Pak-India relations: Govts not serious in allowing people to come closer

Speakers of a people’s forum claim bilateral relations have deteriorated in the past six years.

ISLAMABAD:

The people of Pakistan and India want long-term peace but the governments are not serious to achieve this goal.

These views were expressed during an interactive session held at South Asian Free Media Association on Tuesday, which was attended by delegates of Eighth Joint Convention of the Pakistan-India Peoples’ Forum for Peace and Democracy (PIPFPD) from Islamabad.

The convention, which took place in Allahabad in December last year, called upon reinforcing democracy, socio-economic justice and long-term peace between the two countries.

The participants of the session shared their experience with people in India and expressed concern over what they called “the deteriorating relations between India and Pakistan over the past six years”.

“For Indians, it was perhaps terrorism which was impeding a serious initiative for sustainable peace,” said Kishwar Naheed, a renowned poet and PIPFPD chairperson.

“The agreements made at the last Saarc conference to start direct flights to India from Islamabad and Lahore and to give on-border visas to people over 65 years of age has also not been signed yet,” she added, suggesting tourist visas for more people to people interaction. The delegates were of the view that the majority of Indians were really friendly and expressed a desire for peace with Pakistan.

“The Indians were similar to us in many ways and it was pleasant to see they have started to accept our message of peace,” said Arshad Mehmood, one of the delegates.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Ashfaq Saleem Mirza, a noted writer, said that the Indians could perhaps not get over the reality of partition which they have not accepted.

“Unlike Pakistan, a large population of India tows the line of its south-dominated establishment, which is one of the factors that stops them from coming forward for peace with Pakistan,” he remarked.

He said terrorism was due to continuation of Kashmir issue, which is equally damaging for both India and Pakistan.

“People to people contact through different forums is a step in the right direction, as it pressurises the governments to change their attitude on both sides,” he remarked.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 27^th, 2012.