A lively and frank debate on India-Pakistan relationship marked the meeting between a high-powered delegation from Pakistan led by former Prime Minister Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain and an Indian team of senior diplomats, strategic analysts, commentators and policy makers led by former Indian Foreign Secretary M Rasgotra, who is presently, International Affairs Adviser, Observer Research Foundation (ORF), New Delhi, at ORF, Campus on March 31, 2005.
A lively and frank debate on India-Pakistan relationship marked the meeting between a high-powered delegation from Pakistan led by former Prime Minister Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain and an Indian team of senior diplomats, strategic analysts, commentators and policy makers led by former Indian Foreign Secretary M Rasgotra, who is presently, International Affairs Adviser, Observer Research Foundation (ORF), New Delhi, at ORF, Campus on March 31, 2005.
Members of the Pakistan delegation argued for a benevolent Big Brother attitude from India on various issues, particularly on Kashmir, while the Indian speakers pointed out that Pakistan should reciprocate with a friendlier and pragmatic approach to contentious issues.
The Pakistani delegation, besides Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain, included High Commissioner to India Aziz Ahmad Khan, Senators Mushahid Hussain and SM Zafar, besides other diplomats and political leaders.
On the Indian side were Vice Admiral (Retd) KK Nayyar, well-known strategic thinker and former Vice Chief of Naval Staff, Ambassador Hamid Ansari, Distinguished Fellow, ORF and former Ambassador to Iran and Saudi Arabia, renowned counter-terrorism expert Mr B. Raman, presently Distinguished Fellow and Convenor, ORF-ORF Chennai, and Prof. SD Muni, well-known South Asia analyst and a senior professor from Jawahar Lal Nehru University and ORF Hony. Director of Research, besides top diplomats and academics.
Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain opened the debate with a call to explore additional avenues of friendship and alternate ways to resolve issues which have been dogging the two neighbours for more than half-a-century. He recalled the cordial meetings he and his colleagues had with Indian leaders during their present visit.
Senator Mushahid Hussain, well-known in the Indian strategic community, placed the current peace process in the nuclear context. He argued that Pakistan's nuclear status has provided the impetus to the current dialogue process. He said the nuclear factor has ``given a sense of national confidence, a sense of confidence that Pakistan has the means to deter any aggression``. This, he emphasized, has helped Pakistan to initiate a broad-based, multifaceted approach to relationship with India.
Mr Mushahid Hussain said there was a visible change in the public perception on either side. He cited three factors. First, he said, the momentum is at the popular level. Today people are directly involved in the process. Till date, such dialogues precluded people. The credit for this transformation, he said, should go to President Pervez Musharraf who has advocated a more open-minded approach to Kashmir. Second was the change in the mindset of the political leadership in Pakistan. The primary threat to Pakistan was today internal, generated by extremism and terrorism. Pakistan was facing the fallout of Afghan jehad, the last battle of the Cold War. Five billion dollars were used in buying weapons; 200,000 Afghan mujahideen were trained along with 20000 Arab warriors "including a gentleman called Osama bin Laden"
Referring to Kashmir, Mr Hussain said the ground situation in the Indian occupied Kashmir has not changed and human rights violations were continuing unabated. He feared that India was marking time and was not willing to think "out of box" on Kashmir.
Senator SM Zafar said the leadership of both the countries should not be burdened by the past. President Musharraf has taken the bold step of exploring a resolution beyond the UN Resolutions and India, the Senator said, should take a similar stand and go beyond the Indian Constitution. This would lead to an "unstoppable momentum".
Responding to the points raised by the Pakistani delegation, Vice Admiral (Retd) KK Nayyar said: "though it was essential to think out of box, we are likely to make a serious mistake" if the dialogue process was made hostage to the nuclear factor. "This can be a major miscalculation", he cautioned. He said India was "absolutely cognizant of the fact that Pakistan was not a small country. It has the third largest population in Eursaia. ``This is a factor which must be appreciated more in Pakistan than in India``.
In reference to the remarks on Kashmir, Admiral Nayyar said there was a need to change the mindset on Kashmir. Speaking about human rights violations " does not speak well of the confidence and mutual understanding with which we should be talking", he pointed out.
On the Bagliar dam issue, Vice Admiral (Retd) Nayyar said both the countries should explore a reasonable solution which was beneficial to the people of Kashmir. ``This could mean more trouble for you than generally appreciated in Pakistan``, he said. He said this was an amazing opportunity between the two neighbours to sort out differences and not remain prisoner to ``manufactured arguments``.
Ambassador Hamid Ansari pointed out that public on both sides have subconsciously or consciously taken over the process of peace and ``this should be allowed to move forward``. Terming it as a silver line, he said the outcome of such a process cannot be judged and should be left to evolve. This cannot be a time-bound exercise as suggested, and sequential steps were irrelevant.
Ambassador Rasgotra, in his concluding remarks, said the day's discussion would ``change the idiom of our dialogue``. He said the initiative was in the hands of people and that was the best thing that had happened in the past 57 years.
Referring to Kashmir, the former Foreign Secretary said there were bold steps in the offing on Kashmir. ``We are going to give you a surprise on Kashmir. The bus route is not the only step. There would be many more bus routes and trade across the Line of Control", he said.
Mr Rasgotra said the issue of human rights violations had become irrelevant as people have taken up the initiative for peace in Kashmir. ``Our joint endeavour should be to push this peace process forward", he said.
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