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AS is being envisioned — Pakistan and India get into a
new epoch of their awful history — today by kicking off a
dialogue process after a fissure of almost five years — albeit
amid doubts and uncertainties.
To lead the elfin in place of
pinnacle-level talks to clutch a pragmatic n’ bona fide goal,
an Indian delegation has touched the tarmac of Islamabad — with
a bureaucrat Arun Singh, Joint Secretary in the External
Affairs Ministry — as its’ leader. He is to interact with his
Pakistani counterparts, Jalil Abbas Jilani, Director of South
Asia in Pakistan’s Foreign Office.
During the two-day meeting, both sides will prepare an agenda
for discussion between their bosses — foreign secretaries Riaz
Khokhar of Pakistan and Shashank of India — on Wednesday.
On the agenda would be a mixture of items — overtly the Issue of
Jammu and Kashmir that has been at the spirit of five decades
of tensions between India and Pakistan. Other
topics — perceptibly — would be terrorism, peace and security in
the region.
But realists are skeptical because of the impending general
elections in India. With this perception, I think India will
try to keep it low profile. I feel so as the Indian Parliament
is already stand dissolved — where after Atal Bihari
Vajpayee — virtually — has become a caretaker Prime Minister and
by all legitimacies lost the mandate to take any critical
decision vis-à-vis Pakistan.
Hence for the moment, these can be only talks for talks. As a
matter of fact Pakistan shall have to wait and see the
election outcome (in India) for an authentic composite
dialogue.
Amid such a scenario — backed by India’s antagonistic
track-record with abrupt swings as its’ podium , an aver by
Pakistan’s diplomatic stalwarts that ‘the two sides would try
to come up with some concrete recommendations on contentious
issues to pave the way for higher-level talks likely after the
formation of a new government in India’ — prima facie seems
murky.
Though Pakistan has been assured by India that the elections’
upshot would have no pessimistic impact on the bilateral
dialogue, a lot of eye-brows still stand lifted, explicitly
due to India’s devious, cute n’ cunning mindset — blatantly
indexed in the folios of the history of this limb of the orb.
To add on, the dazzling Christina Rocca, US Assistant
Secretary of State (South Asia) made a abrupt dash to New
Delhi on Friday to — what is being disseminated to the
globe — give a hand to the ‘historical peace talks. The elegant
lady, virtually an authority on South Asian affairs — opted to
interact with Foreign Secretary Shashank, Deputy to National
Security Adviser, Satish Chandra, and senior officials as also
with American Ambassador to Pakistan, the glamorous Nancy
Powell.
Nevertheless, a US embassy spokesman said, "The visit was
planned for sometime. This has nothing to do with the
composite dialogue scheduled between India and Pakistan
beginning February-16." It was elucidated that Nancy Powell
was there on a stopover on her way for a vacation. US
Ambassador-designate to India Robert Mulford
was — simultaneously — present during ‘the consultations.’
What ever the motives of this setting — it becomes apparent — the
world, specifically the United States is uptight on the
current situation in South Asia n’ wish a serene environ in
this realm — where India n’ Pakistan are situated.
Yet paradoxically, as the parleys are being recommenced to
deal with their outstanding issues including the Kashmir
dispute, the Indian occupation forces have mounted state
terrorism in occupied Kashmir.
A propos dozens of innocent persons were killed during the
past week by the Indian troop’s hideous operations in the IHK.
Any-way, the resumption of formal talks between the South
Asian nuclear rivals after a gap of almost half-a-decade is — no
doubt — a positive development for peace in the region, yet it
would have been apposite, if this process could have brought
the Indian tyrannical n’ despotic era in the held-State to an
instantaneous end.
Pakistan had persistently sought dialogue with India for
peaceful resolution of the Kashmir and other outstanding
issues between the two countries. It’s, of course, a substance
of satisfaction that wisdom has eventually dawned on the
Indian leadership to shun inhibitions and to enter into
dialogue with Pakistan.
The initiative of President
Gen Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee
to address the Kashmir issue, which is recognized as South
Asia’s nuclear flashpoint will, however, bear fruit only if
truthful efforts are made with perseverance for the
restitution of the Kashmiris’ legitimate right to freedom and
liberty.
There ought to be no
illusion that South Asia’s peace hinges on the settlement of
the Kashmir dispute. Peace in South Asia is certainly an
essential prerequisite for progress and development of the two
countries.
Yet the aching fact which
stick with is Indian state terrorism in the under duress
held-part of the charismatic State which remains unabated
despite the initiation of the Pak-India talks. It has
relatively escalated in recent weeks in magnitude n’ enormity
as well as dimension n’ extent due to the mounting military
operations against unarmed Kashmiris.
Let it, however, be
understood that there can’t be peace amidst oppression. India
must stop military operations in held-Kashmir, enforce
ceasefire even against the Mujahideen [freedom fighters as
has stipulated by the Kashmiri leaders during their meeting
with Indian Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani and drastically
scale down its military might — composed of intruders — of a part
of the Paradise on Earth to create congenial atmosphere for
the Indo-Pak dialogue.
India should act in
response — in a positive way — to the Kashmiri leadership’s demand
without any ploy or impediment if — at all it is in fact sincere
to promote peace with Pakistan. The talks ought to begin with
a message of hope for the Kashmiri people that their
melancholies and agonies are about to end and that will
reflect their sagacious aspires for the accomplishment of
their birth right of self-determination — evaporating the
Pandora’s Box, the derivation of subjugation and brutalities
unleashed by the Indian occupation forces in IHK.
And finally, we would like
to remind — both India n’ Pakistan — to keep in mind the logical
n’ legitimate call of the Kashmiri people for their
participation at the zenith-level parleys to make sure that
such a course is really result-oriented, lest it meets the
same fate — which fetched every facet archived at Tashkent,
Simla n’ even Agra to 180 degree pose — symbolized as zilch or
in other words catalogued as U-turn — all such jinxed episodes
because of Indian swindles n’ fiddles.
© 2004 Mumtaz Hamid
Rao-Pakistan Times |
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