Pakistan TV host Aamir Liaquat Hussain to audience: Who wants to win a baby?
July 30, 2013 -- Updated 0924 GMT (1724 HKT)
Pakistani TV show gives away babies
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Pakistani game show gives away unwanted babies
- Childless parents received baby girls during live broadcasts
- Critics say it's a publicity stunt to win Ramadan ratings battle
- Another newborn due to be given away in coming days
TV host Aamir Liaquat
Hussain presented baby girls to two unsuspecting couples during his
show, which is broadcast live for seven hours a day during the month of
Ramadan.
"I was really shocked at
first. I couldn't believe we were being given this baby girl," said
Suriya Bilqees, now a mother of a two-week old. "I was extremely happy."
Another baby, a boy, is due to be given to another couple at some point in the coming days.
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The show's host has been
described as a religious scholar, TV megastar and even a sex symbol. His
heady mix of religion and entertainment is often followed by
controversy.
"At Christmas there's
Santa Claus to give everyone gifts, it's important for Christians. For
us Ramadan is a really special time so it's really important to make
people happy and reward them," said Hussain.
His show -- Aman Ramazan
-- has been dubbed Pakistan's version of The Price Is Right, with
members of the 500-strong audience receiving prizes in exchange for
answering questions on the Quran.
The giveaway bonanza includes motorbikes, microwave ovens, washing machines and fridges.
He also cooks while men sing Islamic hymns and discusses religion with children in a garden full of rabbits, snakes and goats.
The baby girls given away on the show were found by an NGO, the Chhipa Welfare Association, which says it receives up to 15 abandoned babies a month.
"Our team finds babies
abandoned on the street, in garbage bins -- some of them dead, others
mauled by animals. So why not ensure the baby is kept alive and gets a
good home?" said Ramzan Chhipa, who runs the organization.
"We didn't just give the
baby away. We have our own vetting procedure. This couple was already
registered with us and had four or five sessions with us."
We've created a symbol of peace and love, that's our show's theme
-- to spread love. I'm setting an example. Giving a childless couple an
abandoned child
TV host Aamir Liaquat Hussain
TV host Aamir Liaquat Hussain
But, the couple didn't
know they would be handed a newborn when they were invited to take part
in the show and paperwork was not processed before the live broadcast.
Adoption is not
officially recognized in Pakistan and there is no adoption law. The
couple will have to apply for guardianship at a family court.
Some viewers praised the show's baby giveaway but others declared it a publicity stunt.
"Pakistan wake up," Shamim Mahmood wrote on the NGO's Facebook page. "Babies are not trophies to be handed to just anyone."
Hussain says it isn't a
gimmick to win ratings during the Islamic holy month. He believes his
show is unifying a fractured nation, plagued by sectarian violence,
religious intolerance and terrorism.
"These are the
disenfranchised babies that grow up to be street kids and used for
suicide bombing attacks. We have tried to show an alternative," he said.
"Telling people to take
these kids off the rubbish on the streets, raise them and make them a
responsible citizen, not to destroy society through terrorism," he said.
The show has proved
extremely popular, breaking ratings records and may be extended beyond
its Ramadan run. He is also planning another program where the audience
will be from the minority Hindu, Sikh and Christian communities.
"We've created a symbol
of peace and love, that's our show's theme -- to spread love. I'm
setting an example. Giving a childless couple an abandoned child,"
Hussain said.
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