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Bali blasts again Anytime, anywhere Meghalaya firing |
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After the Vienna vote
Purchased smile
India’s vote on Iran a ‘pleasant surprise’ Managing disasters Delhi Durbar
From the pages of
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Bali blasts again The suicide bombings at crowded restaurants in the Indonesian island resort of Bali on Saturday, claiming at least 19 lives, is yet another grim reminder of the unrelenting threat of global terrorism. Evidently, terrorists have established a well-oiled network in this East Asian country and appear to be in a position to strike at will. Surprisingly, few people knew about them before they attacked a Bali nightclub in 2002, killing over 200 tourists, mostly Australians and Britons. The Jemaah Islamiyah, a fundamentalist outfit suspected to have been behind the terrorist attacks in Indonesia, was brought under the government scanner with the arrest of its chief, Abu Bakar Bashir. But in March, 2005, he was sentenced to a mere two and a half years in jail, which raised doubts about the Indonesian resolve to confront terrorism head-on. Terrorists hit at their targets, mostly Western tourists, in 2003 and 2004 also, but in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta. This should have alerted the government to tighten the security measures at Bali and the other places popular with tourists. Reports, on the contrary, suggest that the government of Mr Susilo Bambang Yodhoyono was not as vigilant as it ought to have been. This is a serious lapse. Thanks to official complacency, President Yodhoyono has dealt a severe blow not only to his country’s tourism industry but also to the cause of security in the entire East Asian region. No government in a terrorism-affected country can afford to treat the problem in a casual manner. Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaida is believed to have its cells in Indonesia, but terrorism is known to have been there even before the birth of this group. The East Asian region, specially Indonesia and the Philippines, have a number of home-grown outfits with a record of violence. This offers a climate that can be exploited by Al-Qaida and other terrorist organisations. Whatever the background or the factors behind the present Indonesian condition, it is a serious threat to stability and growth in the region and it must be dealt with resolutely. |
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Anytime, anywhere The number of mobile-phone users globally has doubled during the last three years, and the latest figures show that there are over two billion connections in a world of 6.5 billion people. It took the new technology 20 years to reach the billion mark in 2002. The growth has been so exponential that new markets have to be found, and Nokia, the numero uno vendor, estimates that the next billion will take over five years or more. The ubiquitous mobile now transcends cultures and geographical boundaries; the developed and the developing world. New growth is now expected in the less developed markets, including China, India, eastern Europe, Latin America and Africa. China is still ahead of India in the manufacture and use of mobile technology. In India, mobile phones are no longer seen as a status symbol, as was the case initially, but are a boon for the ordinary people. The instrument has made instant communication possible and opened many new business opportunities. Over the years, mobile phone companies have shown growth rates that at times exceed even those of the IT industry. The future, however, is not all that rosy. Since the industry is based on using the radio frequency spectrum, a scarce resource allocated by the government, there is already an unseemly row between various players for greater allocation. Two competing technologies, GSM and CDMA, are vying for greater bandwidth, and it is hoped that the government would allocate wireless spectrum in a technology-neutral way. Of late, there have been instances of misuse of the technology, such as the invasion of privacy by taking photographs and for purveying pornography. The law needs to be amended to enable the enforcement agencies to deal with such problems effectively. India has managed to leapfrog over the limitation of fixed-line communication technology infrastructure through mobile telephony and provided people with a fairly good and reasonable service. It needs to focus on not only selling more phones, but also becoming a provider of hardware and software to the industry. |
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Meghalaya firing The conflict between the Khasi and Garo tribes in Meghalaya has yet again claimed young lives. The death of students in police firing and the scores of injuries in last week’s violent clashes in Tura and Williamnagar districts occurred over an administrative matter regarding the Meghalaya Board of Secondary Education (MBOSE). That even an issue of restructuring an education board can incite passions to this extent is a measure of the poor political and social situation allowed to prevail in the North-Eastern states. MBOSE is currently headquartered in Tura. The Khasi Students Union (KSU) wants MBOSE to have a regional office in Shillong in order to cater to the needs of Khasi students. For the Garos, preventing such a move has become a prestige issue. Activists of the Garo Students Union (GSU) and the Garo Hills Citizens Forum had gathered in thousands, defying prohibitory orders. The authorities declare that the firing was in response to violent and coordinated attacks against policemen and magistrates. The students on their part alleged that the firing was unprovoked, and without warning. A magisterial enquiry is on, and in the meantime, the Garos are threatening a boycott of the arterial road from Byrnihat, invoking visions of the terrible 50-day Naga blockade in Manipur. The authorities should take steps to ensure that the people, currently struggling to cope with the indefinite curfew, do not suffer more from such an ill-advised move. The Khasis feel that MBOSE has discriminated against their students from around the Shillong area, pointing to a recent fiasco over the distribution of question papers. For the Garos, an MBOSE office in Shillong will do the job. In the background is the simmering demand for a separate “Garoland” to be carved out of Meghalaya. While the current Chief Minister represents the Khasis, former Lok Sabha Speaker P.A. Sangma is a Garo leader. It is the responsibility of top leaders to ensure that violence is not resorted to at the drop of a hat, on every issue. |
