The Embassy of Pakistan in Seoul and the Seoul City Library co-hosted an exhibition of books on Pakistan and Pakistani handicraft and artifacts at the Seoul City Library on Aug. 5-10, 2014.
Attending the exhibition, besides Ambassador Zahid Nasrulla Khan and Director General Lee Yong-Ho of the Seoul City Library, were Ambassadors Dato Haji Harun Ismail of Brunei Darussalam (dean of the Diplomatic Corps of Korea), Hilton A. Dennis of South Africa, Raul S. Hernandez of the Philippines and Zoran Kazazovic of Serbia. There also was Community Welfare Counsellor Muhammad Humair Karim of Pakistani Embassy in Seoul.
From the Korean side came former Korean Ambassador Oh Jae-hee to Pakistan (now chairman of the Korea-Pakistan Friendship Association) and Vice President Park Byung-uk of The Korea Post.
In addition to the books on Pakistan, there also were a good number of traditional Pakistani handicraft and artifact items on display, including the famous Pakistani carpets.
Speaking to the guests, Ambassador Khan said:
“I warmly welcome all my distinguished guests to today’s event. I am very grateful to Director General Lee for providing the opportunity for holding the Exhibition.
“For time immemorial books have been one of the ancient vehicles for transmission of knowledge for civilizations. In Pakistan also a large variety of books are published in many languages. However, the two most popular languages are Urdu and English in which books are read.
“Today we would endeavor to give you a small peek into the literary world of Pakistan by presenting books on diverse subjects. I hope that it would give a new perspective about Pakistan.”
A total of 107 books were on display, which covered the history, geography, personalities, architectural construction arts, religion and various other aspects of the country and people. They included ‘Pakistan Unique Origins: Unique Destiny’ ‘Pakistan Colors,’ ‘Churches of Pakistan,’ ‘Pakistan: Glimpses of Vistas, History and Culture.’
There also were a total of over 20 different artifacts, including bracelets, costumes and carpets.
Director General said: “Seoul has become a prominent international city and the Seoul City Library is for the people to learn more about all the other countries of the world and the peoples with a view to helping all the peoples of the world to attain development together.
“As part of this belief, we are hosting this exhibition to learn more about Pakistan, one of our Asian countries, and also for improving the environment for increased communication between Korea and Pakistan. I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to His Excellency Ambassador Zahid Nasrulla Khan of Pakistan for his unreserved support and assistance for this exhibition.”