M A I N   N E W S

India, Pak MPs for peace talks
Vajpayee sends message for cooperation
Muhammad Najeeb

Islamabad, August 10
The two-day conference of opinion makers from Pakistan and India opened here today on a positive note, with politicians from both sides urging the continuation of official and unofficial talks to ensure sustainable peace in the region.

“The meeting and the themes for discussion are a forceful reiteration of the popular desire in both our countries for a normal, peaceful, friendly and cooperative relationship,” Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee said in a message that was read out at the inaugural session.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi also sent a message wishing the conference success, as did former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.

A 59-member Indian delegation arrived here last night after a brief stay in Lahore, pledging to create an atmosphere conducive to talks between the two countries.

Vajpayee, in his message, said, “Our two peoples, at different levels and in their own ways, have contributed further meaning and content to my initiative from Srinagar on April 18, to once again extend hand of friendship to Pakistan.”

Rajya Sabha Member Balbir Punj, of the BJP, read out the message.

Former Bihar Chief Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav, who stole the show by his witty remarks during his speech at the inaugural session, took Mr Vajpayee’s sentiments forward.

“We are here to convey a message of love and peace to Pakistan. We are here to tell the world that we are the same. The very place where we are right now is the place where we parted years ago. We are not different,” he said.

All those who spoke at the inaugural session sounded optimistic about creating an atmosphere of trust and friendship that could ultimately resolve all conflicts between both the countries.

“We don't need any third party. We should come up with our own solution to end our disputes," Maulana Fazl-ur Rehman, chief of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, said in his speech.

Former minister Ram Jethmalani, who heads the Kashmir Committee, said India and Pakistan should resolve their differences on their own. But at the same time, he said, he would not oppose mediation on Kashmir.

Later talking to journalists, he said there was no harm in inviting a facilitator to negotiate on Kashmir and other issues. It did not matter if it were the USA, Russia or China that played the mediator. What was important was that problems should be resolved, Mr Jethmalani contended.

Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, president of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid-e-Azam, said any peace process that did not take Kashmir into account would be useless.

“We cannot resolve smaller disputes unless we decide on the major issue,” he said in his address.

Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in her message said it was important to include Kashmiris in any formal or informal discussions between the two countries.

National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain, the chief guest at the inaugural session, said he firmly believed “legislators can and must lead the way in the peace process”.

He was of the view that South Asian nations were facing a serious economic crisis that could be overcome if there was peace in the region. Mr Hussain later hosted a lunch for the delegates.— IANS