It is a matter of great pride that a 24-strong contingent from Pakistan consisting of girl and boy scouts left Pakistan to participate and represent the nation in this camp, the objectives of which was to deliver a message of love, peace and cooperation to neighbouring South Asian friends.
The first ever participation of 10 girl students was made possible due to the sincere efforts and initiative of the Federal Minister of Education and Chief Commissioner, Mrs. Zobaida Jalal; Qazi Zahoor-ul-Hassan; Commander (Retd) Aftab A. Qureshi, Director Training and Programmes and Feroz A. Siddiqi, Deputy Director of PR and Publications, all of whom worked extremely hard to implement the directives of the minister. The participants were all given meticulous training, arranged at short notice.
All necessary arrangements regarding logistics and other related matters were tied up and properly coordinated by the dynamic team of PRSA. Mr. Feroz A. Siddiqi was appointed as the overall leader of the contingent, whose dedication to the cause was reflected by the brilliant success of the endeavor and the applause he received.
Two female leaders Mrs. Farhat and Mrs. Fakhar Karim also accompanied the contingent and provided effective and able guidance to the girl as well as boy scouts. The cooperation of the parents was greatly appreciated, all of whom showed great confidence in sending their children to a remote country like Bhutan.
Departure from IslambadAll the male and female students from different parts of the country assembled at the PBSA Headquarters in Islamabad on 1
st February 2002. Scouts Secretary Qazi Zahoor-ul-Hassan, Cdr. (Retd) Aftab A. Qureshi and Feroz A. Siddiqi gave them and their parents a warm welcome.
The chief guest was Mr. Sarfraz Ahmed Syed, the Senior Dy. Chief Commissioner, PBSA, who acquainted the scouts with the importance of the mission, welcoming them as ambassadors of universal love, peace and cooperation. He was briefed by the team of scouts association regarding their training.
The secretary Qazi Zahoor-ul-Hassan was fully confident that the contingent of scouts would keep the Pakistani flag flying high.
The contingent departed for Lahore by a coaster from Islamabad. The flight from Lahore to Doha took 2 hours and landed at Doha at 9 pm local time on the 19
th February 2002. The contingent had a one-night stay at Doha and took the flight early the next morning to the capital of Nepal, Katmandu.
The contingent stayed there for one night and left the next day, the 21
st of February, for Thimphu in Bhutan, their final destination. The one hour flight on Druk Air, the official name of Bhutanese airlines, passed over beautiful mountain ranges including Mount Everest, arriving safe and sound at Paro Airport in Bhutan.
The Bhutan Scouts Association had arranged for a bus to collect the Pakistani contingent, which took the group to the main camp at Thimphu. The Journey from Paro to Thimphu took 2 hours.
Events at SAF-Scout Friendship Camp (Bhutan)21st FebruaryThe Pakistani contingent reached Thimphu on the 21
st of February 2002. There was an opening ceremony, flag-hoisting and group photos.
All the contingents of the SAARC nations attended the ceremony. The Pakistani contingent was given an extremely warm welcome by the SAF Authorities.
Group Discussions22nd FebruaryBreakfast was served at 7:30 am sharp. The Pakistani contingent was routinely punctual and it was observed that they were always the first to be served. All the contingents stayed at Motihang School in Thimphu, where the youth conference was due to be held.
The chief guest addressed the contingents and the contingent leaders. Silent prayers were also offered for the founder of the world scouting organization.
After refreshments at 11:00 am speeches were made by two boy and girl scouts from each country. Syeda Qurat-ul-Ain and Mohammad Siddiq from the Pakistani contingent acquitted themselves admirably; their topic was the role of boy and girl scouts in peace and cooperation among the SAARC Nations.
Everyone appreciated the excellent performance of both speakers, the Pakistani contingent thus demonstrating their determination and pride. The main points elucidated by our girl scout were:
a) To promote the welfare of the people of South Asia and improve their quality of life.
b) To accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region and to promote and strengthen collective self-reliance.
c) To contribute collective minds, understanding and application to each other’s problems.
After the speech, group discussions took place. It is a matter of great pride that most of the leadership went to Pakistani boys and girls. The Executive Member was also from the Pakistani contingent.
Four sub-groups were formed in which 3 leaders were from the Pakistani contingent. Muhammad Siddiq and Qurat-ul-Ain were appointed as leaders of the sub-group camps.
