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India wants unambiguous rejection of `jehad'
By C. Raja Mohan
NEW DELHI, JAN. 10. As the Pakistan President, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, prepares for what has been billed as a historic speech to be delivered this weekend, India expects an unambiguous rejection of ``jehad'' and terrorism as instruments of Islamabad's policy towards Jammu and Kashmir.
A comprehensive declaration by Pakistan against terrorism is one of the political benchmarks set by India for de-escalation of the current build-up by both the two nations.
The other benchmarks include ``action'' by Pakistan on the list of terrorists and criminals sent to it and cooperation on the ground to prevent infiltration by terrorists from the Pakistani side.
If Gen. Musharraf effectively addresses these benchmarks in the coming days, India and Pakistan could begin de-escalating the tensions and revive a full-fledged peace process in the near future.
But if he is tempted to retain the ambiguity in his current position on terrorism, India might have no option but to conclude that Pakistan is not serious about finding a way out of the present crisis.
The international community is pressing Gen. Musharraf to remove all ambiguities that remain in his position on the relationship between terrorism and the Kashmir question.
At the summit of the South Asian leaders last week in Kathmandu, Gen. Musharraf did indeed condemn terrorism in the abstract. But in the same breath he referred to ``freedom struggles'' that must be excluded from the ambit of terrorism.
But the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, who was in Pakistan earlier this week is believed to have conveyed to Gen. Musharraf that there can be no exceptions to the rejection of terrorism.
While pressure is mounting on Gen. Musharraf to come clean on terrorism, India is being urged not to reject potentially positive formulations in Gen. Musharraf's speech out of hand.
Since his address is principally aimed at the domestic audiences, it is being suggested that India's own response should not inevitably focus on the many elements that might be offensive to India.
India believes that there can be no splitting the difference on the core question of Pakistan rejecting terrorism as a policy option. Having tried twice before to finesse the issue, India now has drawn the line. Both at Lahore and Agra, India had hoped that the initiation of the peace process will lead to an eventual reduction in cross-border terrorism. India is no longer prepared to take those chances in the wake of the December 13 attack on Parliament.
India would not want to quibble over either Pakistan's characterisation of the violent insurgency in Kashmir or making a strong reassertion of Islamabad's political position on the disputed state.
But New Delhi will definitely dismiss Gen. Musharraf's statement if he remains unclear about the rejection of terrorism - an instrument Islamabad has used over the last decade to pursue its political aims in Kashmir.
In seeking a statement on terrorism from Gen. Musharraf, India is looking for a credible signal from Pakistan that it is embarked on a different path to resolve its dispute with India over Kashmir.
If Gen. Musharraf meets this test of intentions and follows up with a series of actions against cross-border terrorism, the present crisis could be transformed into an opportunity for peace in the subcontinent.
If Gen. Musharraf fudges the issue again, there is the danger that the current tensions between the two nations would only deepen.
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