In Pakistan today, Hollywood and Bollywood are the entertainment of choice. Television, the 100 and more cable channels, has replaced the once healthy preoccupation with sports in the country.

Remember the fervor when Pakistan won the gold medal for field hockey in the 1984 Olympics? Remember when playing and watching cricket were a national preoccupation.
Today, these healthy forms of entertainment have been replaced by lewd, crude images, which sadly, many Pakistanis passively digest. These are neither reflective of Pakistan's culture nor its aspirations.

You can help change this by patronizing a sports team in Pakistan at the village or city level. What this means is that you offer your moral and financial support to the team.

By supporting sports in Pakistan, you will be encouraging a form of entertainment that is not only healthy for the individuals involved, but can also encourage other Pakistanis to do the same. This is a much better option that a whole generations of Pakistanis sitting sedentary in front of the television.

If you're still not sold on the importance of sport, think about what a high priority it is given in North America where the interest in sports is encouraged and nurtured from when children are in elementary school all the way up to the adult professional level. In between there are various leagues and teams that represent school levels.

Start off by choosing a sport to patronize. Make it a family effort so you have more human and financial resources to do the job. But don't just look at the traditional sports in which Pakistanis have excelled like cricket, hockey and squash. Why not introduce a sport that isn't as popular, like baseball or basketball.

Another way you can help is by establishing a solid and fair system of rules. Unfortunately, like other sectors of Pakistani society, the sports arena is another place where cronyism, nepotism and corruption are all at play. Players on teams have been chosen not on the basis of merit or athletic skill. Instead they have been chosen because of connections or other similar corruption.

By establishing and maintaining a corruption-free athletic team, not only will you be ensuring good sportsmanship, but you may also be revolutionizing Pakistan's deteriorating sports culture. Sadly, there are few honest institutions left today. But your sports team can set a positive example.

Another area in which a good sports team can help is by actively encouraging physical exercise. Players, through their example of great athletic skill and performance, can set an example that may influence young people to become more physically fit, exercise, and even join team sports.

Sports teams are also an excellent way to build patriotism in a country. This is seen clearly in events like the Olympics. When Pakistan won the gold medal for field hockey in 1984, the pride and joy of this triumph resonated around the world. Pakistani, whether in Pakistan, Canada or the United States beamed with happiness and pride as they watched the team score the winning goal. It was truly a great moment for Pakistan.

Finally, audience participation in sports is much more healthy than if they become couch potato consumers of Hollywood and Bollywood. At least they won't be seeing the perverse images flashing across their television sets. Instead, they'll see examples of players applying ambition, discipline, commitment, hard work and a love for Pakistan.

Date/Time Last Modified: 6/17/2002 3:48:45 PM

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