Page 19 - Pakistan Link - March 26, 2021

COMMUNITY MARCH 26, 2021 – PAKISTAN LINK – P19
Dr Henry Kissinger & Senator Mushahid Hussain Reminisce

Pakistan’s Role in Breakthrough of US-China Ties 50 Years Ago

The China Development Forum was attended by a large number of high officials, policymakers, economists, opinion and business leaders in Beijing, while Dr Kissinger and Senator Mushahid Hussain spoke virtually

from New York and Islamabad respectively

Islamabad: The China Develop- President Nixon, which led to Dr able role of Pakistan which enjoyed was resting due to an upset stomach’, He felt the normalization of rela-

ment Forum organized a Webinar in Kissinger’s path-breaking journey in a the trust of both China and the United while he had secretly flown to Beijing! tions had been beneficial for not just

Beijing highlighting ‘50 Years of Chi- PIA plane from Islamabad to Beijing States, whose then President, Richard He said that President Yahya relied China and the US but also Asia and

na-US Relations’ featuring keynote on July 9, 1971. Dr Kissinger recount- Nixon, had tremendous affection and only on a two-man team of his top the world. China had helped the US

speeches by former US Secretary of ed on how the first message from Chi- goodwill for Pakistan’. diplomats, Foreign Secretary Sultan win the Cold War and the US helped
State Dr Henry Kissinger and Senator na was in the form of a handwritten Senator Mushahid Hussain said Mohammed Khan and Pakistan Am- China come out of isolation which led
Mushahid Hussain on Pakistan’s piv- note which was personally dictated to that Pakistan’s then President, Gen- bassador to the US, Agha Hilaly. later to China’s reform and opening
otal role in facilitating Dr Kissinger’s him in the White House by the then eral Yahya Khan, once entrusted with Senator Mushahid Hussain, who up policy that has transformed China.
secret journey to China in 1971. Pakistan Ambassador in Washington, this task by both President Nixon and also serves as the Chairman of the Senator Mushahid Hussain con-
In his recollections, Dr Kissinger Agha Hilaly. Premier Zhou Enlai, undertook this Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, cluded that 50 years later, one lesson

praised Pakistan for its key role dur- Representing Pakistan and sensitive mission with ‘military pre- said: “It was an honor for Pakistan of China-US relations is that cooper-
ing that period and how President speaking next, Senator Mushahid cision, secrecy and deception’, with to play such an important role in the ation is good for both the countries

Yahya Khan acted as a go-between Hussain said the historic break- an official announcement of a decoy shaping of history, as Dr Kissinger’s and there is no room for outmoded

China and US, communicating se- through in China-US relations be- visit by Dr Kissinger to Nathiagali on visit to China led to a tectonic shift in policies like containment or a New
cretly with Premier Zhou Enlai and came possible due to the ‘indispens- the pretext that ‘the American official the global balance of power in 1971’. Cold War.

Sadequain’s Interpretation of Nobel Laureate Albert Camus’ Novel The Stranger

San Diego, California: SADEQUAIN Foundation USA has an- should have been the face of the nation recognized around
nounced the publication of a new edition of its book titled Al- the globe, but sadly, he became a stranger in his own coun-
bert Camus and SADEQUAIN. try; an unsung hero.
Sadequain lived in Paris France from 1961 to 1967. Alarmed and dismayed by the dire situation, SADE-
This period is considered to be the most creative and pro- QUAIN Foundation was established in May 2007 in San

ductive period of Sadequain’s life. Among other achieve- Diego California with the stated goals of discovering, pre-

ments, one of Sadequain’s significant works in Paris was his serving, and promoting Sadequain around the globe. The

commission of producing lithographs based on the most Foundation executed exhaustive search to locate thousands

famous novel titled The Stranger by noble laureate Albert of pieces of Sadequain’s works in places as far-flung as Sin-

Camus. gapore, Hong Kong, India, Middle East, Austria, Switzer-
Sadequain’s important body of work was not available land, France, England, USA, Canada, and more.
or documented in Pakistan until now. The original limited- SADEQUAIN Foundation USA has so far published 24

edition approximately 200 copies of the book published books on Sadequain’s life and various aspects of his work.
in France by a prestigious French Organization was only The Foundation’s book titled The Saga of SADEQUAIN

available in France in the 1960s, but is not available now is the largest book on the subject of art ever published in
except rare copies which sell in excess of US$15,000 each Pakistan. It has also been recommended by Pakistan For-

copy when available. eign Office to all its embassies around the world. The book

It was a remarkable achievement. An incredible sce- titled The Legend of SADEQUAIN is a representation of

nario. How did Sadequain manage to impress the French SADEQUAIN’s innovative calligraphic style called Khatt-
jury to select him for the coveted assignment of pictorially e- SADEQUAINI. The book titled Lines and Drawings II

interpreting the most famous novel, titled The Stranger, is the largest collection of drawings ever published in Paki-

written by the French Nobel Laureate, Albert Camus? stan; Sadequain’s or otherwise. In short, the Foundation
France is a nation known to have more artists per has produced more literature on Sadequain than any other
square mile than any other country. Pakistan is a country entity.
not to have produced artists of international repute. Sad- The Foundation has hosted more than 100 seminars,

equain, a Pakistani, could not read or write French. Then book launches, and exhibitions in the USA, Canada, UK,

how could he comprehend the intellectually taxing French France, Dubai, Pakistan, and India.
novel based on the philosophical complexities of existen- In February 2017, the Foundation crossed a major

tialism? If he could not read and understand it well enough milestone after laboring for 6 long years of red tape and
then how could he interpret its emotions, the irony, and spending more than $50,000 on repairs of the Frere Hall,

the absurdity? The improbable achievement deserves spe- donating more than 50 pieces of artworks representing a
cial treatment. wide range of SADEQUAIN’s palette and establishing Gal-

This book is the result of exhaustive efforts by SAD- erie SADEQUAIN at Frere Hall in Karachi. This is the only

EQUAIN Foundation USA to preserve Sadequain’s legacy location in Pakistan where the general public has unre-
and protect his reputation. The Foundation, founded in stricted access to SADEQUAIN’s artworks.

2007 in San Diego, California, has been engaged in search- Established in 2007, SADEQUAIN Foundation is a

ing for the widely scattered works of Sadequain, which he, not-for-profit organization dedicated to discovering, pre-
in most cases, carelessly gave away to mostly undeserving In his lifetime Sadequain was a celebrity and a house- serving, and promoting Sadequain’s art globally. To that
individuals and institutions, mistakenly thinking that they hold name in Pakistan. He is perhaps the only individual end, the Foundation has published 25 books on Sadequain’s
will make efforts to preserve his legacy. He could not be who was recognized by the Pakistan government by es- life and work, and curated more than 100 seminars and ex-

more wrong. tablishing three (3) institutions named Galerie Sadequain hibitions around the globe.
In his lifetime Sadequain was recognized and praised in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. He was bestowed with Dr Salman Ahmad, an electrical engineer by profes-

by the media on all five continents. Not many Pakistanis national and international awards, but he did not bother sion, who has spent more than thirty years working on nu-
can make this claim. French newspaper Le Monde quoted to receive them in person. To him, awards were irrelevant. clear missile technology in senior executive positions in the
“Sadequain’s multiplicity is reminiscent of Picasso.” UAE Sadequain gave more to the nation than any man or United States, founded the SADEQUAIN Foundation USA
newspaper Khaleej Times declared him responsible for the woman. But within a few years after he passed away, his in June 2007 to catalogue Sadequain’s work and introduce

“renaissance of calligraphic art.” name faded from the collective memory of the nation. He it to the world.
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