Embassies of Argentine, Indonesia, Nepal, Russian, America and a local hotel hosted a reception on Tuesday in honour of Samina and Mirza Ali Baig on their successful completion of adventure diplomacy expedition.
In May 2013, the Pakistan siblings Samina Baig and Mirza Ali Baig conquered the Mount Everest. After the pair returned from Nepal, a local hotel founded the Adventure Diplomacy Group (ADG) to help turn the sibling dream of becoming the world's first siblings to conquer seven of the world's highest peaks across seven continents into reality.
The group consists of embassies of Argentine Republic, Republic of Indonesia, Nepal, Russian Federation, the United States of America along with a local hotel aimed at facilitating and sponsoring Samina and Mirza journey across the world to promote peace, gender equality, women empowerment, youth development and environmental awareness. The ADG facilitated all the logistical aspects of their travel and on November 30, 2013, they set off from Pakistan on an epic eight months journey.
The pair climbed the Mount Aconcagua (6962m) in Argentina, Mount Vinson Massif (4892m) in Antarctica, Mount Kilimanjaro (5895m) in Tanzania, Carstensz Pyramid (4884m) in Indonesia, Mount Denali (6168m) in the United States of America and Mount Elbrus (5642m) in Russia. They conquered their last summit on July 24, 2014, at 9:00 am at the Central Asian time. Samina became the first Pakistani woman and the youngest Muslim woman to achieve this feat.
The reception was attended by diplomats, government officials, including Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and other from different walks of life. Speaking on the occasion Advisor Sartaj Aziz said the successful expedition of two Pakistani siblings will not only be good for international wellbeing but will also play effective role to encourage youth across the world. He said that to make such achievement, it require great determination. "These kind of activities bring countries together and promote peace," he said.
US Ambassador Richard Olson said Samina and Mirza Ali Baig were role models for young people, whether in Pakistan or across the globe. They have demonstrated that through hard work, determination and sheer will, one can achieve even the most daunting feat. "Conquering the highest peaks in seven continents, Mount Mckinley, the highest peak in North America, is an impressive accomplishment", he said.
Bharat Raj Paudyal, Ambassador of Nepal, said the mountaineering was a tough challenge anywhere in the world and it become tougher both physically and logistically when you aim for the highest point on earth. "By their perseverance and commitment they have achieved something that serves as an inspiration to the youth of Pakistan," he said. Rodolfo Martin Saravia, ambassador of Argentine, speaking on the occasion said Samina became the first Pakistani and first Muslim woman to climb the seven summits in record time. They started this expedition in November 2013 by climbing the mount Aconcagua in Argentina, the highest peak in South America, he said.
On the occasion, Samina Ali said the journey was initiated to project the soft image of Pakistan and to promote the message of women's empowerment, gender equality and environmental sustainability for the people living in and around the awe-inspiring, rugged mountains of Pakistan. Mirza said the journey had reaffirmed his belief in the fact that all dreams were achievable given passion and dedication.
He spoke about his sister strength and courage over the past months. "The main objective of the journey was to promote woman empowerment and to connect people through mountains," he said. The picture of mountaineers was displayed for sale on the occasion and the earning of the pictures will be donated to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) of North Waziristan Agency. The ambassadors of Nepal, Russia and CEO of the local hotel also lauded their significant achievement as great step forward for Pakistan.