by Wang Qi

The author delivered a speech on the Fifth "China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Media Forum"

BEIJING, Dec.5 (China Economic Net) - I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude for having the opportunity to attend the Fifth "China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Media Forum" and come back to Pakistan two years after I left the position here. To me, Pakistan is another home.

From 2013 to 2017, I spent 4 years and 11 months in Islamabad, celebrating the Spring Festival, the Ramadan, and the Eid al-Adha five times each. As a journalist with the longest tenure since the inception of the CRI Journalist Station in Islamabad under China Media Group 40 years ago, I was privileged to witness the progress of the CPEC from a concept to speedy implementation.

Taking photos with local kids in Taxila, Pakistan in May 2016

The "Story of Chuaner" in Islamabad

As a "Pakistan hand" and an epicure, I recalled my memory by stimulating the taste buds almost the moment I came back home. Peshawarmore, a pashtun settlement in Islamabad, is also a popular location to Chinese in Pakistan. Shinwari barbecue, a flame, and smoke born cuisine, is made of lambs prepared on the day and seasoned with salt only. The meat is roasted over an open flame for about 45 minutes and coated with oil made from the mutton's tails. Its golden roasted skin preserves the juicy meat, so you can have an original and savory taste of the mutton.

Photo:mutton tikka

Photo: liver tikka

Fellows holding fast to their positions in Pakistan satisfied all my wishes. We has supper at a Shinwari restaurant that had the shabbiest facade on the street of Peshawarmore, which was the first Shinwari restaurant I was brought to in 2013. When the roasted meat and naan were served, I urged my fellows to take a group photo by the fireplace. Plenty of chai and lassi were served, and the only pity was that the waiter had tried but didn't find lemonsoda.

Group photo of the author (third from the right) and his "comrades" holding fast to their positions in Pakistan

The liver tikka was served in colored newspaper, which was a privilege that would not be offered to others in this high-end internet-popular restaurant targeting Chinese customers. Coated with lamb tail oil, the liver was appetizing with the characteristic flavor of mutton, and was a fabulous match for spicy onions. The meat was juicy even after it was roasted for over 40 minutes. Mutton karahi was served while it’s still bubbling with hot steam, representing a genuine flavor that I recommended the most. And I was too obsessed with the barbecue to savor the naan the moment it was served after baking. Though I was exhausted by the jet lag, it was apparent I smiled from the bottom of my heart in the photo.

Shinwari mutton tikka marked my "Story of Chuaner" in Islamabad. It had been roasted for five years, pinned with a number of stories, seasoned with happiness and sorrow, and then tasted and appreciated by people with interesting souls. Resident in Pakistan was not easy, but we all talked about the happy moments after residing here for a period.

Yesterday Once More

I asked my colleague to record this reunion moment when I was back to CRI Islamabad Bureau.

The dark one was Munu, a clever border collie. It was 12 years old and always shied away from my kisses. The light one was Aliff. I raised it from a baby dog, and we were very close to each other. It just turned one year old when I was relieved from my position. Munu recognized me at first, and Aliff did so after hesitating for seconds. They lay down before me one by one, showing their belly to me. It was trust.

The employee Ali hugged me tightly. I could see the excitement in his eyes. With a potbelly, he fetched some milk powder and tea from his cabin and prepared chai for me. Then he picked a bag of corncobs and said I should bring the tasty corn home for my parents. He had never taken a plane before and had no idea that such produce was forbidden from entry. However, I didn't want to let him down. So I brought the corncobs with me and gave them to my colleagues later.

Ali had been working in the journalist station for almost 20 years

At the Pakistan Tennis Association, the coach Moin hugged me, pointed at my chest and said, "Is it dream or reality?" I also met the twin boys who played tennis with me before. They were 13 now and almost as tall as me. They stuck to their career dream by practicing five hours a day and six days a week. I also visited Hongding Chinese Food Restaurant where I had dined countless times. The boss Tang was thinner than before, but he still hugged me firmly. Once we went fishing together. I upset the boat,causing both of us to fall into the water. His Huawei mobile was ruined but he never blamed it on me.

I had left Pakistan for two years. The chopping guy at the Shinwari restaurant in Peshawarmore still wore his characteristic felt cap and held a knife with his toes. Fellows in the gem stores, scarf shops and leather product stores in the F6 market attracted customers with their non-fluent Chinese as usual. The faithful at Shah Faisal Mosque from every part of Pakistan still regarded foreigners as rare animals and were never bored with asking for a photo. It seemed that I had returned to the past. Everything was still the same. I was familiar with every grass and every tree here. It was like a dream in which I just left my position in Pakistan.

