August 2010 | Voice Of Karachi

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

7 blunders haunting India

History is most unforgiving. As historical mistakes cannot be undone, they have complex cascading effect on a nation’s future. Here are seven historical blunders that have changed the course of independent India’s history and cast a dark shadow over its future. These costly mistakes will continue to haunt India for generations. They have been recounted here in a chronological order with a view to highlight the inadequacies of India’s decision-making apparatus and the leadership’s incompetence to act with vision. Kashmir Mess
There can be no better example of shooting one’s own foot than India’s clumsy handling of the Kashmir issue. It is a saga of naivety, blinkered vision and inept leadership. Hari Singh was the reigning monarch of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in 1947. He was vacillating when tribal marauders invaded Kashmir in October 1947, duly backed by the Pakistan army. Unable to counter them, Hari Singh appealed to India for assistance and agreed to accede to India. Indian forces blunted the invasion and re-conquered vast areas.
First, India erred by not insisting on unequivocal accession of the state to the Dominion of India and granted special status to it through Article 380 of the Constitution.
Secondly, when on the verge of evicting all invaders and recapturing the complete state, India halted operations on 1 January 1949 and appealed to the Security Council. It is the only case in known history wherein a country, when on the threshold of complete victory, has voluntarily forsaken it in the misplaced hope of winning admiration of the world community.Thirdly and most shockingly, the Indian leadership made a highly unconstitutional offer of plebiscite in the UN. Forty percent area of the state continues to be under Pakistan’s control, providing it a strategic land route to China through the Karakoram ranges. As a fall out of the unresolved dispute, India and Pakistan have fought numerous wars and skirmishes with no solution in sight. Worse, the local politicians are holding India to ransom by playing the Pak card. Kashmir issue is a self-created cancerous furuncle that defies all medications and continues to bleed the country.
No 2: Ignoring Chinese Threats and Neglecting the Military
Memories of the year 1962 will always trouble the Indian psyche. A nation of India’s size had lulled itself into believing that its protestations and platitudes of peaceful co-existence would be reciprocated by the world. It was often stated that a peace-loving nation like India did not need military at all. The armed forces were neglected. The political leadership took pride in denigrating the military leadership and meddled in internal affairs of the services to promote sycophancy. Foreign policy was in shambles. The intelligence apparatus was rusty.
Even though signs of China’s aggressive intentions were clearly discernible for years in advance, the Indian leadership decided to keep its eyes shut in the fond hope that the problem would resolve itself. When China struck, the country was caught totally unprepared. Troops were rushed to snowbound areas with summer clothing and outdated rifles. Despite numerous sagas of gallantry, the country suffered terrible embarrassment. India was on its knees. With the national morale and pride in tatters, India was forced to appeal to all nations for military aid. lnept and incompetent leadership had forced a proud nation to find solace in Lata Mangeshkar’s As Mere Watan Ke Logo
No 3: The Tashkent Agreement and Return of Haji Pir Pass
Following the cease-fire after the Indo-Pak War of 1965, a Russian-sponsored agreement was signed between India and Pakistan in Tashkent on 10 January 1966. Under the agreement, India agreed to return the strategic Haji Pir pass to Pakistan which it had captured in August 1965 against heavy odds and at a huge human cost. The pass connects Poonch and tin sectors in Jammu and Kashmir and reduces the distance between the two sectors to 15 km whereas the alternate route entails a travel of over 200 km. India got nothing in return except an undertaking by Pakistan to abjure war, an undertaking which meant little as Pakistan never had any intention of honouring it.
Return of the vital Haji Pir pass was a mistake of monumental proportions for which India is suffering to date. In addition to denying a direct link between Poonch and Uri sectors, the pass is being effectively used by Pakistan to sponsor infiltration of terrorists into India. Inability to resist Russian - pressure was a manifestation of the spineless Indian foreign policy and short-sighted leadership.
No 4: The Shimla Agreement
With the fall of Dhaka on 16 December 1971, India had scored a decisive victory over Pakistan. Over 96,000 Pak soldiers were taken Prisoners of War (Pouts). Later, an agreement was signed between the two countries on 2 July 1972 at Shimla. Both countries agreed to exchange all PoWs, respect the line of control (LOC) in Jammu and Kashmir and refrain from the use of threat or force. Additionally, Bhutto gave a solemn verbal undertaking to accept LOC as the de facto border.
India released all Pak PoWs in good faith. Pakistan, on the other hand, released only 617 Indian PoWs while holding back 54 PoWs who are still languishing in Pakistani jails. The Indian Government has admitted this fact a number of times but has failed to secure their release. India failed to use the leverage of 96,000 Pak POWs to discipline Pakistan. A rare opportunity was thus wasted. Forget establishing permanent peace in the sub-continent, India failed to ensure release of all Indian POWs - a criminal omission by all accounts.
The naivety of the Indian delegation can be seen from the fact that it allowed Pakistan to bluff its way through at Shimla. The Indian leadership was fooled into believing Pakistan’s sincerity. Unquestionably, Pakistan never intended to abide by its promises, both written and verbal. Fruits of a hard-fought victory in the battlefield were frittered away on the negotiating table by the bungling leadership.
No. 5: The Nuclear Muddle
Subsequent to the Chinese Nuclear Test at Lop Nor in 1964, India showed rare courage in carrying out its first nuclear test on 18 May 1974 at Pokharan. Outside the five permanent members of the UN.

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Bharatiya Janata Party

Monday, August 30, 2010

Indian maps removed by Chinese authorities during World Expo

The Indians were so much humiliated over recent visa row with China when China refused to give visa to Indian Army general over his posting in disputed Occupied Kashmir. But the Indian media was covering up earlier humiliation by not highlighting the incident of Indian maps removed by Chinese authorities during World Expo last month.
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Beijing's refusal to give a visa to an Army general because he commanded troops in J&K may have hurt relations but China betrayed signs it was hardening its approach to India in July. That was when officers of China's Public Security Bureau (PSB) marched unannounced into the India Pavilion at the World Expo2010 in Shanghai and confiscated brochures bearing a map of India.

Indian government officials told TOI that the PSB said they were taking the maps away because China objects to showing Arunachal Pradesh as part of Indian territory. Beijing claims Arunachal and does not recognize the frontier as a border. The PSB is really a euphemism for the police and is empowered to monitor foreign visitors and control dissent on campuses.

''They should have sent a letter to the Indian government instead of simply walking in and taking away the maps,'' an official said. The India Tourism Promotion Board, which put up the pavilion, and the Indian Consulate in Shanghai were not informed ahead of the incident of July 12. It happened within days of the National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon visiting Beijing as Manmohan Singh's special envoy and meeting premier Wen Jiabao. Ironically, China has not objected to Pakistan distributing maps showing another disputed area, Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, on Chinese soil.

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Invader Indian army use ’ new weapon: Torture, thrashing

Torture of youth by police and paramilitary CRPF is proving deadly in the current unrest in Kashmir. Among the 64 victims of past 79 days, five persons have lost their lives due to alleged custodial torture and thrashing by the forces, the youngest victim being the 9-year old Sameer of Batamaloo.

