Destruction of Buddha statues: Pak. mission fails

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD, MARCH 10. The Taliban has rejected the appeal made by Pakistan and the international community for reconsideration of its decision for destruction of the pre-Islamic statues including the two giant Buddhas in Afghanistan.

This was conveyed in blunt terms to the Pakistan Interior Minister, Lt. Gen. (retd) Moinuddin Haider, by the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar, when he called on him this morning in Kandahar.

The meeting in which the Afghan Foreign Minister, Mr. Wakil Ahmed Mutawakkil (who is coming here tomorrow to meet the U.N. Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan), was also present, lasted for almost two hours. Mullah Omar told the Pakistan Minister that the decree was a well-considered decision and it was not possible to review it.

The Pakistan Foreign Ministry put out a press statement giving details of the failed mission hours before the U.N. Secretary- General landed on its soil as part of the week- long tour of the sub-continent.

Perhaps, Pakistan wanted to send out a clear signal that it had done its best and there was little hope of saving the artefacts. ``From the discussions it became apparent that the process of destruction of statues including those at Bamiyan, was initiated immediately after the issuance of the edict'', the statement said.

The statement made it a point to mention that ever since the issuance of the decree, Pakistan had been engaged with the Taliban authorities through its embassy in Islamabad, Kabul and the Consulate-General in Kandahar to persuade them to review the decision.

Earlier in the day, the Pakistan Minister left for Kandahar amid conflicting reports on the fate of the two giant sized Buddha statues in Afghanistan. The visit had acquired significance in the wake of the reported statement by the Pakistan High Commissioner in London, Mr. Abdul Kadar Jaffar, that the statues were still in tact.

In the light of the rejection of the appeal, it appears that Mr. Muttawakil is coming here tomorrow only to use the opportunity of his meeting with Mr. Annan to raise a host of issues. ``I will discuss with Annan the bad conditions of the Afghan people, the injustice of the U.N. and imposition of sanctions as well as the Afghanistan crisis as a whole'', he said in Kabul.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Front Page
Previous : Jayalalitha will give a good govt.: Moopanar
Next     : Sri Lankan PM for Pak.