JEDDAH, 27 July — The recently held Agra summit between Pakistan and India was not a failure as the contentious Kashmir issue could not have been expected to be resolved in a single meeting between their leaders, according to a visiting Karachi columnist.
“The summit has paved the way for more dialogue. In fact, sustained talks between the two sides will help ignore the hard-liners on both sides and find a lasting solution to the Kashmir issue,” Ziaul Islam Zuberi, who regularly writes on social, cultural and political issues as well as on travel in different Pakistani newspapers and journals, said in an interview.
Asked about his assessment of the political situation back home, Zuberi said: “We all love democracy and hate authoritarian rule. Unfortunately, there’s no political leadership in which the country can repose its faith and trust. Until we see an honest political leadership emerging that can motivate people and address their future, democracy will be a far cry.”
Zuberi added: “The local government elections have just been held and we have to wait and watch whether they could be a forerunner to future nationwide elections. President Pervez Musharraf is a straightforward and honest person. There is transparency in his rule and administration. There have been no corruption cases and no financial scandals after he took over. Contracts are awarded in a transparent manner.
But not all levels of administration, including police, are corruption-free.” said Zuberi, a graduate from St. Patrick’s College, Karachi who is now a Canadian national. He currently holds the position of a divisional director for corporation communications at a multinational firm in Pakistan.
An accomplished debater during his academic career, Zuberi began his career in 1972 as a secretary to opposition leader Shah Faridul Haq of Jamiat Ulema-e- Pakistan in the Sindh Province. He migrated to Canada in 1976 and returned to Pakistan in 1982.
He is the first Pakistani to be accepted as a member by the International PR Association, a representative body of 800 members in 70 countries. He is also on the panel of All Pakistan Newspapers Society and Pakistan Advertising Association.
His articles in both English and Urdu are being published for the last 30 years in the Pakistani media, including Leader, Daily News, Qaumi Akhbar, Express and Star.
