Avoid Valentine's Day, Pakistan president tells youth

Islamabad - "Valentine's Day has no connection with our culture and it should be avoided," Hussain said on Friday while addressing an event.

“Valentine’s Day” has no connection with our culture and it should be avoided,” the president said while speaking at an event to honour the services of Pakistan Movement leader Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar on his death anniversary.
Saying the day was not a part of Muslim tradition but of the West, Mamnoon said we must maintain our religious and national identity.
Referring to the education system, President Mamnoon said that there is a need to formulate the educational curriculum of Pakistan, according to the requirements of the modern age and ideology of the country. “Work in this regard is underway and soon, a new curriculum with the consensus of all stakeholders will be implemented,” he added.
“Students should go abroad to attain higher education, but should not be influenced by the West and must maintain their religious and national identity,” he said.
Meanwhile, the celebrations have been banned in capital Islamabad. After reports began swirling that the federal capital had banned the production of Valentine’s Day gifts or any promotion of the day celebrating love, the city administration has come out to deny any such development.
According to some reports, the interior ministry had directed the Islamabad Capital Administration (ICT) to not allow individuals and organisations to hold Valentine’s Day celebrations in the city.
In Peshawar, the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, members of the district assembly on Friday unanimously passed a resolution to ban Valentine’s Day celebrations. “A particular segment of our society wants to impose Western values and culture on our youth by celebrating Valentine’s Day,” said the resolution, which was presented by a member of Jamaat-e-Islami, one of the largest religious parties in Pakistan. Authorities in Kohat also instructed police to halt any celebrations of Valentine’s Day. Despite the ban, an reporter in Peshawar witnessed shops selling red balloons, toys and chocolates.
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(with inputs from agencies)

• Pakistan