Re: Tis a sad day my fellow countrypeople…
Musharraf Indicates a Freeze on Kashmir Following Indo-China Formula
By Arun Rajnath
http://www.satribune.com/archives/200503/P1_arun4.htm
NEW DELHI, March 20: Pakistan’s General Pervez Musharraf has indicated he supports the ‘China Formula’ to freeze the Kashmir dispute for a while as part of the efforts to resolve all outstanding issues with India. This impression was gathered by the Indian Communist Party leaders who recently met the General in Pakistan.
An internal and confidential report on the Left movement in Pakistan and the outcome of talks held between the Indian Left leaders and General Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and Foreign Minister Khurshid Ahmed Kasuri, was presented to the Politburo of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) here on March 19.
After the discussion, the report would be presented before the meeting of the Central Committee today. Thereafter, it would be discussed in the Party Congress beginning April 6. It is expected that after the conclusion of the Party Congress, the CPI-M General Secretary would apprise the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, about what transpired between the leaders of the Left and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.
In the meeting of the Politburo, the highest body of the CPI-M, besides General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet, present were Prakash Karat, Sitaram Yechury, S. Ramchandaran Pillai, MK Pandhe, P. Ramchandaran, R. Umanath, E. Balanandan, Jyoti Basu, Anil Biswas, Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, Biman Basu, VS Achutanandan, K. Satyanarayan, Manik Sarkar and P. Vijayan.
On the invitation of the Left parties of Pakistan, a five-member delegation of the Indian Left leaders visited Pakistan from February 24 to March 4, 2005. CPI-M General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Naresh Nadeem and Murali represented CPI-M whereas General Secretary AB Bardhan and Shameem Faizee represented the CPI.
The Communist Party of Pakistan, Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party, Mazdoor Kissan Party, and Labor Party invited these leaders. The National Workers’ Party also took part in the interaction with the Indian Left leaders who visited Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Sahiwal, Faisalabad and Karachi. They held broad discussions with the Pak Left parties on various bilateral issues. They also took stock of the internal political situation in Pakistan and the prospects of Left movement on socio-politico-economic front.
Initially, the Indian Left leaders had no program to meet General Pervez Musharraf. Before their departure for Pakistan, Pakistan High Commissioner to India, Aziz Ahmed Khan, had rushed to the headquarters of the CPI-M to request the leaders to have an audience with Musharraf.
During their discussions with Pak Left leaders, they agreed on the proposal of the ‘China Formula’ to resolve all outstanding issues. Later, General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet apprised Musharraf of their views and requested him to consider it. He also held one-on-one talks with the General for half an hour. It is believed that Musharraf primarily agreed to the formula.
Musharraf was quoted as having told the delegates: “I have asked my Ministers to say ‘Yes’ to all proposals from India. We want to settle the disputes because I do not want to go down in the history as a failed man. I will, Inshallah, resolve the issue during Comrade Surjeet’s and mine lifetime.”
Though Musharraf did not mention the ‘China Formula’, yet the Left parties of India and Pakistan believe that he would consider the proposal. They have propounded this formula on the basis of peaceful resolution of disputes between India and China that they have been advocating since the Chinese aggression against India in 1962.
The ‘China Formula’ of the Indo-Pak Left parties broadly has three salient features: -
- To maintain the status quo and to freeze the Kashmir dispute for a while,
- The condition of the Kashmir and cross border terrorism should be dropped, and
- Increase in the bilateral trade without reservations about trade deficit.
Though Pakistan had rejected to maintain the status quo, Musharraf is said to be considering it and may be ready to set aside the key Kashmir issue for a while on the lines of Indo-China negotiations.
When this correspondent asked a leader of the Politburo that in May 2004, Pakistan had rejected the idea of China model he told the South Asia Tribune: “Situations can change any moment and this has been realized by Pakistan as well. That was May 2004, this is March 2005.”
India and China have narrowed their differences over the alignment of the Line of Actual Control along the 545-km long stretch in the former’s central sector, covering the Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh boundaries with Tibet. The two sides had exchanged maps, giving their understanding of the LAC in the sector at the Expert Group meeting in November 2000.
The LAC is the line up to which troops of the two sides exercise effective control. It has not been demarcated. But the term was first used by then Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai, well before the 1962 war, in a letter written in 1959 to then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The Chinese put forward the line as its understanding of the de facto positions on the two sides. Beijing claimed India and China did not have a delineated boundary, but there was a well-recognized LAC.
The LAC established after the 1962 war has remained more or less stable, but has not been demarcated. For nearly three decades after the war, India considered it an illegitimate line created through aggression. But, now, the confidence between the two countries is gradually increasing, and they are on their way to resolve all disputes without any aggression.
Now the two nations have moved further. During his visit to Beijing in May 2000, the then President, K.R. Narayanan, had told his Chinese hosts that India wants a settlement of the boundary dispute and this should not be left to the future generations. During his trip to Beijing in March 2002, the then Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh had agreed to launch highly sensitive negotiations on resolving the Sikkim question away from the media glare. The results are with us now.
Left parties of India and Pakistan have also agreed upon the second point also. During his meeting with Pak President, General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet is believed to have said that Pakistan should drop the condition of ‘Kashmir first’, and similarly India should drop the condition of ‘End to cross-border terrorism first’.
According to the Left parties these issues cannot be a pre-condition for a dialogue. They may be the issue of discussion. Surjeet is reported to have said to the Pak President that he would convey the views of the Left parties to the Indian Prime Minister.
On trade issues the Left parties believed that trade deficit was a non-issue. When Pakistan can tolerate trade deficit with other countries, including the US, then why not with India. It was also observed that the trade deficit could be handled, but first let the trade begin.
It is believed that General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet and AB Bardhan also held comprehensive talks with Abid Hasan Minto, Chief National Workers’ Party, Sufi Abdul Khaliq Baluch and Ejaz Ghani of the Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party to mobilize public opinion for peaceful solution of disputes, public to public contact, enhancement in trade activities, etc.
They also discussed the internal situation of Pakistan and shared their experience to cope with such situations and how to launch movements and agitations.
