LAHORE: Pakistan Academy of Letters former chairman Fakhar Zaman has rejected the federal government`s claim of giving the first cultural policy of the country.

In a statement here on Thursday, he said the first cultural policy was promulgated on Aug 31, 1995 by Benazir government and prepared by him as chairman of the National Council of History and Culture. Members of the culture committee included Begum Tahira Mazhar, Abdullah Malik, Hayat Ahmad Khan, Prof Masood, Dr MA Siddiqui, Abdullah Jamal Beni, Saleem Raz, Prof Aslam Syed, LA. Rehman, Iftikhar Arif, Ahmad Saleem and others.

The policy included,among other things, establishment of a film city in Islamabad, setting up of the National Drama Institute and National Art Gallery. There was a special emphasis on the development of the country`s film sector.

Mr Zaman said the National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA) in Karachi was also established in pursuance of 1995 cultural policy which remained intact till now.

He lamented that the federal information minister hardly knew the alphabet of culture and the document prepared by her must be a total confusion.

He said this was in keeping with the decency and ethics that the present government should have acknowledged the Benazir Bhutto government`s cultural policy.