This photo taken on Nov. 12, 2023 shows a football match aimed at raising people's awareness of preserving the cultural heritage in Bamyan Province, Afghanistan. (Photo by Ziaodin Azad/Xinhua)
by Abdul Haleem
BAMYAN, Afghanistan, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Inhaling fresh air to take a sigh of relief, Afghan teenager Atiqullah Amiri muttered that playing football at the giant Buddha relics site could inspire onlookers to preserve the cultural heritage and the monuments in central Afghanistan's Bamyan Province.
"We have arranged a football competition on the dusty ground in front of the Buddha to attract the attention of people living around and the people of the world to protect the cultural heritage," football player Amiri told Xinhua.
A group of youngsters backed by a team of Chinese archaeologists and Bamyan University held a football competition at the relics site on Sunday.
Aimed at raising awareness on preserving the cultural heritage, the activity inspires more young people to join.
The picturesque Bamyan province with its beautiful landscape and countless historical monuments has been gradually regaining its popularity as a tourist destination since peace has been gradually returning over the past two years.
The number of tourists including foreigners, according to local officials, has been on a constant rise and many tourists are eager to visit the historic Buddha site in Bamyan and also enjoy the pleasant weather and captivating Band-e-Amir Lake.
"Since the Buddha site is a worldwide popular cultural heritage and registered by UNESCO, it is important for us to hold the football competition in front of one of the statues, and we want to send a message to the world that we will protect our cultural heritage," another player, Sayed Hassan, told Xinhua.
Although it was dynamited more than two decades ago, the site of the giant Buddhas is still popular and attracts hundreds of thousands of domestic and foreign tourists monthly to visit the damaged sculptures and the monks' caves located around.
"Holding a football match as one of the cultural activities in front of the site of a Buddha or the other one is beneficial for us to attract the attention of people around the globe towards cultural heritage preservation," Hasan added.
The cultural heritage situated in Bamyan is among the most valuable monuments of the world, said Mohammad Taqqi Taqadosi, an organizer of the football match, who is a professor at Bamyan University and member of Bamyan Guardians, an entity backing efforts to protect the cultural heritages in Bamyan.
"Our programs are based on giving awareness and education. Like in naan classes (students receive bread in return for attending their class on cultural heritages), we visit schools in villages and discuss with people the importance of cultural heritages and it is an important topic on our agenda," Taqadosi said. ■
This photo taken on Nov. 12, 2023 shows a football match aimed at raising people's awareness of preserving the cultural heritage in Bamyan Province, Afghanistan. (Photo by Ziaodin Azad/Xinhua)
