On March 23rd, Consul General Moin Ul Haque generously donated $2000 towards the continued renovation of Pakistan House. For those of you that attended our March 23rd event you probably noticed some significant changes, in particular the ceiling and fresh paint on the interior walls.

We are approximately 85% completed with only the floor and in-house sound system left to be done. It is our intention to have Pakistan House up and running fully by the end of the year and in a position where it can be utilized fully by the community as a whole. Please help us achieve this goal by donating towards this important cause.

Pakistani Canadian Blood Donor Camp: Saturday March 29th, 2008

Surrey Blood Donor Clinic: #10 6830 King George Highway from 9 am to 3:30 pm

Contact: Afzal Malik at 604-518-4459 or Arif Sheikh at 604-518-7867 to book your appointment

Become a Muslim Foster Parent: There is a dire need in our community for Muslim Foster Parents. Situations have arisen where Muslim children are placed in non-Muslim homes with disastrous results. With over 100,000 Muslims in B.C. only 1 Muslim Foster Home has been registered to date. This is not enough. Please consider becoming a foster parent.

Contact: Waqar Ahmad at 604-729-1009 or David Daud Ali at 604-525-7194

Demographic Survey of Pakistanis in British Columbia: This initiative has been spearheaded by the Office of the Consul General of Pakistan to Vancouver. Survey forms were distributed at our March 23rd event. If you have a form and wish to submit it you can mail it to the following address:

Consul General of Pakistan
1444 - 400 Burrard Street
Vancouver, B.C. V6C-3G2

All information is kept in strict confidence by the Consul General’s Office. Please take the time to fill out these forms and submit them. It is vitally important that an accurate reflection of the number of Pakistanis residing in B.C. is established as well as their individual skill sets. If you did not receive a form you can download a PDF version by clicking the link below:

Demographic Survey of Pakistanis in B.C.

Launch of New Pakistani TV Show: Kal Kahan - Ab Yahan produced and hosted by Adeel Suhrwardy launched on Sunday March 23rd at 2:30 pm and will air every Sunday and Wednesday at 2:30 pm on Channel M.

To contact Adeel call 778-321-0176

Over 1000 people came to Celebrate Pakistan’s Republic Day at Pakistan House. An inspring and emotional National Anthem and Flag Raising performance by 17 local Pakistani Children, dressed in Pakistani, Canadian and Aboriginal dress kicked off the event and energized the capacity crowd with energy and emotion.

Dinner was served prior to the formal program beginning. Speeches from President Farrukh Alam, Pakistan House Chairman Sabir Ali Pannun and Counsel General Moin Ul Haque preceded the performances of our two featured performers.

AKS featuring frontman Ali Zaidi of Sohni Dharti Pakistan started off with some National Songs to bring the crowd to their feet. A few technical glitches hampered the performance somewhat but the crowd was there to have a good time and a good time was had all around. AKS would come back to an encore performance to round out the event and finish on a high.

Having flown in that morning from Pakistan, Lawyer turned Pakistani Hip-Hop Artist, Omer Inayat was struck by the magnitude of the event and the crowd that had gathered. He repeatedly thanked the crowd for their enthusiasm especially the throngs of youngsters gathered at the foot of the stage, reacting to every lyric and motion. Going through his hits and a few variations of his hits Omer fed off the enthusiam of the audience and performed a spirited 7 song set.

As with all events, this one could not have been put together without the tireless efforts of a mountain of volunteers and sponsors. A very special thanks to the children and parents who perfected the Pakistani and Canadian National Anthems and to the volunteers that brought Pakistan House to life. And of course, thank you for attending and being part of a ground breaking and awe-inspiring event.