The latest victim of fatal torture is 17-year old Omar Qayoom Bhat, who succumbed to his injuries on past Wednesday. Omar was allegedly tortured in police custody.

Doctors told Greater Kashmir that his lungs were severely damaged due to blunt trauma.

“The trauma caused intrapulmonary hemorrhage and we put him on ventilator but couldn’t save his life,” they said.

The first victim, Rafiq Ahmed Bangroo, was severely beaten by CRPF troopers in June. After battling for life for a week, Bangroo breathed his last at SKIMS. He had received multiple injuries in head and other body parts.

Seventeen-year old Muzaffer Ahmed Bhat of Gangbugh Batamaloo was beaten to death by CRPF troopers and his body disposed off in a stream on July 5, locals say. Medicos, who performed his autopsy, revealed that he had two injury marks in the head.

The youngest victim, 9-year old Sameer Ahmed Rah was beaten to death by paramilitary troopers when he left for his cousin’s home to play carom.

Another victim, Syed Farakh Bukhari, was allegedly killed in police custody after being arrested at Choora Sangrama on July 28 for participating in protests. His body was recovered a fortnight later with multiple torture marks.

Scores of youth have also been wounded due to custodial torture across the valley in past over two months.

“I was beaten for two hours in police lock-up after being picked up on charges of stone-pelting and was only left after blood started oozing out of my mouth,” said Nazir Ahmed (name changed) of old city.

Medicos who treated trauma patients in city hospitals said that they have come across shocking cases of torture.

“We have seen many cases where vital parts of the body have been damaged without firearm injuries. A slight use of force on some parts of body can prove fatal,” said a SKIMS medico.

Experts say that use of lethal physical force has put the debate beyond use of lethal and non-lethal weapons for crowd control in the valley.

“Everybody would blame lethal weapons for civilian causalities, but these deaths have not taken place by firearm injuries,” experts said, adding that there is dire need of humane approach while dealing with detained stone-pelters and protesters.

The human rights activists and lawyers in the valley term torture as most cruel form of force, saying that this issue needs more attention.

“More than 5 lakh persons have been subjected to physical torture in past 20 years of conflict. The issue has not been highlighted like mass graves and disappearances. It is for the first time in present agitation that these deaths are getting noticed,” says human rights lawyer and Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society president, Parvez Imroz.

“Before this, victims would die silently after being subjected to physical torture by forces. We have started documenting torture cases in valley and it is bigger issue and needs international attention,” he said.

Human rights lawyer Mir Shafqat Hussain told Greater Kashmir that police has to follow guidelines given by Supreme Court in B.K. Basu versus state of West Bengal case in detention cases.

“They are flouting these guidelines. They have to produce detainee before magistrate and inform parents. He should be shifted to hospital within 48 hours for medical examination by an expert doctor as per this judgment,” he said. “They cannot torture detainee under custody.”

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Chanakya diplomacy: India offers cash to Naxals

If you can`t beat them buy them

Having achieved limited success in defeating the Maoists militarily, the government is now dangling attractive monetary rewards to those Naxalites who are willing to surrender with arms. The Centre has asked Maoist-affected states to draw surrender policies similar to the one announced by it about a year ago that includes a package of nearly Rs two lakh if the Naxalite comes with arms. The Central government’s policy gives each surrendered Naxalite an immediate grant of Rs 1.5 lakh, a Rs 3,000 monthly stipend during vocational training for upto three years and even monetary incentives for surrender of weapons, PTI reported Sunday. The Rs 1.5 lakh would be kept in a bank in the name of the surrendered ultra as a fixed deposit, which may be withdrawn by him or her after completion of three years, subject to good behaviour to be certified by the authorities designated for this purpose by the states concerned.
The Home Ministry has conveyed to Naxal-affected states that apart from continuing armed operations, they must address questions of poverty and economic deprivation, which apparently motivate many youths to join the extremist ranks. “A good and effective surrender and rehabilitation policy would definitely encourage many Maoist cadres to shun violence and surrender before the authorities. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary for each state to formulate one,” an official said.
The Maoist-affected states have been advised to examine the surrender and rehabilitation policies of the Central government and Northeastern states. The Home Ministry has also offered monetary incentives for surrender of weapons, which include Rs 15,000 for depositing one AK-47 or AK-56 or AK-74 rifle.Rs 25,000 will be Maoist guerrillas killed five policemen in a gunfight in India’s central state of Chhattisgarh on Sunday, a senior police officer told. Three of the men belonged to the elite Border Security Force paramilitary group and two were regular police officers, Chhattisgarh’s anti-Maoist operations chief Ramniwas, who only uses one name, told.
The clash took place in Kanker district, 175 kilometres (110 miles) south of the state capital Raipur. Kanker is the headquarters of a police jungle warfare school which trains security personnel in the government’s increasing efforts to tackle the Maoist insurgency.
Chattisgarh is a stronghold of the rebels, who killed 15 police officers in an attack in the state two months ago. Authorities in New Delhi launched an offensive last year to tackle the worsening insurgency, but since then the Maoists have hit back with a series of bloody strikes.

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Chhattisgarh

Communist Party of India (Maoist)

Sunday, August 29, 2010

China’s Principle Stand over Kashmir

China has always maintainced his principle stand over Kashmir issue and has also claimed over Jurisdiction of Arunachal Pradesh.
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By Zaheerul Hassan

China refused to issue visa to a very high level Indian Defence delegation since one of the top commanders Lt-Gen B S Jaswal was General Officer Commander of Northeran Area. It is notable here that General V K Singh, the Army chief was supposed to lead the delegation. Anyhow New Delhi has canceled defense exchanges with China after Beijing refusal. It is pertinent to mention here that General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Area Command is responsible for Jammu & Kashmir, a state that China and Pakistan consider it disputed territory. Jammu and Kashmir. External Affairs Minister S M Krishna is likely to raise the issue with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi's visit to India on October 26-27, in the trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of India, China and Russia which will be held in Bangalore.

China has always maintained his principle stand over Kashmir issue and has also claimed over Jurisdiction of Arunachal Pradesh. The border dispute with China was inherited by India from British colonial rulers, who hosted a 1914 conference with the Tibetan and Chinese governments that set the border in what is now Arunachal Pradesh. China has never recognised the 1914 McMahon Line and claims 90,000 sq km, nearly all of Arunachal Pradesh (about 2000 sq kms). India accuses China of occupying 8,000 sq km of its territory in Kashmir. In 1962, China has captured most of area and voluntarily withdrew back to the McMahon Line. Beijing has stated that it does not recognise Arunachal Pradesh. The border between China and India has never been officially delimited. China's position on the eastern part of the border between the two countries is consistent. Not a single Chinese government recognizes the "illegal" McMahon Line. For China, the McMahon Line stands as a symbol of imperialist aggression on the country and thus the so-called "Arunachal Pradesh" dispute is China's most intractable border issue. Because the gap between the positions of China and India is wide, it is difficult for both nations to reach consensus.

