ISLAMABAD – Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s visit to India on Wednesday to watch the Cricket World Cup semi-final clash between Pakistan and India and hold talks with his Indian counterpart on the sidelines of the match was more a “picnic party” than serious diplomatic business.
Prime Minister Gilani reached Mohali on Wednesday morning with a delegation of more than 50 members, including leaders and representatives from almost all political parties as well as several ministers and parliamentarians from his ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).
So high was the level of excitement among the ruling party’s leaders and parliamentarians that until late Tuesday night they kept calling the bigwigs in the party to have their names included in the prime minister’s delegation.
“The landmark opportunity to pave way for meaningful dialogue was allowed to go to waste during the prime minister’s visit and, contrary to the claims of the government to discuss all issues with the Indian authorities, no such thing happened there with Prime Minister Gilani and his delegation enjoying cricket all the while and after that a lavish dinner that was hosted by the Indian prime minister,” said a diplomat here requesting anonymity.
He said that even though the prime minister himself had declared upon reaching Mohali that the main purpose of his trip was to watch the match, one should also keep in mind that such high-level visits, and that too to India, are few and far between.
It was on the invitation of the Indian prime minister that Gilani went to India, so the latter could have taken advantage of that and, remaining within the ambit of diplomatic niceties, could have urged his host for the commencement of serious and sustained dialogue and in the process also discussed with him issues such as Kashmir, Siachen and Sir Creek that have caused strains in the relationship between the two neighbours for decades now. But that didn’t happen.
“Before the suspension of dialogue between Islamabad and New Delhi in the wake of 2008 Mumbai attacks, the nuclear rival nations had progressed a lot on issues like Siachen and Sir Creek and what the two countries only need to do is to show political will at the top government level to get them settled,” said the diplomat.
Nonetheless, he said that information from Mohali suggested that all that happened there between the two leaders was the reiteration of resolves to carry forward the bilateral talks in a serious manner and no issue on the dialogue agenda was discussed there. In words of India’s External Affairs Secretary Nirupama Rao, the meeting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with Prime Minister Gilani was “extremely positive and encouraging.”
She told reporters after the meeting that the prime ministers were watching a World Cup cricket match between the two nations in a symbolic gesture aimed at rebuilding ties shattered by the 2008 Mumbai attacks. “I think every such meeting between the leaders of the two countries generates an extremely positive momentum,” she said.
Hence, by all means, the prime minister’s visit was a picnic party and funfair. The only significant thing that did happen during the trip was the invitation by Prime Minister Gilani to his Indian counterpart to visit Pakistan, however, there was no response from the Indian side to this invitation.