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Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example. — Mark Twain |
After the Vienna vote One of the unspoken but vital considerations that might have persuaded India to vote for the EU-3 resolution in Vienna was the fact that the International Atomic Energy Agency’s report on Iran dealt with the nuclear proliferation by Pakistan to Iran. The IAEA report refers to Iran dealing with an intermediary which implies that behind the intermediary, Dr A.Q. Khan, there was a principal — presumably the Pakistan Army — as the transaction took place in 1987. Dr Khan in his confession had talked about acting with the knowledge and approval of the Gen Zia-ul-Haq. Pakistan’s refusal to allow IAEA access to Dr Khan is in conformity with the proposition that he was acting with the full knowledge and approval of the Pakistani administration and, therefore, they dare not risk exposing him to direct IAEA questioning. General Musharraf recently disclosed that Dr Khan was only a metallurgist and his contribution to the Pakistani bomb programme was only in terms of enriched uranium and centrifuge technology. It is well known that the Pakistani bomb tests were conducted by Dr Samar Mubarak Mund of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and Dr A.Q. Khan had to be a bystander. However, the atomic bomb design drawings in Chinese were recovered from the supplies made by Dr Khan to Libya. If Dr Khan was acting alone without the knowledge and approval of the Pakistani authorities as General Musharraf explains, then how did he have access to the bomb drawings if he was only a centrifuge specialist and supplier of enriched uranium? This is a question relevant to the IAEA authorities. In such circumstances, not permitting access by the IAEA to Dr Khan amounts to an obstruction of the IAEA’s investigation by a member of the nuclear watchdog — namely Pakistan, at present holding the post of Deputy Governor of the IAEA. Till now, so long as the possible referral of Iran’s breaches did not feature in the IAEA’s agenda and the previous resolutions were adopted by consensus, this was not a major issue. Now in the light of the IAEA resolution of September 24 this is a major issue. It will be unfair to refer the issue of Iran’s breach to the UN Security Council without asking Pakistan to make available Dr Khan for questioning by IAEA inspectors. If Pakistan refuses, then it may have to be examined whether Pakistan’s conduct would not also merit a referral to the UN Security Council. The issue is not about Pakistan’s nuclear weapons as it is not a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, but about Pakistan’s non- cooperation with the IAEA in discharging its statutory obligation. Yet another important issue that has surfaced is the disclosure of former Dutch Prime Minister Dr Lubbers that the CIA persuaded the Dutch government not to prosecute Dr A.Q. Khan in 1975 and 1986. Here is a case of long-term sustained interest in Dr Khan by a section of the CIA. It should be a matter of interest for the US Congress to find out how much the CIA knew about Dr Khan’s proliferation to Iran and when they knew it and what successive US Administrations did about it. Harry Sokolski and Harry Rowan, two Assistant Secretaries of the US Administration, had gone on record that as far back as 1990 they were told by General Aslam Beg that if the US invoked the Pressler amendment sanctions against Pakistan, it would resort to the sale of nuclear technology to Iran. What did the Assistant Secretaries do with that information? These should be of interest to the US Congress and Senate, especially to Congressman Lantos who thundered about India’s lack of concern about Iranian proliferation. One hopes he would show appropriate concern about Iranian proliferation and investigate and bring out full details about the interest of the CIA in Dr Khan, its knowledge about Pakistani proliferation to Iran and the Pakistani involvement in it. So long as the resolution on the Iranian breaches of the IAEA safeguards was not put to vote and India did not vote for a possible referral if Iran did not cooperate with the IAEA, India had no locus standi to raise the above issues. Now that India has voted in favour of the resolution these are very germane issues for New Delhi to raise next time the IAEA resolution comes up for consideration. India should also raise these issues bilaterally, if necessary, when the matter comes up for consideration in the US Congress on amending the US sanctions vis-à-vis India and the pro-Pakistan and non-proliferation fundamentalist lobbies raise objections about Indian exceptionalism. The above facts would highlight why India was compelled to go nuclear in a world of proliferation where one of the nuclear powers — China — initiated proliferation to Pakistan and the latter went on to establish an international network. The linkage between the two continues. Those in India who argue that it should carry out a damage-limitation exercise in Vienna and reverse its September vote in November when it comes up again for consideration are either ignorant of the above facts or have some interest in shielding Dr A.Q. Khan and Pakistan-China proliferation activities. One wonders whether they have also some interest in shielding the CIA’s interest in Dr Khan. There should be a debate on the issue in Parliament and all those from the left and right should openly state why they oppose the IAEA investigating Dr Khan’s proliferation activities, the Pakistani support to it and CIA-A.Q. Khan
connection.