On the other hand, Pakistan does not have any border dispute with China and according to “Boundary Agreement” of 1963; she ceded 5,180 sq. kms to her. China always favoured Pakistan stance over Kashmir and never acknowledge Indian illegal rights over Kashmir valley. She also knows that one of the aims of US is to contain China and in this context India is one of the most favourite allies of America. She is well aware of the fact that New Delhi always sheltered Dalai Lama’s and supported his stance over Tibet. The china position is directly connected to Pakistan argument on Kashmir too. She always condemned Indian brutality against Kashmiries innocent people. Her ties with Pakistan are ever lasting and deep routed too. Recently despite Indian hue and cry, she announced the supply of two nuclear plants to Pakistan. India always tried to damage the relations between China and Pakistan. Her Intelligence agency RAW has even targeted Chinese engineers working on projects in Pakistan and Nigeria in the last few years. Reportedly, recently warning has been issued to Punjab and other provinces that again some foreign sponsored terrorist has planned to target Chinese individuals participating in various development projects in Pakistan.

In fact, China at number of times denies visas to Indian officials and citizens of Kashmir and Arunachal since Pakistan and China both give separate status to The Chinese embassy has been issuing visas for some time to passport holders from Jammu and Kashmir on a separate sheet of paper rather than stamping them in their passports, which is the norm with other Indian citizens. They have given stapled visas earlier to residents of Arunachal Pradesh, over which China very rightly claims its sovereignty. Similar practice is also use to be followed in Pakistan with regard to India.

Actually the tension between two countries keeps on prevailing since China’s inception. The border dispute remained extremely troubling and disturbing between them. Indo-Sino War 1962, high border tension of 1986 and 2009 always posed danger of nuclear war in the region. Thus, in establishing close ties India always preferred Soviet Union and US over China. However the visa issue further confirmed the trust deficit between two capitals. It does suggest a new level of tension between India and China. Indian top brass is very much upset due to China’s stance over Kashmir and refusal of visa to serving general. In this regard a renowned Indian leader Bhattachrjea expressed in a statement that if the Chinese are beginning to highlight the disputed status of Jammu and Kashmir, then it’s a matter of great concern and anxiety which means Trust deficit is growing.

It is well know established fact that India is interested to have a permanent seat in UN Security Council. The lollipop in the shape of seat would be backed by her master US but in this connection again great hurdle in her way is China. Srikanth Kondapalli, a China expert at the Jawaharlal Nehru University declared visa issue and Kashmir dispute as pinpricks which could be used as a bargaining chip for a seat in the UN Security Council.

Therefore, New Delhi government has to think seriously if she is interested to go for some bigger regional roles then she has to act like that. She has to first resolve bilateral issues with her neighbouring countries like China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. Kashmir Issue is also directly related Water Dispute between Pakistan and India. India must realize that Pakistan and China are regional nuclear states. Any ignition or spark can be converted into flame fire because of foolishness Indian approach towards the regional conflicts.

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Indian Maoist ambush in central India killed five policemen

Kashmir, Maoist, Tamils, Assam, Sikhs and Nagaland and movements for social or economic justice which are runing all most throughout the country. However the most serious internal threat to India national security is Sikhs, Kashmir and Maoist movements.In fact stability in India would be a dream.
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Maoist guerrillas killed five policemen in a gunfight in India's central state of Chhattisgarh on Sunday, a senior police officer told AFP.Three of the men belonged to the elite Border Security Force paramilitary group and two were regular police officers, Chhattisgarh's anti-Maoist operations chief Ramniwas, who only uses one name, told AFP.
The clash took place in Kanker district, 175 kilometres (110 miles) south of the state capital Raipur.
Kanker is the headquarters of a police jungle warfare school which trains security personnel in the government's increasing efforts to tackle the Maoist insurgency.
Chattisgarh is a stronghold of the rebels, who killed 15 police officers in an attack in the state two months ago.
Authorities in New Delhi launched an offensive last year to tackle the worsening insurgency, but since then the Maoists have hit back with a series of bloody strikes.
Maoist rebel groups have fought for decades in east India against state and central government rule, drawing support from tribal groups and landless farmers left behind by the country's.
More than one-third of India's 626 administrative districts are affected by the Maoist insurgency, which Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described as the main internal security threat.
The rebels claim they are fighting for the rights of tribal, landless and poor people and are active in some of the country's poorest regions.
Chhattisgarh has seen some of the worst incidents of Maoist violence, most of them in the mineral-rich, forested Bastar region, which covers a 40,000-square-kilometre area and includes Kanker.
From July 2007 to July 2010, 418 civilians and 435 police officers were killed in Chhattisgarh, according to data provided by local police.

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Dantewada

Raipur, Chhattisgarh

Pakistani cricket stars accused of fixing allegations

The allegation proved, a ban should be slapped on the players involved in the match fixing scandal besodes their properites should also be seized. (Former Chairman PCB Lt Gen Tauqir Zia)

British newspaper claims that as many as seven Pakistani cricket players on tour to England have been allegedly involve in match fixing. The claim was made public after a 35-year-old man was arrested after allegedly being caught offering to bribe Pakistan's bowlers to bowl no-balls on demand.
'The News of the World' tabloid splashed details of a sting operation it conducted on a London-based individual, Mazhar Majeed. The tabloid said it gave 150,000 pounds to him after he promised to arrange for Pakistan bowlers to bowl no-balls during the match. Majeed, 35, was arrested on late Saturday night by the Scotland Yard. The ICC too has now risen to the issue. They have come out with a release after the sting was telecast, saying investigations are on and also clarifying that no player has been arrested.In a statement the ICC said, "No players nor team officials have been arrested in relation to this incident...Test match will continue as scheduled on Sunday." However, seven Pakistani cricketers are now under investigation for match-fixing. The Pakistan Cricket Board has also confirmed that some of the players are under investigation.
"Scotland Yard detectives had visited the team hotel where they had taken statements of captain Salman Butt, fast bowlers Muhammad Asif and Muhammad Aamir, and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal," Pakistan team manager, Yawar Saeed said from London. The two Pakistan cricketers who allegedly bowled no-balls under directions from Majeed were Mohammed Amir and Mohammed Asif. Both bowlers delivered three no-balls in the ongoing Test against England on Thursday and Friday at the historic Lord's. The two bowlers delivered the no-balls at precisely the moments promised to our reporter', the tabloid said. "Our undercover team was posing as front men for a Far East gambling cartel. In return for their suitcase of money Majeed then calmly detailed what would happen - and when - on the field of play next day, as a taster of all the lucrative information he could supply in future," it reported. Majeed reportedly said: "I'm going to give you three no-balls to prove to you firstly that this is what's happening. They've all been organised, okay? This is 'exactly' what's going to happen, you're going to 'see' these three things happen. I'm telling you, if you play this right you're going to make a lot of money, believe me!" Majeed identified Pakistan captain Salman Butt as the 'ringleader of the band of cheats'. He also reportedly named wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal and boasted that he had a total of seven corrupt cricketers in his pocket, the report said.Majeed is identified as a property tycoon with a house in Surrey worth 1.8 million pounds.
The British media also claimed that Scotland Yard raided the rooms of Pakistani cricketers and seized their mobile phones, laptops and passports while Pakistani High Commissioner to UK Wajid Shamsul Hassan was also present on the occasion. The UK police also arrested a man outside the hotel where the national team is residing; however ICC said that none of the Pakistani players has been nabbed. Pakistan's team manager Yawar Saeed while talking to Dunya News confirmed that the allegations were being investigated, with police turning up at the team hotel, shortly after the close of an eventful third day of the Lord's Test, in which Pakistan were left on the brink of defeat after losing 14 wickets in the day.

