‘Kashmir campaign should focus on human rights’

Roundtable dissects possibilities of peace in South Asia.

LAHORE: There is no real freedom of expression in Pakistan and at the moment as we are not prepared to enlighten our policies former foreign minister Sardar Aseff Ahmad Ali said on Friday.

He was speaking at a roundtable talk, Prospects of Peace in South Asia, at Beaconhouse National University’s (BNU) city campus. Beaconhouse National University (BNU) and Institute of Regional Studies, Islamabad (BNU-IRS) had organised the talk.

Ali added, “Pakistan’s national policy discourse runs on national honour and not on national interest.” He was of the view that Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir should refer to rights for people of Kashmir irrespective of their religion.

The participants in the round table discussed the traditional mindset of South Asians especially with reference to Pakistan-India relations. The participants also spoke about the role of media in promoting the mindset.

BNU Vice Chancellor Sartaj Aziz said military rule and prejudices against each other were important impediments to Pakistan pursuing an effective foreign policy. He said, “The 21st century is the age of South Asia’s dominance.” He stressed the importance of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) platform and the need to further strengthen it.

School of Media and Mass Communication Dean Dr Mehdi Hasan said, “Peace is not possible between India and Pakistan unless religious extremism is countered. There is a need to change the mindset of fundamentalists.”

SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Iftikhar Ali Malik made several recommendations on how the business community can play an instrumental role in boosting the economic power of the region.

The speakers included Institute of Regional Studies, President Ashraf Azeem, SAFMA Director Khaled Ahmad, Hussain Naqi, HRCP’s Zaman Khan, Maj Gen (retd) Rahat Latif, Prof Asghar Nadeem Syed, Wajahat Masood and Prof Yasmeen Aftab from BNU School of Media and Mass Communication and Prof Sajjad Naseer from the Lahore School of Economics.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 19^th, 2011.