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Sunday,
January 5, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Pervez’s
war rhetoric decried WINDOW ON PAKISTAN 5 Israeli
troops hurt in gun battle Second cloned baby born? |
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Pervez’s war rhetoric decried
Washington, January 4 In a letter to Mr Jamali, Mr Pallone, founder of the India Caucus, said: "As you know, members of Islamic fundamentalist parties, with both anti-American and anti-Indian platforms, were successful in the October parliamentary elections. In response to increased pressure from these groups, President Musharraf attempted to appease the Islamic parties with talks of a 'non-conventional' war with India." "Although I appreciate General Quereshi's clarification that Musharraf was not referring to nuclear arms, overall, the specific comments made by Musharraf do not seem to bode well for diplomacy between the two nations on Kashmir issue," he said. Pointing to “encouraging statements made” last month by Mr Jamali, Mr Pallone said he was hopeful that 2003 would mark a year of improved relations between India and Pakistan and in due course, peace and stability in the South Asian region. "I am encouraged by a few positive developments, particularly your (Jamali's) statement of intent to improve relations with India during your term in office," Mr Pallone said in his letter, adding: "I congratulate you on publicly expressing your willingness to work with New Delhi and I would hope that you aim to use your newly elected position to steer Pakistan in a positive direction. "Additionally, the recent transparent state elections in Kashmir and its newly elected government can perhaps play a role in helping India and Pakistan arrive at successful negotiations on the Kashmir issue," Mr Pallone stated. He observed that the resumption of a bilateral dialogue between New Delhi and Islamabad on the Kashmir dispute was essential for the two nations to achieve normal relations. He said his reflection of several recent events prior to the new year had led him to believe that 2003 had the potential for greater tensions between India and Pakistan. Mr Pallone said he felt that the recent release in Pakistan of two leaders of the Jaish-e-Muhammad, who were allegedly the masterminds behind the attack on the Indian Parliament House in December 2001, was cause for grave concern. Although these recent events were discouraging, I recognise several windows of opportunities for bilateral talks between India and Pakistan to come to fruition.
PTI |
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WINDOW ON
PAKISTAN Pakistan’s military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf feels elated. After installing his government at the national level and in the four provinces, he has declared, “We have successfully defeated our enemy without going to war”. That should give people of Pakistan a wonderful feeling. They have a brand new democracy and now their country has defeated the enemy, that is India, without firing single a shot. But they are not impressed. They feel the Army or no Army they are struck up with such questions as “waging a war for hundred years” and remaining mired in poverty. They also feel
condemned to live a less civilised life. Writing in Dawn, Ayaz Amir said, “Pakistan’s leader has pointed the way to the future. This is the way to fight all Indo-Pak wars: bluster and posturing followed by a declaration of victory. War colleges on both sides should take note of this.” Amir, one of the popular commentators in his country, does not agree that India and Pakistan were close to war. But he found that General Musharraf was sufficiently impressed by the Indian build-up to announce “a crackdown on extremist parties and declare a chocolate war on madarsas imparting religious instruction.” His argument is that it was the American pressure that worked. “The United States wanted Musharraf to address Indian concerns about ‘cross-border infiltration’ which, in a manner of speaking, he did. Training camps being run by some of the jihadi parties were shifted or closed. The danger having passed, General Musharraf is back to talking tough. Which I suppose makes sense because every commander is entitled to claim victory in a phoney war.” It is another matter that the two countries have fought three major wars and one smaller one in the past half a century. “Musharraf must therefore be complimented on his latest analysis. The Indians can take a leaf out of his book and also claim phantom victories. No better way to work towards a more civilized relationship,” Amir said sarcastically. Swaggering and posturing are natural to many politicians in this subcontinent and General Musharraf is no exception. Dawn’s columnist argued, “A civilized relationship with India is still far away but we could consider opting for a healthier trade competition. Across the world ‘Made in Pakistan’ should be a more attractive label than ‘Made in India’. But if Pakistan remains famous only for its begging bowl and its terrorism-friendly image (the curse of Zia-ul-Haq), what enemy can we claim to defeat by our superior strategy? If Indian secularism is fraying at the edges and the forces of communalism in the shape of the BJP are on the march, far from being dismayed by this development (what reason to be dismayed?) we should look upon it as an opportunity. We can look better in comparison. The more India slides into a vortex of hate and fanaticism the harder we should strive to turn Pakistan into a temple of tolerance and democracy and the economic powerhouse of South Asia. That’s the way to win victories, by being superior in the offices of civilization. But if to fanatics and idiots in yellow our only answer is fanatics and idiots in green, (saffronization vs mullaization), no point in sticking to the idea of playing to the tunes of others”. Some other newspapers had similar arguments. But in the blame game, they accused India of being an intolerant society. Daily Times took up the issue of bombing by the US Army in the frontier area of Pakistan and some clashes between the soldiers of the two armies’ worthy of a detailed comment. Najm Sethi in his comment said, “The reaction in Pakistan, given the new polarisation, has been instant. Reference is made to the unfair treatment of Pakistan by the United States in return for the assistance Pakistan had provided against terrorism, including the deployment of 70,000 troops along the border to flush out suspected Al-Qaeda terrorists. Public resentment over the treatment of Pakistanis in the United States and the arrest in Lahore of doctors for alleged complicity with Al-Qaeda has thus been compounded by the perception of Pakistan’s ‘servility’ towards the United States. However, Pakistan’s official version of the incident is still awaited. “Unfortunately, when this version comes out and exonerates the American patrol, or blames it on a ‘misunderstanding’, no credence is likely to be given to it. Such is the atmosphere in Pakistan today. In 1998, the American bombing of the Taliban training camps from the sea created a lot of alarm in Pakistan when a missile fell short and landed inside our territory. The most vociferous condemnation had then come from the leaders whose parties are now in power in the NWFP and Balochistan.” Clearly, neither the newly elected government nor the military ruler-cum-President of the country carries much credibility. Whatever little General Musharraf achieved first through some economic meausres and later by holding elections seems to have been wasted in the sheer power struggle. It was money and horse-trading among the legislators that helped
install the government at the national and state levels. General Musharraf’s latest claim fits into the scheme of things. |
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5 Israeli troops hurt in gun battle Jerusalem, January 4 The troops returned fire and wounded one of the attackers, the statement said. Jenin was the site of some of the worst clashes between Israelis and Palestinians in the 27-month-long uprising in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. In April, an eight-day battle killed 23 Israeli soldiers and 56 Palestinians.
AP |
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Second cloned baby born?
Washington, January 4 “It is a little girl. She is very well,” Boisselier said. “She is smaller than the first, at 2.7 kg,” Boisselier said, adding: “It was a natural birth. Her parents are two lesbians from the Netherlands.” |
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Nepal's ex-minister Kathmandu, January 4 Maoists kill 5 Kathmandu, January 4 |
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