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Security concerns trump diplomacy

Updated: October 9, 2015 02:04 IST

New Delhis decision to highlight the atrocities by Pakistani forces in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and in
Balochistan, as reported by this newspaper, is a clear departure from past practice. The difference can be
gauged by comparing the strong reactions six years ago to the previous Indian governments acceptance of
Balochistan in the Sharm el-Sheikh statement, with how the Ministry of External Affairs now openly accepts in the
context of Balochistan that India is home to persecuted people everywhere. Meanwhile, a spokesman of the
Baloch Liberation Organisation that faces a barrage of charges in Pakistan has been speaking freely at
public meetings in Delhi. Coming as they do a week after India highlighted suppression of protests and atrocities
in PoK, these meetings make it clear that the government is on the front-foot, as officials have indicated, and
that it intends to use PoK and Balochistan to counter Pakistans persistent allegations of human rights violations
in Jammu and Kashmir. These allegations have been particularly sharp over the last year, perhaps owing to
Islamabads discomfort over the progress India has made in pushing for a seat in the UN Security Council. It
remains to be seen whether New Delhis new tack will help tone down Pakistans position on J&K. Or will it only
serve to highlight international issues that India has preferred to keep in the bilateral space so far, and to flag
Pakistans outrageous allegations that India is responsible for terrorist acts on its soil? In any case, with this turn
of events, India-Pakistan relations, which have remained at a low ebb for decades, are worsening. Diplomacy is
the loser.
What is perhaps more significant is that the governments new policy indicates the growing space ceded to
Indias security establishment in the external relations sphere. By engaging in a spy-vs-spy and tit-for-tat
engagement, and seeking to answer Pakistans false claims on J&K with a series of counter-allegations, New
Delhi has only stooped to the level of the neighbour that it seeks to contain. Indias actions have included the
handing out of videos, and leaking of details from dossiers of wanted criminals and terrorists under
investigation. More important, it is unclear how its efforts would play out on the international stage. There,
Pakistan is already discredited on the issue of sponsoring and training terror groups, while India is seen as a
powerful and responsible country waging war against terror. Eventually, diplomacy is a projection of a countrys
own values, and must prevail over all other instincts. Former U.S. National Security Adviser Walt Rostow, credited
with Americas original push into South East Asia in the 1960s, once said: We are the greatest power in the world
if we behave like it. That should hold true for India, too.

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2 comments

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KS

K SHESHU
Pakistan and India have been trading charges on each other for decades and this
mudslinging is nothing new. On one pretext or he other , both are bent on stalling
peace talks. The perpetual presence of tensions is necessary for addressing
domestic constituencies during elections, which in India, are held from time to
time in various states.
about 2 hours ago

(0)

715

(0) reply(0)

Vida
About time too. Pakistan was committing barbaric atrocities on the Balochis and
people of POK and yet they had the cheek to accuse India of false human rights
abuses in J&K. Good move by India to highlight Pak abuses.
about 2 hours ago

(1)

(0) reply(0)

hariharanUp Voted
Talk of the town
9

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A love story that cost GVK its

international reputation

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38055

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