thanks are owed to
the participating artists -- Mr. Veli Ucmaz, Mr. Ahmet Erkan Yigitsozlu, Mr.
Tunc Findik, Mr. Mehmet Okutan, Mr. Fethi Etem, and Mr. Levent Recep Ozturk.
Their observant eyes have
captured remarkable images of Pakistan.
As you will see, the exhibits
here illustrate the natural beauty of Pakistan, the vibrancy of its people, and
the diversity and richness of its culture.
These artistic illustrations highlight
many sides of Pakistan, which at times tend to get obscured in a media blitz
thriving on stereotyping.
We, therefore, truly commend
the works of art displayed here.
Distinguished Guests,
The relationship between the
peoples of Pakistan and Turkey goes back many centuries.
Our commonalities of faith and
culture have been reinforced by shared history and an abiding tradition of
always standing by each other.
Successive generations in both
countries have nurtured this unique relationship, which continues to flourish
with the passage of time.
As we work to fortify
political and economic relations, our central emphasis is also on strengthening
people-to-people contacts, which provide the most solid foundation for enduring
partnerships between nations.
Events such as these help
reinforce the people-to-people aspect of our multi-dimensional ties.
Before I conclude, I once again
thank the artists, and all others who have contributed to the holding of the
Exhibition, including TRT and Anadolu Agency.
I also mention the efforts of
Embassy’s Press Attaché Abdul Akbar, Third Secretary Muhammad Adil, and our enterprising
student in Ankara Jawad Zaidi.
Last, but not the least, I
thank the Ministry of Affairs, Islamabad, for providing financial support for organizing
this event.
Thank you and Yaşsasin
Pakistan-Turkiye Kardeşligi!
