News
Friday, July 05, 2013
Pakistan, India urged to take realistic appraisals about role in Afghanistan
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Panellists at the Islamabad Dialogue III Conference on Thursday stressed Pakistan and India to take realistic appraisals of their roles in Afghanistan, and use these to pursue policies of cooperation rather than conflict..
The opening day Islamabad Dialogue III Conference saw three panel sessions take place on “Reviewing Bilateral Relations”, “Human Rights and Governance” and “Afghanistan”.
The topics provoked a range of lively and engaging debates as participants from both India and Pakistan presented their insights on the respective issues, as well as providing their recommendations for future courses of action that can be taken on these matters.
Various participants spoke on the need to expand trade and travel with regards to bilateral relations, as well as working to fill gaps in perceptions in the two societies.
There was also a lively debate on human rights issues, with the panellists recommending the legal traditions and other institutions in both countries to explore avenues of cooperation and formulate strategies for preventing human rights abuses, particularly in the context of terrorism and extra-judicial killings.
In the final session on Afghanistan, the panellists stressed both countries to take realistic appraisals of their roles in the country, and use these to pursue policies of cooperation rather than conflict in Afghanistan.
The two-day conference will conclude today (Friday) with sessions on Kashmir and Fisherfolk, PoWs and other prisoners. Later that day, the conference’s participants will come together to draft a joint resolution based on their sessions, which would then be presented to the media by Jinnah Institute’s founding chairperson, Sherry Rehman.
The Islamabad Dialogue III aims to bring together participants from diverse backgrounds in diplomacy, lawmaking, media, academia and military to discuss the state of bilateral relations and new avenues of cooperation. The conference is meant to focus on promoting a robust and inclusive dialogue between civil society from Pakistan and India.
According to the Jinnah Institute, the ultimate aim of such endeavours was to ensure that dialogue and diplomacy in the region did not remain hostage to various incidents and disruptions, and civil society could continue to play a role in ensuring peace in South Asia.
The Jinnah Institute is collaborating with New Delhi’s Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation (CDR) for the third consecutive year to promote peace between Pakistan and India through Track II diplomacy.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk