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Wednesday, Sep 13, 2006
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Manmohan Singh to raise issue of support for terrorism with Musharraf

N. Ravi

"I cannot carry Indian public opinion with me if terrorist acts continue to plague our polity"

Brasilia: Four days ahead of his meeting with President Musharraf, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made it clear on Tuesday that he would take up the question of foreign support for terrorism in India in his talks with the Pakistani leader.

The two are scheduled to meet on the sidelines of the XIV Non-aligned summit in Havana for an unstructured interaction.

"I will share with General Musharraf our perceptions on what is the role of external elements in promoting terrorism in our country," he said, addressing the media on board Air India 1 taking him from Frankfurt to Brasilia. He proposed to have an exchange of views on all issues, particularly on Pakistan's commitment not to allow its territory, including the part of Jammu and Kashmir under its occupation, for mounting terrorist attacks against India. He spelt out the stand in some detail in response to questions from the media.

Threat to both countries

Asked what would be the bare minimum that he would expect from Pakistan, Dr. Singh said terrorism today constituted a threat to both countries. Consistent with Pakistan's statement of January 2004, the India-Pakistan joint statement of September 2004 and the joint statement that he signed with President Musharraf in September 2005, it was incumbent on both the countries to work together in a manner that inspired confidence that they were very serious in tackling the menace of terrorism.

On the agenda for the meeting, he said India would be discussing all aspects of the relationship and was not afraid of any discussion.

Trust deficit

In response to a question on how he could trust President Musharraf who had not delivered on any of his promises in the past, the Prime Minister said there was definitely the problem of trust deficit and that had to be taken on board. India would take adequate precautions but General Musharraf was the President of Pakistan, and India had to deal with whoever was in power. The destinies of the two countries were strongly linked, and the full development potential of the sub-continent could not be realised unless there was reconciliation between India and Pakistan.

Asked, in the context of the trust deficit, if it would not be better dealing with a democratic government in Pakistan, the Prime Minister said there was the general belief that democracy was good for the Indian people and for the people of the world. As for the system that prevailed in Pakistan, that was for the people of Pakistan to decide.

On the perception that the peace talks had slowed down, with little progress on such issues as the demilitarisation of Siachen and Sir Creek, he said it was not correct. Transportation routes had been opened up between the two parts of Jammu and Kashmir and also between the two Punjabs. The Hurriyat leaders had been allowed to travel freely wherever they wanted to go, which was an unprecedented development. The people of both the countries, including the two parts of Jammu and Kashmir, were meeting frequently.

A damper

Terrorism, however, acted as a damper. "I have said more than once that I cannot carry Indian public opinion with me if terrorist acts continue to plague our polity," he said.

Asked how he would reconcile Pakistan being both a sponsor and a victim of terrorism, Dr. Singh said India had given Pakistan a substantial amount of evidence, and as far as the past was concerned Pakistan-sponsored terrorism was a fact of life. The fact that the then Prime Minister Vajpayee and President Musharraf signed the joined statement was a tacit recognition of the ground realities and represented a solemn undertaking to move in the reverse direction.

It was also true that there were terrorist incidents in Pakistan, and it was also a victim of terrorism. Groups such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba or the Jaish-e-Mohammad could also act autonomously. India's worry was that the Government of Pakistan had not done enough to control those elements.

Sri Lanka situation

Asked what India's role was in the crisis in Sri Lanka, where fighting between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the Government forces had left several dead, he said New Delhi was in contact with the Government and the Norwegian mediators in an effort to ensure that the ceasefire holds. Getting both the parties to commit themselves scrupulously to preserving the ceasefire was an essential prerequisite before they could move forward to a durable solution.

Apart from the meeting with President Musharraf, bilateral talks are also to be held with Iranian President Ahmedinejad, the Sri Lankan Prime Minister and the Malaysian Prime Minister.

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