Match-fixing scandal embarrassed nation: Iqbal Ali
Match-fixing scandal embarrassed nation: Iqbal Ali Talking to Dunya News, Chairman Standing Committee for Sports Iqbal Muhammad Ali said that the match-fixing scandal embarrassed the whole nation. He deplored that the dirty acts were being done under the nose of authorities.

Life ban be imposed on players: Tauqir Zia
Former chairman PCB Lt Gen Tauqir Zia, while talking to Dunya News, said that if the allegations proved, a ban should be slapped on the players involved in the match-fixing scandal besides their properties should also be seized. He lamented that the players were lured by the urge to make easy bucks.

PCB should conduct an inquiry of the matter: Sarfarz Nawaz
Former test cricketer and fast bowler while talking to Dunya News termed the event as a failure of Pakistan Cricket Board management and chairman. He said that the entire nation will be greatly disappointed if the players are found guilty. He added that PCB and standing committee should conduct an independent investigation.

British media trying to malign Pakistani players: Iqbal Qasim
Talking to Dunya News former chief selector PCB Iqbal Qasim said that it seemed as if the British media has unleashed a propaganda to malign the Pakistani players.

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CIA's Red Cell ‘exporter of terrorism’

Latest exposé by Wikileaks comprising a classified three-page classified paper produced in February by the CIA's Red Cell, a think tank set up after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks by then-CIA Director George J. Tenet to provide "out-of-the-box" analyses on "a full range of analytic issues" discloses that the US has long been an exporter of terrorism. The secret CIA analysis is so explosive that it could damage relations between the US and its so called allies in the Global War against Terror. Titled "What If Foreigners See the United States as an 'Incubator and Exporter of Terrorism'?", the analysis could spoil relations with foreign allies and diminish their willingness to cooperate in "extrajudicial" activities, such as the rendition and interrogation of terrorism suspects. The report cautions that this may lead to formal inquiries concerning US citizens by foreign intelligence agencies who may "even request the rendition of US citizens." Renditions involve the transfer of suspected terrorists from one state to another where torture is used to extract information. The report warns that US failure to cooperate with these requests, "might lead some governments to consider secretly extracting US citizens suspected of foreign terrorism from US soil."In the case of Pakistan, the paper cites Pakistani American David Headley, among others, to make its case that America is a terrorism exporter. This year Headley, who was an US agent of the Drug Enforcement Agency, pleaded guilty to conducting surveillance in support of the 2008 Lashkar-i-Taiba attacks in Mumbai, which killed more than 160 people. The Wikileaks exposé reveals that the US was aware that Pakistan was not involved in the Mumbai attack, yet it supported the Indian version, although it nearly brought the two erstwhile hostile neighbours to the brink of war and has been used as a plea for India to derail the peace talks with Pakistan. The Indians got emboldened by the US instance of covering its own tracks and involvement in the carnage and the role of CIA and tried to pressurize Pakistan.An extremely explosive revelation is the existence of the US operated “Schools of Americas” in Georgia. The school offers training in counterinsurgency, interrogation, and anti terror tactics and strategies. Thousands of Latin American military personnel have trained there over the years. Graduates include some of the worst dictators in that region including those behind the deadly Operation Condor in the 1980s. Some of the worst atrocities in the region were committed by school graduates. The school's level of responsibility for the behavior of its graduate can't be quantified in precise terms. However, for some graduates, the training failed to instill a respect for humanity and taught tactics that were employed against the citizens that the military leaders were to protect. The US has held the leadership position in NATO since its inception in 1949. In 1990, the European Parliament passed a resolution condemning Operation Gladio and US involvement (European Parliament resolution on Gladio, Nov. 22, 1990, Clause G. 2). This involved paramilitary groups in NATO member nations and France. The groups were created by US and British intelligence after World War II. The original goal was to provide resistance in case of a takeover by the Soviet Union. Long after that was a viable concern, the groups continued by staging false-flag terror attacks against their own citizens. The incidents, which killed thousands, were committed by the Gladio groups and falsely attributed to Communists and Soviet sympathizers. These are just two examples of the unrestrained and counterproductive use of power exported by successive US administrations. It's no accident that this information is kept from the world as well as US citizens. It brings to the fore that the CIA is oblivious to loss of human lives and explains the US callousness in the drone attacks in Pakistan and elsewhere in the region. The Daily Mail opines that that the Wikileaks provide food for thought for Pakistan to rethink its level of cooperation with US in the prevailing war against terror. Since Pakistan is itself now a major victim of the terror attacks, it cannot pack up the antiterror operations, but must execute them according to its own requirement and not US diktats.

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CIA

Wikileaks

Julian Assange

Central Intelligence Agency

Terrorism

US Crime

Why is the US so indifferent to Pakistan’s woes?

David Ignatius

Here’s a simple proposal that would help get America past its recent traumas about Islamophobia: Let’s embrace Pakistan in its hour of need after this month’s devastating floods in the same way that we rushed to aid Haiti after the earthquake.

The Pakistan flooding, which has displaced an estimated 20 million people, is one of those natural disasters that can break through the usual political barriers and resentments. It reminds us of our human bond with people who are suffering on a scale that’s hard to conceive. The Haiti quake produced such an outpouring of assistance, but there hasn’t yet been a comparable response from Americans to the Pakistan disaster.

Where is the surge of private contributions? Where are the movie stars whose private jets were queued up in Port au Prince? Where are Anderson Cooper and the other journalists who rushed to Haiti? Where are Barack and Michelle Obama, and why can’t they adopt the Pakistani people in the way Bill and Hillary Clinton did with Haiti?

“Pakistan needs help from its friends and allies,” says Nadeem Kiani, the spokesman for the Pakistan Embassy in Washington. Flood waters are engulfing much of the country, destroying the crops, seeds and livestock of tens of millions of farmers. These desperate families will need government assistance for at least a year, just to survive.

The floods are Pakistan’s worst natural disaster since its creation in 1947, according to UN data, eclipsing past earthquakes, storms and droughts. It’s a crisis of “biblical proportions,” as we like to say in the West, coming on top of an economic breakdown, a surge of brutal terrorism by the Taliban and a loss of faith in government leaders.

As someone who has visited Pakistan often over the past year, I worry that the country is nearing the tipping point – a moment when the multiple pressures overwhelm the government’s ability to cope and Pakistan borders on becoming a failed state. That would be a disaster for Pakistan, and for America, too.