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Purchased smile
Have you ever dreamt the “impossible” dream of having your teeth (and smile) changed completely to give you those “sublimely chiselled incisors you see glistening from Cineplex screens and magazine covers”? Then there is good news for you. You can have those dreams fulfilled for the asking — the asking of course being accompanied with willingness to pay the price for the ‘operation’ that is required. Recently, a semi-permanent prosthesis known as “snap-in-veneers” has become available. That cosmetic lift can be put on or taken off in the blink of an eye and involves no drilling, no cement, and no needles. It only requires the taking of an accurate impression from the photograph of the glamorous personality whose stunningly beautiful smile is sought to be copied to absolute perfection. Actually, this project of the cosmetic dentists had many teething troubles. At first the public would just not relate to either of the two names proposed for it one after the other. Then someone had a brainwave, and named the options on offer after different well-known popular filmstars, so that you could acquire the smile of your current heart-throb among them. Then the tide turned and orders started pouring in. Of course, the cost of the transformation is not precisely peanuts, the price tag being from $ 1500 to $ 1800. But then one is lucky to see an “impossible” dream come true at all. There is also no need for children to feel left out either — if they have had the good sense to be born to super-rich families: as it happens, a special offering, though of a very different type, has recently come to the market for them. You have probably seen the little darlings feeling rather bored playing with ordinary run-of-the-mill teddy bears. Now as a matter of sheer coincidence a German firm, celebrating its 125th anniversary, has produced an out-of-this-world version of the conventional teddy. The new “bear” — if it is not infra dig for it to be called by its old name — has its mouth made of real, solid gold and the fur made from gold thread; and the eyes have pupils of sapphires and the irises consist of 20 tiny diamonds. The price of course matches the materials: £ 43,000. You have to hurry up to get one though: a mere 125 of these super-bears have been made. This is doubtless a very isolated instance but it shows there are occasions, rare though they are, when in the matter of expense a children’s fad, reversing the normal trend, leaves that of the grownup’s far, far behind. Tailpiece: In an exhibition in England one art work consisted only of a 2-litre clear plastic bottle containing melted Antarctic ice and was valued at £ 42,500. It went missing half way through and is suspected to have been stolen and drunk by a thirsty
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India’s vote on Iran a ‘pleasant surprise’ Even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh faces flak from opponents for his decision to support a controversial resolution on Iran, there is a growing recognition in the United States that India is gradually learning to make tough decisions that great powers are often faced with. On September 24 India voted at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna for a resolution that could refer Iran’s nuclear programme to the United Nations Security Council. The vote in the 35-member IAEA board of governors was split — 22 members voted for it, 12, including Russia and China, abstained, and Venezuela opposed it. India’s vote came as a surprise to many who in the weeks leading up to the event took note of New Delhi’s opposition to the U.S.-led pressure on Iran to end its nuclear programme. Terming India’s decision a “pleasant surprise,” a Bush administration official told The Tribune New Delhi’s support was “very important to us.” For some, India’s vote could be interpreted as a reaction to U.S. “pressure,” another administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, admitted while pointing out that senior administration officials, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, had publicly urged India to vote against Iran. “This change in policy can, while being in line with the U.S. interests, also serve Indian interests,” the official said, adding that “we were at a point where India had to choose” Mr Walter Andersen, Associate Director of the South Asia Studies Program at the John Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, contends there wasn’t any “specific pressure” for India to vote one way or the other at the IAEA. But, he said, the Indian government decided to vote “in the interest of its relations with the United States.” Mr Andersen said a close relationship with Washington would benefit New Delhi more than closer ties with Tehran. “It’s clear this vote did reflect the fact that the Indian government sees an importance in its relationship with the U.S. At the same time it is also saying that if there are any negative repercussions from this decision the Indians will look to the U.S. to meet any shortfalls [of gas/oil energy sources],” he said. Tehran lashed out at New Delhi in the days after the vote raising concern