RIYADH, 24 March 2004 - Pakistan was carved out of the subcontinent as an independent country on Aug. 14, 1947, after a long and hard struggle to achieve independence from its colonial masters. It was on March 23, 1940, that the All-India Muslim League in its 27th session in Lahore, adopted a resolution demanding a homeland for Muslims of the subcontinent. It was called the Pakistan Resolution.
"We celebrate our national day not only to mark the Pakistan Resolution but also to renew the resolve that the founding fathers made. We renew out pledge to make sacrifices to achieve the objectives that we set for ourselves," Ambassador Abdul Aziz Mirza said in an interview with Arab News.
Recalling the happenings in the past six decades, he said, there were remarkable achievements, setbacks and even failures that encouraged every Pakistani to contribute to nation building. The envoy recalled the historic speech by the founder of Pakistan, Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, who had said: "Muslims are a nation, according to any definition of a nation, they must have their homeland," and had further stressed "we wish to live in peace and harmony with our neighbors as free and independent people."
"Pakistan's relations with other countries are based on the principles outlined by the Quaid-e-Azam in his speech," the envoy said. These are based on peaceful co-existence in the interest of regional and global peace and security," he said. He added that Pakistan and India have begun talks and Islamabad believes in dialogue for a just solution of the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. Abdul Aziz Mirza said that his country was justified in extending all possible support to the Kashmiri people who continue to suffer the worst form of human rights violations at the hands of the Indian security forces while India denies them their right to self- determination envisaged under the relevant UN resolutions.
Describing the Saudi-Pak relations as excellent, Mirza said common religion and cultural heritage have brought the two countries very closer. Islamabad and Riyadh, he said, shared views on all regional and global issues.
President Gen. Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali visited the Kingdom several times in the recent past while Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, also had a very successful visit of Pakistan. These high-level contacts have strengthened the excellent ties between the two countries, he said.
The Saudi-Pak ministerial meeting held in January in Jeddah boosted the economic relations between the two countries, he noted. The meeting was attended by the finance ministers of the two countries. Pakistan's exports to the Kingdom have increased three-fold during the past two years and at present the volume is to the tune of $500 million. The exports include, textile, cotton yarn, leather products, sports goods, medical equipment, electrical appliances, rice and spices. The bilateral trade is in favor of the Kingdom which exports oil and petrochemical products to the tune of $1.9 billion. Some eight joint venture projects are in operation in Pakistan. During the mid 2004, Al-Tuwairqi Group, a Saudi steel company will commission the first billet making plant in Port Qasim at a cost of $100 million. Saudi-Pak Industrial and Agricultural Investment Company has approved SR145 million to finance 30 projects in manufacturing, financial, construction, service and energy sectors in Pakistan.
Saudi-Pak is a joint venture of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan with a 50:50 investment and their joint equity today stands at SR335 million after having paid SR139 million dividend to its shareholders. Last month, it decided to set up an insurance company and a securities organization to expand its investments in Pakistan. According to the chief executive of Saudi-Pak company, Rashid Zahir, both the companies are likely to be launched by April this year with an initial paid-up capital of Rs300 million," The proposed Saudi-Pak General Insurance Company would be a SR13 million project, while SR12 million has been allocated for Saudi-Pak Securities Company as part of its paid-up capital.
In his final comments, the ambassador said that the one million Pakistanis living in the Kingdom have strengthened the close bonds between the two countries." They come from all walks of life - from professionals to wage earners who have gained the confidence and respect of the Kingdom by their devotion and hard work. He hoped that they would continue to contribute to the development of the Kingdom as well as to their homeland.
