Instant Kofi

Instant Kofi

Pakistan and Pakistani-inspired insurgents have long been inspired by the mythology surrounding the 1948 UN resolutions on Kashmir. Pakistan's attempts to internationalise the Kashmir issue over the decades drew much of its raison d'etre from its particular interpretation of these resolutions. It is in this context that the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's clarification on the exact status of the resolutions assumes crucial importance. Annan had pointed out, during his brief interaction with the media at Pakistan's Chaklala military airbase on Sunday, that the Kashmir resolutions did not come under Chapter 7 of the UN charter and was, therefore, not self-enforcing. As Annan set down for the record, unlike the resolutions on East Timor and Iraq which come under that specific chapter, the Kashmir resolutions would require the cooperation of both parties to get implemented.

Annan speaks on behalf of the international community and his observations should, hopefully, provide a much-needed fillip to the Indo-Pak peace process that has been floundering for some time now, despite India's unilateral declaration of ceasefire. Indeed, his statements drive home the point that it is the patience of the peace-maker rather than the impetuousness of the hawk that yields long-term dividends. The ceasefire strategy that Prime Minister Vajpayee courageously envisioned and held on to despite serious attempts to destabilise it, both by militants in the Valley and conservative opinion within his own government and party, has certainly helped India win international sympathy. The point, however, is to build on this. The inexplicable delay in getting to the next stage of the peace process, after the declaration of ceasefire, had given rise to fears that the gains to be had from silencing the guns were being needlessly frittered away. Vajpayee, in his reply to Monday's debate in the Lok Sabha on themotion of thanks to the President's address, acknowledged this delay, but also unequivocally stated that his government was serious about holding talks with ``all the parties'' to find a solution to the problem.

Having taken that bus ride across the border, no one knows better than Vajpayee the perils of arriving at a sustainable peace process. Annan voiced his hopes that the ``two countries would come together for a new dialogue, in the near future, under the spirit of the Lahore Declaration''. But that, precisely, is the rub. While the world recognises that the Shimla Pact and the Lahore Declaration are the only two road maps that exist to navigate that minefield called Indo-Pak relations, the present military dispensation in Pakistan refuses to stand by the commitments made by earlier governments vis-a-vis both pacts. In his talks with Annan, Pakistan's foreign minister Dr Abdul Sattar drew up an elaborate three-part plan which he said should help check violence in Kashmir and which would include direct talks with India. But, for starters, he would do well to listen to what Annan has to say and recognise the value of the Lahore spirit. It could light the way forward.