Shah Faisal Mosque, the sixth largest mosque in the world

Speaking for the CPEC

After we departed from the airport and got on the coach, I became a talkative guide. "The road is dark, because of power shortage." "You can't see any tall buildings, because most of the buildings in Islamabad are villas. It looks like Canberra and Brasilia. "There are few scenic spots. The history of Islamabad is less than 60 years. If possible, you can visit Lahore. That's the "Soul of Pakistan". Or the North. Five of the 14 mountains above 8km are there..."

I know few new visitors are impressed by Pakistan. However, a mother never looks ugly to her son. I spent five years here and had rich experiences. I gradually fall in love with this country. It respects and loves China. After the Wenchuan Earthquake, Pakistan donated 22,260 tents to China—That's all its strategic reserve. I'd like to show its best side to you. And I'm willing to participate in and maintain the result of the friendship between China and Pakistan in the new era—the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

This time, we went back to Pakistan to receive "the CPEC Communication Awards". I like this award very much because it stands for the starting point in the south of the CPEC, Gwadar. It looks like a huge anchor. I visited this small fishing village by the Arabian Sea three times. I witnessed great changes. Tea turned sweet from bitter. The signal turned from 2G to 4G. The landscape turned from dusty to green. And the 25- hectare Free Trade Zone grew out of nothing.

The author (second from the right) was awarded "the CPEC Communication Awards" at the 5th "China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Media Forum".

Gwadar Port looks like an anchor

The author (second from the right) was awarded the CPEC Communication Awards at the 5th China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Media Forum

Gwadar Port, the starting point in the south of the CPEC

As a former citizen of Islamabad, I'd like to speak for the CPEC. My experience: In 2013, the power of the capital was cut off for one hour each hour. When I left in 2017, the power was seldom cut off. The old Islamabad Airport was rated as one of the ten worst airports in the world. This time, when I arrived at the new Islamabad Airport constructed by CSCEC, it seemed I arrived at Beijing Daxing International Airport.

A priority project of the CPEC—Sahiwal Coal-fired Power Station

The new Islamabad Airport constructed by CSCEC

There are more cars. And the roads become wider. But wild boars and monkeys by the road are not reduced. I went to Khunjerab Port via the Karakoram Highway (KKH) built by China Road & Bridge Corporation (CRBC). The highway was smooth and full of sceneries. The multi-phase reconstruction and expansion project of the Karakoram Highway not only connects the CPEC, but also the world-class scenery in North Pakistan with the outside.

The photo above was taken in July 2013. The author was in front of Tunnel 1 of the re-alignment of KKH at Attaabad Lake. The photo below was taken in October 2017. The author was in front of the completed Tunnel 3.

In 2013, my main task was to report the frequent terrorist attacks here. Since 2015, along with the implementation of the CPEC, boom attacks have reduced. And I dared to go outside. The whole Pakistan has reached a consensus that terrorism and poverty are not their symbols. The CPEC is a once-in-a-century chance. No one can damage this corridor and the modernization of Pakistan.

China-Pakistan friendship never rusts

The CPEC is a flagship project and a "wind vane" of the "Belt and Road" Initiative. In the past six years, it has benefited Pakistan greatly. However, its progress has been interrupted from time to time. Due to the conflicts of interest among parties and areas of Pakistan, especially the difficulties created by overseas forces, doubts about the corridor are emerging recently, such as "Debt Trap", "Chinese Colonialism", and "environment pollution". And an anti-China discourse system gradually takes shape.

China-Pakistan friendship never rusts! In order to create a favorable public opinion environment for the CPEC, Chinese and Pakistani media are obliged to enhancing mutual communication, providing more valuable information, and telling stories about China and Pakistan to the people of two countries. And we will be a witness of the all-weather strategic cooperation between China and Pakistan and serve as a guard and promoter of this relationship.

Hu Yaozong was Deputy General Manager of Gwadar Free Trade Zone. It was in Gwadar Port in 2017. He had only seen his one-year-old son a few times. With tears in his eyes, he told me, "The Free Trade Zone is like our child. When it grows up and starts to walk, I can go home to hold my son's hands." On November 13, Hu Yaozong sent me a message. It read, "I've worked in Gwadar for four years. Phase I and investment attraction of the Free Trade Zone have been completed. All tasks are on the track. The governments of both countries are satisfied with the work. ...My family needs me. My child needs his dad's companion. I've applied with my leader to return home next year."

I long to return to Pakistan to record such figures and stories.

A group photo of the author and students of Gwadar Faqeer Primary School supported by China taken in March 2017