The Pakistani participants of the ‘Pakistan-India People’s Forum for Peace and Democracy’ (PIPFPD) delegation noted on Wednesday that the relationship between India and Pakistan had deteriorated since 2005.
The PIPFPD arranged an interactive session in association with the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA) with the delegates who participated in 8th Joint Convention held at Allahabad, India in December 2011 for the restoration of cordial diplomatic, socio-economic and religio-political ties.
The delegates felt that there was a dire need to restore Indo-Pak ties and revive cooperation between the two nuclear power counties.
Kishwar Naheed, Ashfaq Saleem Mirza, Ali Imran, Saadia, Asim Awan, Ijaz Gul and other delegation members while sharing their experiences of the Indian tour, said the Indian people welcomed them warmly and that no hostility was observed when people of both the countries interacted with each other, rather most hostility existed on the governments’ level.
PIPFPD General Secretary Ali Imran read out a joint declaration of the PIPFPD convention.
“The convention pledges to reinforce democracy, ensure socio-economic justice to restore India-Pakistan friendship and revive the cooperative relationship that prevailed twelve years ago,” the convention declaration read.
PIPFPD Pakistan Chapter Chairperson I A Rehman’s message, which was also read out, stated: “The 8th Joint Convention is taking place at a critical point in the history of the world, especially the Third World. Many serious changes have taken place in South Asia and at the global level since the 7th convention was held. Although the people of Pakistan were able to get rid of the military regime and set up a formal democracy in 2008, the threat from militant extremists to their democratic experiment indeed to the integrity of their state has become more and more serious with the passage of years. In India too the democratic institutions have remained under pressure from religious extremists on one hand and the dollar lobby on the other.”
“I am sure the worthy delegates to the 8th convention will not fail to work out a strategy to meet the demands of the age. They can not possibly ignore the grim threat the consolidation of big-power hegemony under the garb of globalisation poses not only to us but also to our children and the generations to come after them,” the statement added. PIPFPD India Chapter Co-Chairperson Ved Bhasin’s message stated: “The trade relations between India and Pakistan are improving even while traders are eagerly demanding easier ways of trade between the two countries. While the Kashmir issue remains unresolved, the very fact that the two governments are open to talking about the issue gives us hope of its resolution.”
It added: “For finding a just, democratic and durable solution of this vexed problem, the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the principal party to the dispute will have to be brought on board.
He said while relations between the two countries had come back to what they were before the December 2008 crisis, imperialist intervention in the region had deepened. He was of the view that the two nations needed to discuss emerging issues such as sharing the River Indus water.
