Youth Forum

A Youth Forum ‘Mustaqbil Hamara Hey’ was held in Abbottabad on 28th September. More than 700 young women and men from Abbottabad, Mansehra, Haripur, Battagram, Kohistan, Peshawar, Mardan, Swabi and Gilgit-Baltistan participated in the event. It was jointly organized by the Foundation, Youth Parliament of Pakistan and Pakistan Youth Development Organization. The forum provided a platform to the youth to debate and analyzes national issues with a view to define their role in addressing them. It gave an opportunity to reflect upon the underlying causes of the maladies that affect our nation today with a view to focus efforts on facing them collectively. This was a first of a series of similar initiatives that are planned by the Foundation in collaboration with its partners:

Pathways to Peace

Beginning in June 2009, about 100 citizen organizations and activists from across the country came together with the shared purpose of expanding and making peace efforts more visible and effective. A series of consultative meetings resulted in a shared commitment to promote peace, framed within four broad parameters: (a) rule of law; (b) justice; (c) democratic governance; and, (d) life with dignity. The diverse actors within civil society including academic institutions, NGOs, media, business and professional organizations, trade unions, youth groups continue to build bridges, share information and ideas, and explore collaboration.

4th Anniversary of Earthquake 2005

Large crowds marched through the center of Abbottabad on the eve of the fourth anniversary of the 2005 earthquake, demanding action on reconstructing schools, health facilities and roads. The march followed a gathering at the Jalal Baba Auditorium at which speaker after speaker complained about the slow pace of rehabilitation and the fact that many still had not received the promised compensation. Participants had traveled from the affected areas of Battagram, Mansehra, Abbottabad, and from as far field as Kohistan.