ISLAMABAD: The two-day Indo Pak talks at foreign secretary level virtually failed as there was no word from either side that the negotiations would be resumed at any level. In this the foreign secretes will consult their governments the two sides publicly admitted that there were basic divergences on the Kashmir issue.
While India tried to avoid any serious discussion on the Kashmir issue according to observers its emphasis was on side issues like the Saiden or Sir Greek issues Indian foreign secretary J.N. Dixit who led a five-member delegation tried to project the meeting itself as a positive development and said that such meetings reduced Indo-Pak tensions.
On the eve of talks Indian foreign minister Dinesh Singh set the tone for the talks when he publicly stated that Kashmir was a past of India and it would remain so On the other hand Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto emphasized that the talks should produce positive outcome on the core issues of Kashmir. Thus there was hardly any hope of a dramatic breakthrough in cither of the two countries. If anything India made perceptible efforts on the eve of talks to vitiate the climate by stepping up repression in the valley. Dozens of Kashmiri youths were reported killed in encounters with Indian security forces.
There was very little interest in India in the talks. The Indian media did not write much No major political leader issued any statement except for BJP. Whose spokesman pleaded for stepping up anti-Muslim repression to resolve the issue? In Pakistan there was considerable public interest in the meeting party due to the fact that the talks were held in the Pak capital. An interesting suggestion Pakistani economist Dr. Mahbubul Haque made was there should be a time specific U.N. trusteeship for the Kashmir valley without prejudice to the positions of the two countries on the dispute. This arrangement should continue for 10 years and during this period the two countries should hold secret talks. During this period Kashmiris should be allowed to choose their government run their own institutions and keep a position of neutrality many other commentators asked India to make all concessions while some pleaded that the all-party Hurriat conference in the valley should be considered representatives of the people of Kashmir.
Article extracted from this publication >> January 7, 1994
