Bill Clinton was not indulging in hyperbole when he counted, in the closing months of his presidency, the Indian subcontinent among the most dangerous flash points in the world. It still is. The Indo-Pak border is threatening to explode into a shooting war. That worries the world because there is a possibility that, if fireworks begin, some of the sparks that fly could be nuclear ones.
Heavy pressure is already on both the countries to lower the temperature. American pressure appears to have led to Pakistan’s review of its support for Kashmiri armed groups. The attack on the Indian Parliament in New Delhi with the death of 14 security officials has forced this move on Islamabad. However, the US pressure deals only with the symptom, not the cause. Washington must now be prepared to go a whole lot further than including the Kashmiri militants in their global anti-terrorist campaign. Defusing the tension between India and Pakistan must become a committed long-term goal. Just as Sept. 11 has pushed a just resolution of the Palestine issue to the fore, so the Kashmir problem must now be given priority. It has been a running sore ever since the partition in 1947. Now is the time for the international community to work for a solution which will take into account all the conflicting interests involved.
While it is true that all civilized nations must support the international campaign against terrorism, the scourge cannot be defeated unless the root causes that give rise to militancy are addressed. Terrorism tends to begin in response to specific grievances but after time, it acquires a life of its own, divorced from the original issues. We have seen this in Northern Ireland and in the Basque country where terrorism has become a profession with its promotions, rewards and finally pensions. The way to prevent that from happening is to address the grievances that provided the fertile soil for anger and violence to sprout, take root and grow. Terror against civilians should not be condoned. With President Musharraf agreeing to act against Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Muhammad or any other organization responsible, if they are demonstrated to be complicit in the attack on the Indian Parliament, the stage could be set for the start of real negotiations. From both the Indian and Pakistani sides, what is needed is a willingness to start talking without preconditions. Islamabad meanwhile will make it clear that it will no longer give tacit or open support to the men of violence.
Out of the horror of the New Delhi attack and the years of terrible violence that have stained the beauty of Kashmir, the opportunity for a settlement has emerged. Neither the region nor the world at large can take the risk of two nuclear powers so at odds over the Kashmir question.
Pakistan’s Afghan policy was structured on the need to protect its western border, thus leaving it free to face what it saw as the Indian threat from the east. If the Kashmir issue can be settled once and for all, then these two neighbors can embark upon an era of friendship and cooperation, from which both will benefit hugely. But it will take the continued interest of the international community, particularly that of Washington, to sustain the process.
