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Celebrations held in Park Extension’s Howard Park on Aug. 15 to mark the 62nd annual Pakistan Independence Day attracted a large crowd of people who enjoyed patriotic chanting, traditional dancing and speeches by many dignitaries from the municipal, provincial and federal governments. The day is celebrated all over Pakistan with flag raising ceremonies, tributes to the national heroes and fireworks taking place in the capital, Islamabad.
‘Unity, faith, discipline’
The main celebration takes place in Islamabad, where the President and Prime Minister raise the national flag at the Presidential and Parliament buildings and deliver speeches that are televised live. In the speech, the leaders highlight the achievements of the government, goals set for the future and in the words of the father of the nation, Quaid-e-Azam, bring "Unity, Faith and Discipline" to the people.
The event, also known as Yaum-e-Azadi, is officially observed on the anniversary of the day in 1947 on which Pakistan became independent from British rule within what was then known as the British Raj. “Like many other communities, this is the Pakistan community’s independence day celebration,” said Park Extension city councillor Mary Deros. “It’s a very important day for them, not only in Park Extension, but throughout Montreal and the rest of the world.”
When oppression ended
“This has been a very big weekend,” said Papineau Liberal MP Justin Trudeau who was on hand for the festivities. “From the Ascension of the Virgin Mary on St. Roch with the Greek community last night, to the 62nd anniversary of the founding of Pakistan celebration today, to the huge India parade tomorrow, this is a great time to see people. I just love spending time with people out here like this on nice days during the summer. There’s nothing like taking advantage of it.”
In a speech, Qurban Ali, a leading member of the Quebec Pakistani community, said Pakistan’s independence was “a special dawn for us in 1947, a glorious sunrising of the day … It was a great day for the whole nation. It was a day when we ended over a hundred years of British colonialism, injustice and oppression in the sub-continent … This day reminds us of those heroes who struggled for the achievement of Pakistan with hardship, imprisonment and torture, martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the creation of an independent in the region, whose blood gave birth to this sacred child which stands today as a great power on the earth.”