One positive sign amid all this gloom is that the Pakistani military leadership is moving away from its traditional obsession with India and focusing on the internal dangers. The Inter-Services Intelligence directorate produced an assessment this month specifying that “the threat from within from extremists has surpassed the external threat from India,” according to a Pakistani source familiar with the document.

The Obama administration has made a good start on flood relief. The US government has contributed $90 million in disaster assistance, nearly triple the amount from the next largest donor, according to United Nations figures. The United States also has a Marine force stationed offshore, to help with relief and also with military contingencies should the country veer toward chaos.

But US private assistance has been modest, so far. You can contribute to UN relief efforts with a text message (text “SWAT” to 50555), but a UN spokesman says this appeal has produced only about $100,000 in US private donations. A similar text-contribution effort by the Red Cross has raised only $10,000 for Pakistan, compared to the $32 million harvested for Haiti in a similar campaign, according to the website of The Atlantic magazine.

Yes, I know that Haiti is close to our shores, but even so, the disparity in aid is striking: The United Nations says it has received $11.2 million in US private aid for Pakistan, which is dwarfed by the $211 million that Americans donated to UN relief for Haiti. Overall donations to Haiti were a stupendous $2.5 billion, so much money that relief agencies have had difficulty spending it effectively.

The national security arguments for coming to Pakistan’s rescue are strong, but there’s a larger point: Helping desperate Pakistanis in this catastrophe would be good for the American soul. As the world watches the angry debate about the so-called Ground Zero mosque in Lower Manhattan, people must wonder if America has lost its famous tolerance and generosity when it comes to Muslims.

We all know in our personal lives the paradoxical truth about charity – that it helps the giver as much as the receiver. This would be especially true now, with a national mobilisation to aid Pakistan. An America that remains closed and bitter toward the Muslim world is a nation still suffering the aftershocks of September 11, 2001. An America that extends a helping hand is one that has surmounted this tragedy and regained its balance.

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Saturday, August 28, 2010

Karzai is speaking foot in mouth against Pakistan

Karzai is speaking foot in mouth against Pakistan along his anti-Pakistan minister Rangeen Dadfar while failed to check his own house for the incompetency leading to failure in Afghanistan.

The CIA has multiple members of the Afghan government on its payroll in order to help it keep track of various factions within the Afghan government, according to former U.S. officials. These individuals confirmed to The Associated Press reports that the agency has used payments to cultivate intelligence sources across the Afghan government, a practice that has raised concerns at a time when the U.S. is fighting corruption there.
The New York Times reported the agency is paying Mohammed Zia Salehi, the chief of administration for Afghanistan's National Security Council, for information. The Washington Post also had the report.
Salehi is accused of accepting a car in exchange for his help in exerting pressure on Afghan officials to ease off in another corruption case.
The U.S. has previously said it views Salehi's arrest as a test case of Karzai's willingness to reform his government. But the revelation that he has also received payments from the U.S. spy agency demonstrates the complex relationship Washington has developed with the Afghan government.
George Little, spokesman for the CIA, would neither confirm nor deny the report, saying that speculation about such matters was dangerous.
"This agency — acting in strict accord with American law — plays an essential role in promoting our nation's goals in Afghanistan, including security and stability," he said. "Speculation about who may help us achieve that is both dangerous and counterproductive."
The CIA has placed many Afghan officials on the payroll over the years, according to Ali A. Jalali, Afghan interior minister from 2003 to 2005 and now a professor in the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies at National Defense University. He said that the U.S. intelligence agency has had deep involvement in Afghanistan for decades and that it would be natural for the CIA to have long-standing "relationships" with many Afghan leaders. "You have to put things into perspective," he said.
He said he doubted Karzai would be surprised if Salehi were on the CIA payroll, as alleged. "When Karzai was fighting against the Taliban, he was supported by the agency," too, he said.
Four former senior intelligence officials said it was common practice for the intelligence community to develop sources of information within fragile or hostile foreign governments. The former officials spoke anonymously because they are not authorized to talk about classified matters to the media.
One of the officials explained that from 2003 to 2004, the CIA had "a third of Iraq's original coalition government on the payroll." He added, "One of the first things we attempted to do when we went into Iraq is buy the loyalty of the former Ba'aathists, so they wouldn't fight us. You buy the leadership."
Another former official pointed out that the U.S. made regular payments to the leaders of the Sunni group "Sons of Iraq," made up of many former insurgents, in order to secure their cooperation and get them to stop attacking the Americans.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to describe a classified intelligence practice.
The Sons of Iraq were part of the Iraqi "Awakening," movement, which was credited with turning around the insurgency in Iraq and bringing Sunni splinter groups into the Iraqi government.
The officials said this is the kind of results the CIA would be trying to produce in Afghanistan.

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Sialkot incident pulls nation head in shame

By Syed Ali Raza Abidi

Thanks to the media, the nation is able to see the brutal culture prevalent in regional society by the revelation of the most disgusting video of the inhuman extra-judicial murder of two brothers in Sialkot. This is not the first time humans were publicly tortured to death in Pakistan. Until now most of us knew of the Taliban style stoning, be-headings, flogging, slashing of body parts, bombings, and public assassination. Well, time has come to realize that it is the tribal cum feudal culture in Pakistan that has brought this country to its knees.
We have read, seen or heard about stories of, rape, karo kari, acid spraying, poisoning, electrocuted, disabled by chopping off organs, feeding the alleged to the dogs, hanging upside down for days, and constantly beaten into confessions inside public and private jails are just some of the examples of the evil present in the sub-continent.
This issue in not Pakistan limited. During the Gujrat riots in India, Muslims students were beaten by mobs, in presence of the law. Similar, incidents happen, in other countries too.
Fake degrees, Airblue, suicide bombings, Karachi killings, and the mighty on going floods, was the reason the Sialkot incident was felt so gravely, which actually forced you to feel the pain the brothers were going through for wrongly being labelled as dacoits and killers, and beaten so mercilessly. I recall the part in the video when the younger brother was already dead, but continued to be hit by rods, stones, logs, and kicks. The older brother still alive for the past 2 hours sustaining the blows had given when the brick was thrown on his face! That was his last twitch.
How can one control emotions when everything around you is just not right?
It must be noted, that many such incidents happen all over Pakistan, where the law is a part of it or a witness to it. This is all because of the serious levels of corruption prevalent especially in Pakistan. The whole system has already collapsed.
Luckily, and after 3 days into the incident, the Chief Justice had to take a Suo-Moto on the act, once the video was played by TV channels. Local administration was activated the next day, and started dismissing and demoting officers left and right. Then on the 5th day arrest of the involved and on the 6th day FIR was registered against 40 or more persons, including 14 Police officers.
Sadly, until I write this only eight have been arrested, and the ones’ who were in custody have escaped.
Question is, if the Media or technology does not capture and release such atrocities in action, the law is not interested in knowing why the incident happened, let alone they were alleged robber?
We don’t know what will happen to the culprits or how the situation will be changed to the benefit of the attackers, but I know the brother had to go through sever pain before seperating their soul from their battered and roped bodies.
Right now, Pakistan needs a Tehreek-e-Insaniyat more than anything else. Please don’t let them get away with this one, and make sure the culprits are brought to justice.
I feel, if the youth of Pakistan do not wake up now, they will continue to torture you and murder you as and when they get the chance!
Pakistan belongs to the youth now, as its their future that is at stake. Hence, it is you who have to make or break Pakistan.

