Pugwash meeting welcomes Indo-Pak dialogue

December 14, 2004
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The four-day Pugwash Conferences meeting, that concluded in the Nepali capital Tuesday, has welcomed the resumption of composite dialogue between India and Pakistan, and expressed hope that it would lead to enhanced confidence and greater cooperation in areas of mutual interest and a resolution of all outstanding issues including Jammu and Kashmir.

The meeting, that brought together nearly 50 delegates including political leaders, activists and academicians from both side of the Line of Control (LoC) of Jammu and Kashmir, reached into a consensus that dignity and welfare of the inhabitants of Jammu and Kashmir be of paramount importance, said a statement issued at the conclusion of the conference.

The process of peace needs to be developed around the following features, namely solutions to be sought in a peaceful manner, solutions to be perceived as honorable, and solutions to be feasible, the participants said.

Confidence building measures should be taken to include ending violence, steps should be taken to improve economy and social institutions and to create conditions of the rule of law, the participants said. They also called upon the dialogue process started in Kathmandu to be continued and institutionalized.

“For too long, conflict in Jammu and Kashmir has produced widespread suffering and deprivation for the people of the region and served as an enduring source of conflict between India and Pakistan. Participants expressed the hope that Jammu and Kashmir need not forever represent a chasm dividing Pakistan and India, but could potentially be a bridge between these two countries and transform the political and economic fortunes of South Asia,” said the statement.

Over four days, participants discussed ways of reducing violence and building trust, improving the transportation infrastructure and economy of the region, instituting cooperative programmes, and generally enhancing the welfare and fulfilling the aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, according to the organisers.

Responding to a query by media persons, Secretary General of the Pugwash Conferences, prof. Paolo Cotta-Ramusino, said the problem that has lasted 57 years can’t be resolved in 57 hours. “Our role is to encourage contacts at people to people level and that between people and political leadership. We did not want to come out with specific recommendations or facilitate negotiations,” said prof. Paolo.

“This is a good beginning. We hope we will be able to follow it up soon,” he added.

Future meetings and ways of continuing and intensifying the dialogue were discussed in the knowledge that the people of Jammu and Kashmir themselves must help lead the way to a more peaceful and prosperous future, the statement said.

Prof. Paolo extended thanks to the government of Nepal for its assistance in hosting the meeting in Kathmandu, and to the governments of India and Pakistan for their encouragement and support.

When asked how his organization looked at the situation in Nepal, prof. Paolo said, “We would like to see the situation in this country to improve and violence to come to an end.” Despite our limited resources, we would certainly be interested to help in whatever way possible, he added. nepalnews.com by Dec 14 04