Change
of heart
Sir,
General
Musharrafs pledge not to let terrorists
use any territory under Pakistan's
control to launch attacks on India
indicates some pragmatic shift in
Pakistan's's policy towards this country.
Probably the Pakistani President has
taken seriously the Indian Prime
Minister's observation that imperative of
globalization dictates closer cooperation
between India and Pakistan for faster
economic development and, therefore, the
need for the two countries is to join
hands in the post cold-war world to
tackle the numerous economic problems
they face. It may also be possible that
after two assassination attempts on his
life - at least one certainly the work of
terrorist groups - General Musharraf must
have realized that he has lost control
over the Islamic militants and hence he
needs to disable them and as a bonus
purchase peace with his neighbor. There
is also a possibility that through such a
"historic decision", General
Musharraf tried to deflect the intense
international scrutiny of Pakistan's
Jehadi legacy and of latest revelation of
his country's role in nuclear
proliferation to Iran, North Korea and
now Libya, and as also the internal
criticism for disfiguring the country's
constitution through the recent
amendment.
Whatever
may be reason for the change of heart,
one thing is certain that General
Musharraf has, at least for the time
being, realized the futility of his
hate-India policy and the dangerous
consequences of such policy vis-a-vis
Pakistan. Those who now criticize him for
is intent to normalize relations with
India without recalling the UN Resolution
and at the same time undertaking not to
support the terrorist groups must realize
that Pakistan's position is weak and
vulnerable on both these courts. There is
large segment of population in Pakistan
who now openly question the wisdom of
spending vast resources on military
hardware and nuclear weapon programme
only to confront India, while they suffer
in poverty and ignorance. The business
community in Pakistan as also the
right-thinking economists blamed the
tension and uncertainty caused by
Pakistan's Kashmir policy for the
industrial investment and trade remaining
much below the country's potential. The
Jehad in Kashmir, which Pakistan has been
pursuing with vigor, has backfired in the
terms of militancy that not only has
hampered the growth of democratic
institution and liberal values, but has
also brutalized the society.
The
question now remains whether General
Musharraf would be able to keep his
words.
If General
Musharraf has correctly assessed what is
good and what is bad for Pakistan, he has
long task ahead. He will not only have to
physically check the infiltration of
terrorists into India, but also have to
work hard to finish the root cause of
fundamentalism. The education system
needs the thorough overhauling. He will
have to fight those individuals and
groups whose livelihood depends and
keeping the conflict alive.
Yours
etc...
Mushataq Wani
6/2 Safdagunj
Delhi
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