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Chief Justice of Pakistan

Deadly attacks on NATO military bases in Khost

Years of experience on different battlefields, familiarity with the terrain and popular support enable Taliban to wage attacks against US and coalition troops in a never-ending fashion.
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Taliban says 18 US Servicemen have been killed following a deadly attack on US controlled base chapman in Southern Khost province, last night.

A surge in Taliban countermeasure against US and coalition troops in Afghanistan reached its peak last night when about 30 Taliban fighters attacked base Chapman – the site of earlier attacks – in southeastern Khost Province.

Reliable sources say up to 18 US servicemen killed since the beginning of overnight attack that is still ongoing.

A similar operation on base Chapman in December inflicted heavy losses on US forces when 7 private security personnel were killed and scores wounded. The base serves as a strategic crossing point for US-led operation in southeastern Afghanistan near Pakistani border and close to Taliban controlled areas of Kandahar Province.

Taliban have stepped up attacks on US-led troops since Obama announced his surge strategy aimed at defeating resistance in Afghanistan. However, years of experience on different battlefields, familiarity with the terrain and popular support enable Taliban to wage attacks against US and other troops in a never-ending fashion.

According to a Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, some 30 fighters including suicide bombers and others armed with rockets and machine guns had attacked the base. So far - despite official claims of almost 2000 - over 4500 US and coalition troops have been killed since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan began in 2001 under the pretext of combating terrorism.

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Friday, August 27, 2010

Illegal explosives materials trade in India

Police in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh say they are investigating the disappearance of several hundred tonnes of explosives.

About 164 truckloads, sent from the neighbouring state of Rajasthan, have failed to arrive since May.
Police say they suspect the involvement of illegal mining outfits, but one officer said some explosives might have been sold on to militants.
Two men have been arrested and rewards have been offered for five others.
The explosives were sent out from a factory in Dholpur in Rajasthan.
Police say the total amount of missing explosives is 848 tonnes, besides hundreds of thousands of detonators.
Indians smuggling ring is suspected of hijacking more than 160 trucks carrying 450 tons of explosives, police in India say. Police first believed about 60 trucks were missing, but after interrogating a suspect in the case found the number to be much higher, The Times of India said Friday.
Investigators suspected the existence of a nationwide explosives smuggling racket, said Sagar district Police Chief Vijay Kumar Suryawanshi.
Authorities discovered details of the scheme after questioning four employees from Dholpur's Rajasthan Explosives and Chemicals Ltd., an explosives supplier.
The scam may have been made possible because employees working for the company that purchased the explosives, Sangam Explosives Ltd., knew when they were to be shipped, allowing them to be hijacked en route, the report said. Investigators did not say what the stolen explosives were to have been used for.
Police said they have recovered hundreds of containers of explosives, detonators and associated items.

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Red Dragon refused visa to top general in Indian occupied Kashmir

Defence ties between China and India have remained tentative due to long standing disputes and a lack of trust, the fought a short war in 1962.

Beijing refused a visa to an army general from the Indian occupied Kashmir (Iok), government sources and local media said on Friday.

New Delhi would give little details on the issue, only saying that the visit by the general to China did not take place.

"While we value our exchanges with China, there must be sensitivity to each others' concerns. Our dialogue with China on these issues is ongoing," India's foreign ministry spokesman said in a statement.

Last year, India protested against a Chinese embassy policy of issuing different visas to residents of Indian Kashmir, one of a series of low-level disputes between the Asian giants.
Last year, India protested against the Chinese practice of issuing visas to Kashmiris on separate pieces of paper, unlike the standard visas it offered to other Indians.
The disputed status of Kashmir has been behind two of the three wars between India and Pakistan; the two countries each administer part of Kashmir but claim the territory in full.
China maintains that part of Kashmir should be in Tibet, which it claims.
A separatist insurgency in Kashmir has killed tens of thousands of people since it began in 1989.
India and China have never been close, but of late they have become engaged in increasingly sharp rounds of diplomatic thrust and parry. In September, India signaled its approval of a planned visit by the Dalai Lama to the border town of Tawang, the site of a famous Tibetan Buddhist monastery — a move that China interpreted as a provocation. Beijing then objected to a visit by Manmohan Singh, the Indian Prime Minister, to Arunachal Pradesh, claiming it was part of Tibet, which belongs to China. Outraged that China presumed to tell an Indian leader not to go to territory legally recognized as India's, New Delhi then objected to a new power plant that China is building in Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, territory that India claims. Almost no one expects this year's harsh words to escalate into military action, but the hostility is real. "China is trying to see how far India can be pushed.

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Thursday, August 26, 2010

‘saffron terror’ threat and Indians denial mode

Hindu terrorism and its links with Indian army is going on since the days of Savarkar when his followers killed Gandhi but Indians are in denial mode and today their own minister is admitting that Hindu terrorism in India growing.
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India’s home minister warned on Wednesday that Hindu extremists posed an increasing risk to national security, dubbing the threat as “saffron terror”.
The colour saffron is associated with Hindu nationalism in India, and some right-wing groups have been linked to militant attacks in the north and west of the country.
However, most major recent attacks, including those in Mumbai in 2008 during which 166 people died, have been blamed on Islamists. “We have recently uncovered a new phenomenon of ‘saffron terror’ and I ask you to be vigilant,” P. Chidambaram told an annual meeting of police chiefs in New Delhi.
Hardline regional parties like the Shiv Sena, which is based in Mumbai, vow to defend Hindu rights in India, but deny they are behind any violent militant activity.
Chidambaram also warned that the government faced a lengthy battle to defeat India’s worsening Maoist insurgency in eastern and central states. Maoist attacks have risen with scores of police and soldiers killed in ambushes since Chidambaram launched a nationwide security offensive last year.
“The people of India understand that the conflict will be a long-drawn one, that patience is the key, that mistakes will be made and that the security forces need material and moral support,” he said. India has almost doubled its homeland security budget to 405 billion rupees (nine billion dollars) since 2008-2009, he added.
The Maoist rebels say they fight against federal and state authorities on behalf of landless tribal groups and poor farmers who have been left behind by economic development.
Indian Defence Minister A K Antony Wednesday said that more high profile indigenous defence equipment were needed by New Delhi government as he termed security scenario in the country as “critical”.
Speaking in the Upper House of the Indian parliament, Rajya Sabha during a Question Hour, the Defence Minister said, “The security situation in the country is critical as we are surrounded by hostile countries. Therefore, we need defence equipment urgently”.
He said the government was encouraging DRDO scientists as well as other agencies to develop high profile indigenous defence equipment. Currently India manufactures 30 per cent of such equipment and depends on imports for the rest, he said adding the government wanted to become self-sufficient in defence production.
“India has faced sanctions on many occasions, but these have only increased our will power. Indian scientists have produced several critical equipment overcoming sanctions,” Antony said.
“The Transfer of Technology (ToT) clause in the contract for procuring equipment is compulsory as we don’t want to remain just a buyer. We are preparing a strong defence base and within a reasonable time, India will be able to produce indigenous equipment. DRDO and other agencies are doing their best, though we cannot expect miracles," Antony said.
The Indian Defence Minister said that to encourage production of indigenous equipment, the government has allowed 26 per cent FDI in the defence sector and 100 per cent participation of private entities in defence production. Earlier only PSUs were allowed to participate in defence production.
Antony said the Defence procurement procedure provides for manufacturing of modern equipment in the country and encouraging Indian industries to participate in manufacturing indigenous equipment.