about the future of its gas pipeline project with India and Pakistan. The Manmohan Singh government has put a lot at stake by moving ahead with the project despite fierce opposition in Washington. India, driven by an enormous energy deficit, is forced to rely on as much as 75 per cent of oil and gas imports. Indian officials note that this will climb to between 80 per cent and 85 per cent in the next decade. Simply put, “India’s energy needs are dire,” said a senior Indian official in Washington. Indian officials point out that despite the high stakes involved — Iran is the biggest source of natural gas — New Delhi took a stand at the IAEA. Dismissing speculation about U.S. pressure, a diplomatic source said India has a vital stake in the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and saw no reason to make an exception for any country. It is also not in India’s interest to have a third nuclear-armed state in its neighbourhood, the source said. Both Pakistan and China have nuclear weapons. Iran assumed certain obligations and commitments as a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Indian officials say that since Iranian Prime Minister Mahmoud Ahmadinejad only recently took office, he should be given some time to settle in and take stock of these responsibilities. Noting that the IAEA resolution takes these factors into account, a senior diplomatic source said New Delhi had been promoting a unanimous resolution so that “there is no chink in the armour… so that this is seen as an effort by the community as a whole, not a developing world versus developed world issue.” Dr Anupam Srivastava, Director of the Asia programme at the Center for International Trade and Security at the University of Georgia, contending that abstention at the IAEA would have been the easiest recourse for India, added, “but it would have worsened the situation by not clarifying the parameters within which India supports Iran’s sovereign right to pursue a civilian nuclear programme, and also not clarifying India’s unequivocal support for global non-proliferation norms and obligations.” He agreed with an assertion made by Indian officials that India had succeeded in delaying the IAEA referral of this matter to the United Nations Security Council at least until its November meeting. “This gives diplomacy a chance before the threat of use of force is considered an option if and when the matter goes to the UNSC,” he said. Most importantly, he said, it gives Iran ample time to make a full disclosure of its nuclear activities, and to comply with its obligations as a signatory to the Additional Protocols of the IAEA. “As such, this IAEA vote provides Iran the honorable option of complete cooperation to confirm whether it indeed is only pursuing a civilian nuclear programme as it has stated all along,” he added. |
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Managing disasters NEW YORK: During the last few weeks, hurricanes Rita and Katrina have critically subdued the coast lines of New Orleans and Texas, and left in their wake considerable damage to life and property, besides questions about the whole viability and efficacy of the US disaster management and rehabilitation system. A natural disaster that found America quite unprepared for the fallout has set President Bush and others in the administration thinking hard on how to better equip the country for a similar emergency in future, where along with a natural disaster, a human engineered act of terrorism could well add up to the woes of the common people — always the worst effected in such calamities. There are many lessons to be learnt from this twin tragedy, and the question of the right kind of command and control stands out vividly. President Bush is talking about the Army taking over the command and leadership of the operations, at least till the situation is stabilised and is not risky enough to be handed back to the state and the local authorities, including the National Guards. Many in the Army are not keen to take over this
role, saying that their primary task is to defend America. But like in India, when all others have been found wanting, I suppose eventually the soldiers will have to assume this responsibility also. FEMA, as the rescue and relief organisation here is
called, does not have the requisite resources, manpower or the expertise to handle such an emergency and will need to be tasked under the US armed forces, just as the Disaster Management Force recently reconstituted in India will need to be placed under the overall charge of the Army for optimum results. When we are unable to even handle properly a Kandahar type of aircraft hijacking without politics creeping in, a sustained relief and rehabilitation operation during a natural calamity, not to mention the addition of a terrorist strike, if God forbid there is one, could completely disrupt any confidence-building measures aimed at the common