Photos taken by Amir and Yasir Mirani

Pakistan-Canada Association and the Pakistani Community of the Lower Mainland are deeply shocked and saddened at the assassination of Pakistan Peoples Party Chairperson (PPP) and Two-Time former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto after a political rally in the Punjab city of Rawal Pindi at the hands of an apparent suicide bomber. The Late Benazir Bhutto was a tireless worker for the benefit of Pakistan and made the ultimate sacrifice to bring moderation and democracy back to the people of Pakistan. Whether or not you supported her politically her death has struck a cord with all Pakistanis and it is only after her tragic death that her importance to Pakistan can now be truly felt. It is our wish that a full investigation into her assassination be held and those responsible be brought to justice. Not unlike the Ghandi family in India and the Kennedy family in the United States, the Bhutto family has been a force politically and a tragic reminder of what happens when one stands up for their beliefs. Pakistan-Canada Association joins the people of Pakistan in a state of mourning and pray to Almighty Allah to forgive any shortcomings of the Late Benazir Bhutto and give her a place in Heaven, Amen.

A Press Conference will be held at Pakistan House (12059 88th Avenue, Surrey) on Friday December 28th at 3:00 pm.

Please note that our Eid Mela has been cancelled because Eid may be celebrated on Wednesday December 19th.

Please download our information flyer with full details of Consul General Services being provided in Vancouver starting December 2007.

Thursday October 11th at Pakistan House - Chand Raat

Eid Day - Namaaz at Pakistan House and Vancouver Jamia Masjid (8 am)

Sunday October 14th - Eid Milan Party at Pakistan House: Doors open at 6:30 pm, tickets are $10 per person (children 5 and under free)

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful Inshallah, the Jamia Vancouver Masjid will host Iftari during the Blessed Month of Ramadan.

The funds and/or in-kind donations needed to cover costs for hosting the Iftari at the Vancouver Masjid for the whole 30 days is approximately $18,000.00. Our food costs per person is at $5 to $7 per person x 75-100 people.

We have received commitments for donations and in-kind sponsorships to cover the first 10-12 days and we urgently request our individual community members to fill the gap to ensure that we are able to provide Iftari this and every year Inshallah. We also urgently require local volunteers living in the Vancouver area to assist in preparation, set up and clean up. Please email Br. Haroon at khanproperties@gmail.com to schedule for volunteering or if your family would like to sponsor a day among the thirty days for $500.00 per evening.

May Allah SWT reward you for your kind contributions during the most blessed month of Ramadan.

For further information, please contact:

Br. Haroon Khan: (604) 720-8054
Br. Jamil Chaudhry: (604) 21-3717
Br. Salim Karim: (604) 874-0160
Br. Sadiq (604) 874-5849
Br. Tariq Tyab: (604) 715-4096

Jazakala

Sunday August 19th will go down as a day to remember for many in the Pakistani community. The day long mela brought throngs of people to Pakistan House, many for the first time. For the first time the flags of both Pakistan and Canada were raised and flew proudly over Pakistan House and to top it off, Salman Ahmad of Junoon brought the crowd to an absolute frenzy with his energetic and patriotic music.

Thank you to everyone for attending this event and thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make this event a success.

On Sunday August 19th starting at 1:00 pm on the grounds of Pakistan House, Pakistan-Canada Association will be organizing a free outdoor Mela for all to enjoy. Food, clothing, jewellery, mehndi and much more will be available. Over 20 stalls will be setup outside Pakistan House (12059 88th Avenue, Surrey) and will be running throughout the day as part of Pakistan-Canada Association’s Independence Day celebration. In the evening inside Pakistan House, our very special guest and friend, Salman Ahmed (from the legendary Pakistani band Junoon) will be here to perform for us and join PCA in celebrating Pakistan’s 60 years of Independence. Tickets for this tremendous musical event are only $10 per person. More information can be found by calling Farrukh Alam at 604-276-2999 or Raza Mirani at 778-859-9469.

If you would like to book a stall for our outdoor Mela or would like to help volunteer at our event please call Farrukh Alam by Wednesday August 15th or e-mail us directly at info@pakcan.com.