GUN WORKSHOPS OF DARRA ADAM KHEL
April 06, 2023
Darra Adam Khel is a Pashtun town in Kohat District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It has gained fame and notoriety for its bazaars packed with gunsmiths and arms dealers. Within the two-kilometer stretch of the Darra Adam Khel market, about 140km west of the capital Islamabad, there are dozens of arms factories producing everything from crude copies of Chinese pistols to sophisticated facsimiles of the US M16 automatic rifle or the Austrian Glock semi-automatic pistol. However, the AK-74 Kalashnikov semi-automatic assault rifle – an upgrade of the venerable AK-47 – is the market’s best-seller at a mere 130$. For those on a budget, a basic pistol will set you back as little as 60$. Darra’s market has survived for decades, thriving in a legal grey area that places it outside Pakistani law as part of the country’s former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Weapons made here fueled both the first Afghan war against Soviet forces and, since 2007, the Pakistani Taliban’s fight against the Pakistani state.
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SHAH NOORANI PILGRIMAGE, BALOCHISTAN
March 30, 2023
Syed Bilawal Shah Noorani was a Sufi saint whose shrine is located in Pakistan’s Balochistan province. His shrine attracts thousands of devotees who walk across dangerous terrain and seven mountains from Sehwan Sharif in neighbouring Sindh province. These pilgrims, known as Lahootis, spend two weeks walking through the barren landscape of the Kirthar mountains, stopping at small shrines along the way. The main object of worship, however, is Ali, a cousin of Muhammad and the first imam of the Shia faith. Nearby is the cave where Shah Noorani is said to have spent his last days, which contains a stone believed to be the image of Ali’s camel.
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PARSIS OF KARACHI
March 27, 2023
The Parsi community of Karachi has made a remarkable impact on the metropolis, although the size of the always-small Parsi community in Karachi is in decline. There are now less than 1,700, down from more than 7,000 a few decades ago, mostly in Karachi. The Parsi community is largely defined by its adherence to the Zoroastrian religion – the religion of ancient Persia. They are sometimes called “fire worshippers” because of the central role that fire plays in their rituals. Each of their temples has a consecrated fire that burns continuously – some of these fires have been kept alive for centuries. In a community centre in Karachi, priests gather around a small fire and recite a prayer in an ancient dialect of Persian. The priests wear masks that cover their mouths and noses so that the fire is not desecrated by their breath or saliva. According to tradition, a group of Zoroastrians arrived in South Asia over a thousand years ago, fleeing the Muslim conquest of Persia. This community was prosperous in the past, especially as traders.
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CHANNAN PIR MELA
March 18, 2023
Channan Pir is a village in the Cholistan desert in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is named after the Sufi saint Jalaluddin Surkh-Posh Bukhari and contains his grave. The Mela, which bears his name, is celebrated in the Cholistan desert on seven consecutive Thursdays beginning in February each year. The fifth Thursday is the most popular day and is also observed as a local holiday. Today, it is the most popular festival in southern Punjab, with Hindus and Muslims participating as one in theatrical performances, magic shows, dancing, horse and camel rides and feasts. The legend of Channan Pir is that he was born to the Raja of Jaisalmer and when it was predicted that he would become a Muslim, the Raja threw him into the desert. The child survived and became a Muslim as predicted. He then converted the Hindu herdsmen to Islam.
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BRICK KILN INDUSTRY IN PAKISTAN
March 11, 2023
Pakistan is home to one of the largest brick kiln industries in the world, with more than 18,000 brick kilns in operation across the country. These kilns are responsible for producing an estimated 60 billion bricks a year, which are used to build and construct homes. The workers in the brick kilns are one of the most vulnerable and marginalised groups in Pakistan. Most are unskilled laborers with little or no access to basic services such as health care, education and sanitation, and work in harsh and dangerous conditions. They work long hours, often up to 12 hours a day, and are paid very low wages, as little as US$3 a day. Many of them live on the site in temporary shelters that do not have adequate ventilation and are prone to fire and accidents. The use of child labour in the brick kiln industry is a major problem in Pakistan. According to a study by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), an estimated 4.2 million children are involved in child labour in Pakistan, many of them in the brick kiln industry. Coal is a primary source of fuel for brick kilns in Pakistan, but due to its high cost, kiln operators often turn to cheaper alternatives such as waste plastic, rubber, leather and medical waste. Unfortunately, the use of these materials produces a range of harmful pollutants. These include sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and heavy metals such as mercury, arsenic, chromium, lead and cadmium. These pollutants have adverse effects on human health and contribute to air pollution. They also contribute to long-term problems such as global warming and climate change.
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SURVA FOLK FEAST IN THE VILLAGES OF PERNIK REGION, BULGARIA
January 16, 2023
The Surva folk feast in Pernik region takes place each year on 13 and 14 January, marking the New Year according to the Julian calendar. In the evening of the first day, masquerade groups called Survakari head towards the village centre where they light fires, tease and play with the watching audience. Early the next morning, these groups consisting of men, women and children walk throughout the village visiting houses, in order to bring good luck and health, while the hosts await their arrival with meal and gifts. This custom is related to other traditions intended to scare away the evil spirits that are found throughout the Balkans, and that are known as Kukeri in Bulgaria.
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