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Open Forum Hope of peace: Mirage or reality ? By Madhav Ghangurde THE hope (asha) of peace (aman) with Pakistan comes to the fore at irregular intervals. A section of the intellectuals, in this country, is always very much optimistic about bringing about peace with our western neighbour. Surely, we would not like to be called ‘warmonger’ but we are for various reasons, pessimistic about such a possibility in the foreseeable future. The vehicles sought to be used for converting the hope of peace into a reality are people-to-people contact, cultural exchanges, concerts by artists from both sides of the border, sports, business, trains and buses running across the border etc. All these attempts can, at the best, be termed as very fragile and self-deceiving. The real issues remain unaddressed. It is the belligerent attitude of the Pakistani government and army that needs to be eliminated. The reasons behind this belligerency need to be assessed and a suitable remedy applied. The bus to Lahore did not stop Pakistan from backstabbing India at Kargil. Candlelight vigils at Wagah border have not stopped the Pakistani intelligence establishment from harbouring terrorists against India. Cultural exchanges have failed to stop Pakistani rulers from spitting venom against us. There are well meaning people on both sides of the border. However, their existence and activism has failed to stop the ISI sponsored anti-India activities. The tone and tenor of Pakistani rulers, whether democratically elected or military dictators, remains the same when it comes to referring to India. Cultural exchanges, cricketing ties, business etc. by themselves are incapable of bringing about any real change in the ground realities. Events should be seen and evaluated in the proper perspective. If the Agra Summit was a fiasco, then it was a fiasco for Musharraf and not Vajpayee. He had to go back empty handed. The Indian side successfully resisted calling Kashmir a disputed area. Unfortunately, Indian media was overwhelmed by the breakfast diplomacy of Musharraf. The Indian side repeatedly urged Pakistan to come together on issues like business, cultural exchanges, sports etc. on which there can be unanimity between both the sides and make a start. Thorny issues like Kashmir, where there are differences, could be taken up later. However, Pakistan was adamant. They wanted to refer to Kashmir as a disputed territory and took a stand that unless and until this dispute is solved nothing else will be considered. This attitude on the part of Pakistani rulers is the real hurdle in the success of people-to-people exchanges. Getting Pakistan to change this attitude is not an easy job. Any amount of singing and dancing or playing cricket, with Pakistani artists or cricketers is not going to create lasting peace unless their rulers and army change their attitude. The applause generated from the audience in response to performance of the artists creates an illusion of friendship. The core issues remain unattended. Their hostile mentality needs to be met squarely. Unless and until this is done, hope of peace will remain only a hope, a mirage. The non-inclusion of Pakistani players in IPL 2010 clearly highlights the limitations of the hope of peace. Whether there was a whispering campaign to exclude them or whether it was pre-planned is beside the point. The fact remains that nobody bought them in the auction. IPL is a mix of cricket and business. That the businesspersons chose not to invest on Pakistani cricketers gives a message, which is loud and clear. The message is that concerts and matches with Pakistani artists and players are of no consequence unless and until their rulers do not change their attitude and prove it by their actions. International politics too has its importance. USA is encouraging China to meddle into the affairs of the nations in the region. China has been for the past half a century helping Pakistan with building roads in Pakistan occupied Indian Territory as well as providing nuclear technology. USA pretends to be friendly to India and at the same time gives aid to Pakistan very well knowing that it is being used for anti-India activities. American authorities say one thing when on Indian soil but change their stance no sooner they land in Pakistan. The latest example is that of US Secretary of Defence, Robert Gates. His statements in the third week of January during his visit to India and Pakistan have followed the same pattern. A clear message from India, not the Sharm-El-Sheikh type, is a prerequisite for the success of cultural exchanges and people-to-people interaction between the two countries. One more thing has to be borne in mind. Peace with Pakistan can only be an intermediate stage. The merger of Pakistan with India and creation of ‘Akand Bharat’ will be the only permanent solution to the vexed problem.

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