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Terrorism

Bharatiya Janata Party

Hindu

Judges Caught Cheating in LL.M exam

Increasing number of reports on the corruption and unfair practices of the indian judiciary, the latest news of 5 district judges and three advocates who were caught cheating in LL.M exam has come at a new low.

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Wednesday ordered the suspension of five judges who were caught cheating during the first year Master of Law (LLM) examinations in Warangal.
The judges, along with three advocates, put the judiciary to shame by resorting to blatant copying in the examinations at the Arts and Science College on Tuesday. They are students of the Kakatiya University's School of Distance Learning and Continuing Examination.
Passing the LLM examinations would have fetched them handsome increments and made them eligible for promotions in future.
Those caught copying are Anantapur senior civil judge M. Krishnappa, Ranga Reddy district senior civil judge K. Ajithsimha Rao, second additional district judge Vijayanand, Bapatla senior civil judge M Srinivasa Chary and Warangal junior civil judge Hanumantha Rao, besides advocates P. Sheela Rani, K. Venkanna and V. Rajasekhar.
All eight were debarred from taking further examinations.
Dr Nalapalli Manohar, the university's additional controller of examination, said the candidates were writing their examinations in Room No. 102 when a flying squad of invigilators headed by him made a surprise visit to the college.
The team was earlier alerted and hence were accompanied by reporters and cameramen of a local television channel. One of the judges was found copying from a book Legal and Constitutional History of India which he had hidden under his answer sheet.
A few others were caught with slips torn out of text books and other study material.
The invigilators immediately confiscated the answer sheets and the material used for copying from the accused and debarred them on the spot.
"We are not bothered whether they are judges, advocates or policemen. For us, they were students appearing for an examination," Manohar said.
However, the university authorities did not file any case against them in the police stations.
"The answer papers of those caught would not be evaluated. They would be barred from writing the two remaining examinations," Manohar added.
The university's controller of examinations Prof. S. Ram Reddy said the matter would be reported to the government for appropriate action.
Taking serious note of the incident, a team of five senior judges of the high court headed by chief justice N. A. Kakru directed the high court registrar to suspend the accused and instructed the state government to take disciplinary action against them.
The high court also asked the university authorities to submit a comprehensive report on the incident of mass copying before it.

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The bleeding vale of Indian Held Kashmir

Kashmiri struggle has entered another phase that is going to shape the future InshaAllah.
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Brig (R) Asif Haroon Raja

THE cauldron of Kashmir continues to simmer and smoulder in view of India’s scorched earth policy. Appalling human rights abuses and atrocities have been committed against civilian population. According to recently published Human Rights report, between 1989 and June 30, 2010, the number of Kashmiris killed at the hands of Indian security forces stands at 93,274. Additionally, there have been 6969 custodial killing, over 107,351 children have been orphaned, 22,728 women widowed and 9920 women gang raped. 11735 persons were arrested and 105861 houses or structures in use were razed.

Ever since indigenous armed resistance commenced in Indian Held Kashmir (IHK) in 1989, India has been incessantly holding Pakistan responsible for the uprising. It portrayed the freedom struggle as terrorist movement wholly aided by Pakistan. India didn’t take into account the hard realities that Kashmiris had sustained the cruelties of Indian forces for too long. They had been repeatedly duped and promise of plebiscite made by Jawahar Lal Nehru made in 1948 remained unfulfilled. They had got fed up of the puppet state regimes imposed upon them and the lackluster approach of Pakistan towards their cause.
They got inspired by the Islamic revolution in Iran in 1979 followed by Palestinian intifada in 1987 and grand victory of Mujahideen against a super power in Afghanistan in 1988. These events catapulted the otherwise insipid and terrorized Kashmiris who would not pick up courage to even protest against abuses of Indian security forces. This was evident from their poor response to Operation Gibraltar launched By Pakistani irregulars in August 1965 aimed at helping the Kashmiris to realize their dream of freedom from India. Kashmiri youths from 1990 onwards were a transformed lot, fully motivated and charged up. No amount of brutal force and torture applied by Indian forces would break their will to fight back.
Few thousand Kashmiri Mujahideen kept over 700,000 regular and paramilitary forces in a spin and Kashmir became a bleeding wound for India. They showed their extraordinary grit and firmness during the Kargil conflict in summer of 1999 where in conjunction with irregulars of Northern Light Infantry, they kept the might of Indian Army at bay for ten weeks. The US and G-8 countries had to intervene to force Pakistan to vacate the occupied heights. After suffering humiliation at Kargil, India had to suffer another embarrassment when its ten-month military standoff failed to intimidate Pakistan and it had to withdraw its forces in October 2002.
India sought assistance from Israel how to deal with Kashmiri militants and learnt new methods of torture but to no effect. By 2003, Indian troops employed in IHK had become fatigued and demoralized. Cases of indiscipline, soldiers firing at seniors, desertions, suicides, and mental disorders rose phenomenally. Hospitals got filled up with malingerers and psychiatric cases. Recruitment in Army dropped radically despite announcing better pay packages. Kashmir became a dreaded station and none liked to be posted there. It was under such unsavoury conditions that Indo-Pak peace treaty facilitated by USA was signed in January 2004.
In his exuberance to appease India so that an amicable solution to Kashmir dispute and other disputes of Siachin, Sir Creek and dams on rivers could be found, Gen Musharraf took several steps to remove Indian concerns. He gave a written pledge that he would not allow Pakistan soil for exporting terrorism. He banned six Jihadi outfits engaged in supporting freedom struggle in IHK and ceased their funds. By restoring peace in Kashmir, he allowed India to fence the Line of Control (LoC) and also took stringent measures to curb movement across the LoC.
All Parties Hurryat Conference (APHC) got split between moderates and extremists, former led by Mir Waiz and latter by Syed Ali Shah Geelani. Moderates agreed to hold negotiations with Indian leaders and to workout an out of box solution as proposed by Musharraf which was outside the realms of UNSC Resolutions. Musharraf’s one-sided initiatives delivered severe blows to the indigenous struggle waged by Kashmiri armed freedom fighters that had intensified in 2003-04. Indian leaders started admitting after 2005 that cross border infiltration had reduced to a trickle. Instead of appreciating efforts put in by Pakistan Indian military claimed that stringent measures adopted by them had not only blocked movement of foreign terrorists but also the insurgency in IHK.
Peace along LoC and in IHK helped India to use Afghan soil to export terrorism into Pakistan and to create situation similar to IHK. India created and supported terrorist outfits for Balochistan and FATA to destabilize Pakistan. It was also able to hold general elections in the state in 2007 which brought in pro-India National Conference and Congress in power. Since the voters’ turnout was over 50%, Indian leaders started to brag that foreign sponsored insurgency had almost been quashed and there was no need for negotiations. They once again reverted to their uncompromising stance that Kashmir was integral part of India and its further division was out of question. The only leeway they wanted to give was to treat LoC as permanent border between two Kashmirs. The Kashmiris once again felt let down by Pakistan, betrayed by India and ignored by the world as they had felt in 1989.
There was also resentment among younger generation of Kashmir against their leaders for getting hoodwinked by Indian sweet talk and damaging the movement. The movement got reignited on a dispute over land being allotted to Amarnath Shrine Board in summer of 2008 and economic blockade imposed by Hindus in Jammu. The whole Valley resounded with slogans of Azadi (freedom) and pro-Pakistan slogans. Hundreds of thousands of people defied curfews and heavy presence of security forces. Soldiers and policemen fired straight into the crowds killing scores of people but protests continued unabated. It was the first manifestation of democratic, non-violent protests as note by Arundhati Roy.
Intensity and resoluteness of unarmed protests by Kashmiris in Srinagar and other major towns of the Valley unnerved India and the state government. Protests over India’s black laws and oppressive and unjust policies continued for months but neither Pakistan nor the world took any note of their plight. Policy of picking up suspects, putting them in secret dungeons and torturing them, fake encounters and rape continued unabatedly. The second bout of unarmed protests took place in the summer of 2009, which were ruthlessly dealt with by Indian forces disregarding that the protestors had no arms.Fresh wave of mass agitation against India’s rule in J&K spearheaded by unarmed teenagers have spread across Kashmir Valley since last June. Intensity of protests is growing with each passing day. In June 2010 alone, 33 people were killed including four children. 572 people were tortured and injured and eight women were molested. 59 Kashmiris, mostly teenagers including an eight-year boy have been killed till 14 August by CRPF and Police. Each killing is fuelling more anger and they are coming out on streets in greater numbers.—Opinion-Maker
It is high time for champions of human rights to listen to the cries of Kashmiris and take stock of atrocities perpetrated by Indian forces, killing small kids and old men and raping Kashmiri women with gusto. Peace in South Asia will remain illusive without a solution to Kashmir dispute, which has also bred extremism and terrorism in the region. Indian leaders must come out of their uncompromising and stubborn mode by fulfilling the pledge of their reverend leader Nehru and hold a plebiscite in Kashmir. Farce of Aman ki Asha and other deceitful games would work no more. Resolution of longstanding Kashmir dispute will usher in peace and prosperity in South Asia, which is primed for a bigger explosion because of discontentment and burgeoning poverty. The UNSC and USA should let go their duplicitous policy and act before it is too late.

