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| Welcome initiative |
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Friday, March 28, 2008
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's initiative, in seeking better ties than ever before with Pakistan, is welcome. Mr Singh, who called Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Tuesday to congratulate him, and also wrote a separate letter to him, has called on the new Pakistani leader to 'build on' the steps taken by Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif in the past, and help put in place a new, closer relationship between the two traditionally hostile South Asian neighbours. The Indian premier has also stressed that the people of both nations aspire towards such ties. The gesture of friendship from New Delhi comes at a time when tensions between the two nations have been heightened by the controversy over the death of a Pakistani prisoner in an Indian jail, the death warrants issued for Indian national Sarabjit Singh in Pakistan and also veiled accusations from the former caretaker setup in Islamabad that India could be involved in recent terrorists attacks in a bid to destabilize Pakistan.
It is important that, despite these irritants, the new government in Pakistan greets Mr Singh's offer of a warmer handshake enthusiastically. Improved ties with India, and especially a freeing-up of trade across the Wagah border, would help the country a great deal by helping to resolve some of the supply issues regarding food items that have pushed up prices, and driven people to breaking point. Opening up doorways into India could also serve other, essential purposes. To eradicate growing intolerance and extremism in the country, Pakistan must learn once more to see itself as a nation with strong ties to South Asia. Looking to the East, rather than to the Middle East, could help the nation rediscover the gentler, yet immensely vibrant heritage that took root over centuries in India, as diverse cultures and religious traditions mingled with quite astonishing harmony. Despite all the attempts to deny this, the reality is that Pakistanis and Indians share a great deal in common -- from cuisine to wedding traditions, and of course a great deal more. Rather than tearing ourselves away from this past, which is so much a part of our present, it should be warmly embraced.
By stating that his party was willing to find other ways to build confidence with India, rather than focusing only on Kashmir, Mr Asif Ali Zardari has indicated he is eager to develop closer links with India. It can only be hoped that the broad coalition led by the PPP can be persuaded to fully back such efforts, so that the inevitable attacks by hawks on both sides of the divide cannot hold back the march towards closer cooperation with India. For this, the governments in both countries will need to demonstrate genuine will and commitment. There are, after all, many obstacles in the way -- and a great deal of distrust in both camps. But with his magnanimous gesture of friendship, Mr Manmohan Singh has offered a way forward -- and it can only be hoped the route he suggests will be ventured out on by Pakistan's new government, for the sake of the people of both countries as well as the generations of the future.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