populace. The experience here has shown that there will need to be pre-dumping of fuel, foodstuff and medical supplies in designated areas prone to natural disaster like our coastlines and regions susceptible to earthquakes, since during an emergency no movement is possible. Special security, relief and rescue measures will have to be adopted for regions having dams and oil. A quick opening up of the roadways, recommissioning of flooded airports and the establishment of a satellite communication network are not tasks that anyone but the Army can handle either here or in India, and the sooner everyone is prepared for this kind of an emergency the better. Periodic mobilisation and rehearsals of relief programmes, a matter that the Americans did not seem to have buttoned up and a mental gearing up of what to expect when such disasters take place, will go a long way if India is confronted with a similar disaster. The tsunami tidals, Mumbai floodings and the terrorist attack on Parliament have all indicated that neither is our intelligence timely and accurate nor does the police and the para-military forces have the wherewithal or training to meet sudden emergency situations or disasters. |
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Delhi Durbar West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya has won the hearts in the national capital for breaking one Marxist tradition after another. The case in point this time is that he attended office on September 29, the day his party’s trade union CITU had given a call for an all-India strike to protest various reformist policies and other measures in the pipeline by the Congress-led UPA government. Interestingly, Buddhadeb also asked his ministerial colleagues to attend office. The reason is that the Marxist Chief Minister is trying to hardsell West Bengal as an attractive investment destination. His staying at home on the day of the bandh would have sent wrong signals to potential investors. While Buddhadeb’s comrades zealously pulled down the shutters on September 29, the Chief Minister did his day’s work at the Writers’ Building.
Envoy to Iraq not yet Considering the worsening situation in Iraq, the UPA government has decided to keep on hold the appointment of India’s new envoy to Baghdad. Even though Washington has been asking India to increase its engagement in Iraq by taking part in that ravaged country’s reconstruction efforts, the employees and security personnel of the Indian mission in Baghdad have underlined the need for bullet-proof cars and additional security to move around in that capital city. The Egyptian envoy to Baghdad was killed in July and diplomats from other countries have also been under attack. Most embassies have shifted their operations to Kuwait and Jordan. India, however, continues to be among the few countries that continue to operate from Baghdad.
Selling health to tourists Youthful Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramdoss believes that medical tourism will be India’s next best success story after software. He has constituted a task force which is working overtime to make available super speciality medicare. The health sector will also have alternative and traditional therapies through accredited hospitals. Ramdoss is also actively considering permitting fast- track clearances for patients on arrival in this country.
Defence deals slow down Former Finance Minister Jaswant Singh believes there are three Cs coming in the way of defence procurement: CBI, CVC and CAG. Even the purchase of toilet paper, if referred to one of these would stop. When told that it was during the NDA’s time that George Fernandes as the union defence minister started referring deals to the CVC, Jaswant Singh observed he had urged Fernandes not to do so.
RSS cashes in on marriages From this month, the RSS
mouthpiece, the Organiser, will carry matrimonial advertisements. The explanation being offered is: this is to meet the demand of overseas friends who are keen on getting their offsprings married within their own organisation. —
Contributed by R Suryamurthy, S Sathanarayanan, Girja Shankar Kaura and Prashant Sood. |
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From the pages of Imports of Russian Sugar The decision of the Government of India to abolish the countervailing duty on Russian sugar imported into India in consideration of the repeal of the Russian surtax on Indian and Ceylon tea is bound to affect prejudicially the nascent Indian sugar industry. Of course, it may be urged that it is an instance of fair and equitable bargaining… Unfortunately there is a third party to this compromise and that is the Indian sugarcane growers who are struggling against the highly developed sugar industries of foreign lands and who will be adversely affected by this decision of the Government. Indeed, we are afraid that this decision of the Government will give another setback to the struggling sugar industry of India which is, except in some planting districts, mainly carried on by the children of the soil. |
The greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness. — Book of quotations on Happiness Let us not be satisfied with just paying money. Money is not enough. Money can be got. The poor need your hands to serve them. They need your heart to love them. — Mother Teresa Purify the spectacles of your mind and you will see that the world is God. — Ramakrishna |
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