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Why Europe fears David Petraeus

Ahmed Rashid

For weeks there has been a spectre haunting European corridors of power. That spectre is David Petraeus. Since he stepped in last month as head of combined US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, many European governments have feared the US general would try and extend the time and scope of the military surge to give US forces a better chance of winning over the Pashtun population in the south and delivering a knock-out blow to the Taliban.

That is exactly what he is signalling in his first media interviews since taking over — and precisely what most European countries do not believe is possible.

In discussions with European generals, diplomats and officials — each involved in their government's Afghan policy — a common fear emerges: That US President Barack Obama will not be able to refuse demands from Petraeus to extend the surge well beyond July 2011; that the general will continue to push for a continuation of military strategy; and that he will decline any suggestion of opening negotiations with the Taliban — something that many Europeans are very keen on.

Every European government faces pressure to withdraw or reduce troop numbers, whether because of defence cuts, recession, public anger or parliamentary opposition. Similar factors are also turning many in the US Congress, particularly Democrats, against the war. The latest NBC and Wall Street Journal poll found that seven in 10 Americans did not believe the war would end successfully.

But no government says it wants to cut and run. Everyone realises there is too much at stake, not just in Afghanistan but also for the region and Nato credibility. An overhasty withdrawal could lead to a Taliban takeover and leave in the dirt tens of thousands of Afghans who have supported western forces. What Europe wants is a negotiated endgame and regional settlement — and that must include talking to the Taliban.

European officials are coming to the consensus that they would like the Nato summit and Obama's Afghan policy review — both at the end of the year — to reach a position where negotiating with the Taliban is the political strategy around which military strategy is determined.

Troop withdrawals, which Obama says will start next July, would then take place according to the pace of talks between the US, the Taliban and the Afghan government; not on the basis of hard-to-gauge battlefield success. Europe also wants the US to press Afghanistan's neighbours not to interfere in its affairs.

Petraeus wants to convince Washington, Nato and Europe to do just the opposite, determining withdrawals on the basis of the military, not the political, situation.

Optimistic assessment

In his interviews, he casts doubt on whether he would advise Obama to stick to the July deadline. "The president didn't send me over here to seek a graceful exit," he told The New York Times on Monday. He told NBC that he saw "areas of progress" and that "we've got to link those together, extend them".

Many Afghans and Europeans, however, see problems increasing. The war has escalated in the north and west; there are fresh contradictions between the US and Afghan President Hamid Karzai over governance; and fears that September's parliamentary elections could become a debacle akin to the 2009 presidential poll.

Moreover, following Pakistan's devastating floods and infrastructure breakdown, any expectations Petraeus might have had that the country's army would deal with the Afghan Taliban leaders and their Pakistani bases must be dashed. The danger is that the Pakistani Taliban will use the floods to seize territory.

Even rare good news is beset by doubt. The Afghan army, for example, is at full strength of 134,000 men three months ahead of schedule after a US injection of money and training but how effective it will be is unclear.

European officials fear that saying no to Petraeus — whose strategy turned round US fortunes in Iraq and who co-wrote the counterinsurgency manual that forms the blueprint for today's war — would be difficult for a US president who has already sacked two commanders in Afghanistan.

Moreover, Obama faces a raft of domestic and foreign policy problems — not least the fear that the Democrats will lose out in November's midterm elections. Robert Gates, his respected defence secretary, is considering stepping down after next July's planned troop withdrawal. It is a difficult time for the president to disagree publicly with his senior general.

Last winter, in the nine Cabinet meetings Obama held to discuss the policy review that led to the surge, there was a preoccupation with the military equation. Europeans fear he will be persuaded to spend this December's review, too, discussing the surge rather than grappling with a political strategy: talking to the Taliban; testing the waters for a meaningful power-sharing agreement between the Taliban and Karzai; and creating an effective regional agreement.

Things are still far from that. So the spectre of Petraeus continues to haunt Europe's corridors of power.