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 India-Pakistan to resume cricketing ties after 5 years
Sub-continental cricketing ties, suspended in the wake of the
26/11 Mumbai attack, will resume after five years when Pakistan
tours India in December-January for playing playing three One-dayers
and two Twenty20 internationals.
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There has been mixed response to the
BCCI's decision to host Pakistan Cricket Team in December-January
for a limited-over series (July 2012). Ex cricketers like Sunil
Gavaskar and Kirti Azad are critical of this decision of BCCI,
while many others on both sides of the divide have welcomed this
idea. Imran Khan, ex-cricketer turned politician welcomed the idea
saying that this will pave the path for bringing normalcy to
relations between the two countries through negotiation table. For
Asif Ali Zardari, the President of Pakistan, this is a step of
confidence building between the two countries.
As such the relation between these
two neighbours has gone through lot of ups and downs. Despite
three wars between the two countries, some of the core issues are
of such a nature that they cannot be resolved through violence and
war, and so these problems persist from so many decades. The South
Asian countries, and India Pakistan in particular, inherit the
colonial legacy from the past and the problems related to the
policy of imperialist power, the United States, at present. Issues
like Kashmir, which is leading to massive suffering to Kashmiris,
is a big thorn in the flesh, but it can only be resolved through a
multi layered dialogue and gradual resumption of the relationship
amongst different groups-areas. The current atmosphere of lack of
trust, manifested though the VISA policies of both the countries
are a good reflection of what should not be there between good
neighbours. At present if one wants to visit Pakistan, the VISA is
not easy and one is granted a city wide VISA for Pakistan and even
then one has to report to the local police after one lands there.
Many restrictions are there for those visiting from Pakistan to
India.
The popular perception in India is
that Pakistan is responsible for all acts of terror in India.
While in Pakistan many things are attributed to the role of India,
its interference in the Pakistan. In India one can see that with
the mention of word Pakistan, there is an instant fright
descending in the atmosphere. The latest attack of 26/11 is still
being investigated and it has caused lot of worsening of the image
of Pakistan in Indian psyche. As such right since partition and
more so during last three decades these images are mutually
negative. The whole politics of oil, as reflected in and around
the Afghanistan-Taliban-Al Qaeda, which is primarily the creation
of US policy of maintaining dominance in the region for the sake
of controlling the global oil reserves, has the accomplice in the
form of Pakistan army. The distinction between the US-Army nexus
on one side and Pakistani civil society-democratic government is
not much realized in India. All charges are attributed to Pakistan
in general, leading to a negative feeling here. On the top of that
the policies of Pakistan are reflected on to Indian Muslims, who
in turn are supposed to be more loyal to Pakistan, an absurd and
baseless assumption.
This assumption was exploited in a surreal manner by Gujarat Chief
Minister Narendra Modi. In the after math of Godhra train
burning-Gujarat pogrom, first he attributed the train burning to
Pakistan’s ISI and then kept challenging General Parvez Musharff,
the then President of Pakistan, who had usurped power from
democratic Government, in his speeches. This went to the absurd
limits of communal polarization when during the Gujarat elections
the hoardings came up with Modi on one side and Musharraf on the
other side, as if Modi is fighting election against Musharraf. The
underlying message which Modi tried to give was that India is
under threat from Muslims as symbolized by Musharrf and Modi is
the saviour for Hindus. Musharrf was used as a symbolism for
Indian Muslims. This shrewd trick helped the communal forces to
consolidate themselves in Gujarat and other places, also leading
to the victory of Modi in the post pogrom Gujarat elections.
As such there is a growing realization in both the countries that
the destinies of both the countries are linked together and it is
in their own interests to grow more congenial relations, which in
turn will help solve most of the bilateral issues. Surely Pakistan
army and the ultra nationalists-communalists in India are against
such a rapprochement. Despite this there are many elements that
are longing for a peaceful south Asia. In this context the people
to people initiatives like Pak-India People’s forum, which keeps
linking the citizens of both the countries on many occasions, need
to be strengthened. This forum also plays a positive role wherever
possible like solving the issues of fishermen who are caught by
the sea guards. This is one amongst many initiatives undertaken by
this platform of amity and peace. Similarly Aman ki Asha, a joint
project between two big dailies, India’s Times of India and
Pakistan’s Jang is creating ripples of peace in a slow and
sustained manner.
As such there is a need to revive the SAARC, the joint platform of
South Asian countries for regional cooperation. This platform came
up with great amount of hope but seems to have lost steam from
quite some time. India-Pakistan are the major players in this
arena while the other South Asian countries share a lot of legacy,
commonality of problems and their cooperation is in the interest
of all of them. In this direction the peace loving individuals of
South Asia have been contributing by keeping the links alive
through various forums sowing the seeds of hope.
Today, this longing for bilateral relations and peace is finding a
growing articulation in the civil society in Pakistan as well.
Pakistan army, with its own vested interests is averse to such
measures of peace, but our hope and wish has to be a stronger
democracy in Pakistan, which will surely be looking forward to
strengthening the bonds of amity between the two countries. It
also reminds us as to how much both these countries are inflating
their defence budget, year after year, projecting the threat of
the ‘neighbouring enemy’. This inflated defence budget is at the
cost of the basic needs of social welfare, which are the dire
needs in both the countries.
Surely to begin with both the countries not only need to restore
the cricket but also take the steps in improving ties in the area
of trade, health and education. There is also a dire need to
loosen the tightness of VISA regime, which is stifling the
bilateral visits of civilians.
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