BAMIYAN CITY (SW): After over a decade, the 6th Century monumental statues of standing Buddha revisited Bamiyan as the city celebrates being the Cultural Capital of the region.
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) bestowed this honor upon Bamiyan for the year 2015.
Lying on the ancient Silk Road (the revolutionary trade route that tied together China, India, the Middle East and the Mediterranean) some 260 kilometers west of capital Kabul, the area was site of several Buddhist monasteries and a thriving center for religion, philosophy and art for ages.
Monks at the monasteries lived as hermits in small caves carved into the side of the Bamiyan cliffs. Though, most of the population in this region embraced Islam 9th Century onwards but they also embraced their past and many were appalled by the destruction of Budha’s statue.
A 3D display of the Buddha was projected in the empty place of the original Buddha statue during the SAARC festival.
The device through which the 3D image could be displayed, has been invented by a Chinese couple and was gifted to Afghan people as a gift from the people of China.
The couple – Janson Yu and Liyan Hu said the projector was built with a cost of over $120,000.
Afghan officials have expressed profound hope that the SAARC declaration would provide an opportunity for Bamiyan to generate considerable cultural, social and economic benefits.
Vice President Sarwar Danish and the Minister for Culture and information Abdul Bari Jahani alongside representatives of the SAARC members gathered in the historical city on Friday (08 June) to launch the two-day festivity. The Kabul government planned art exhibitions, seminars, musical shows and poetic evenings, screening of films and documentaries for the occasion, something un-imaginable during the Taliban rule.
It also included tours to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) protected sites of cultural landscape and archaeological remains of the Bamiyan Valley.
The Vice President thanked regional countries for acknowledging the historical worth the area. Danish vowed the government under President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani was committed to reforms, eliminating extremism and bring positive changes in the lives of Afghans.
In particular, he took the opportunity to assure the lives and liberty of the people would not be sacrificed for peace talks with the rebels.
ENDS
