India— a victim of terrorism or a supporter of it?

[Skyline]

SUNDAY, 13 NOVEMBER 2011 13:59 INAM UL REHMAN


In his keynote address, the former ambassador to Kazakhstan, Mr Rajiv Skiri, said: “The foreign backed war has turned Afghanistan into a global epicentre of terrorism and leader in exporting drugs to the world.” In an International Conference conducted by the Kashmir University where Central Asian and Indian experts thronged the room, Mr Skiri in his monograph said ‘India is victim of that terrorism’.

As India presents itself the ‘victim’ of terrorism it is important to understand how the Indian State is so or if it is really so? What Mr Skiri forgot to tell the audience was who backed the invasion of Afghanistan in the last quarter of 20th century? The erstwhile USSR invasion of Afghanistan had full support of India. The Afghans didn’t attack or invade any country. The factory of ‘holy warriors’ that got churned out in Afghanistan—India must take principal responsibility for that. Indians backed thuggish communist governments in Kabul in order to squeeze Pakistan. The Indian State thought that by helping USSR it would gain strategic position in Kabul. Convinced that Soviets would not leave Afghanistan, in the summer of 86 the Indian State, emboldened by the support of USSR, decided to launch offensive against Pakistan. According to ‘Ghost War’ author, Steve Coll, Pakistanis were certain that attacks inside their land in 1980s were orchestrated with the help of Indian and USSR spy agencies to destabilise Pakistan. The Pakistani State found itself pitted against a superpower on one side and powerful enemy on the back. The Indian Army launched operation ‘Brasstacks’ considered the biggest land army manoeuvre by any State since the end of World War II (Arming without Aiming: India’s Military Modernization by Stephen P. Cohen and Sunil Dasgupta). The operation was halted only after Pakistan threatened to use nukes against the conventional strength of Indian army. In its hubris, India and USSR were trying to tear apart Pakistan in order to strengthen the Afghanistan occupation.

Much to the horror of India, the then USSR President, Mikhail Gorbachev, set a pull out date of Russian forces from Afghanistan. Since then India has been clamouring that it is a victim of ‘terrorism’. Terrorists are not born in space. You left them the ground and ideology. They were hail and hearty in their own backyard. You backed Soviets in 80s. In the new millennium, you repeated your folly. As US prepared to invade Afghanistan in 2001 and asked Pakistan to help it, otherwise, they would be bombed to ‘stone ages’, Indian State enthusiastically offered their services and land for lunching war on Afghans. India helped the secession of Bangladesh from Pakistan. India also helped insurgent groups like LTTE in Sri Lanka and later the same insurgent group was responsible for taking the life of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi. India is now beseeching USA to stay put in Afghanistan when the world opinion is against it. India has the dubious distinction of ditching its friends—China, Iran and Iraq, LTTE are few examples. India has not yet realised the folly of supporting an invading power. Instead, they blame Afghans and Pakistan for importing ‘terror’ to Indian State.

Ambassador Skiri further opined in the University auditorium that Pakistan has to work with India to stabilise the Afghan region. “Pakistan,” said the former Ambassador to Kazakhstan, “has neither economy to stabilise Afghanistan nor has it got trust of Afghanistan. India has many things that can help to stabilise Afghanistan.” However, the fact is that India’s past record of brokering peace is dismal. In 1987, the then PM of India, Rajiv Gandhi, signed ‘Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord’and send its army to Lanka. The operation turned into disaster and came to be known as India’s Vietnam (Arming without Aiming). Even India could not broker peace in the Hindu Nepal.

Meanwhile, Pakistan is not paying any heed to India’s requests and threats. Pakistan has already shown that it has its own independent policy and follows that. President Barack Obama’s visit to India didn’t ruffle any feather in Pakistan. Pakistan understands the game well. US wanted to harp on Pakistani insecurity to pressurise ISI to cooperate more on Afghan front. They refused. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to Afghanistan and stern language had no impact on Pakistani State. The present US installed President of Afghanistan’s recent visit to India has no significance for Pakistan. Rather it would use this opportunity to fan more anger toward Indian designs that corroborates occupation.

“The original U.S. military objective,” wrote Robert D. Blackwill, the former US Ambassador to India (2001–2003), in his essay “Plan B in Afghanistan” for the January issue 2011 of Foreign Affairs magazine, “in Afghanistan was to destroy al Qaeda, not to fight the Afghan Taliban, and that goal has largely been accomplished.” It was the killing of bin Laden that US public believed that the objective has been achieved. The US public is now getting impatient for pull out. They don’t want their sons to be killed in a war which they cannot win. Now getting back their soldiers safely is the arduous task. The Afghans have history of slaying retreating occupying forces. Afghans will try to strike fear in the retreating occupations forces. In the late 80s when Soviets pulled forces from Afghanistan US had to convince Pakistan to rein in Afghans for not slaughtering the enemy in their retreat (Ghost War). Today USA is facing the same challenge that Afghans should not decimate its flanks. The US wants to have a safe passage for its troops from the Afghan quagmire.

Afghans have always dispensed foreign intervention. The mighty British imperialism couldn’t bring them under their banner. Soviets disintegrated. Why is it that Pakistan always finds right partners at right times while Indians are always left groping with decaying powers? How many friends India has? Can it even count five friends! The answer will be no.

India

 

[KS]

A shitstorm predicted.

People are advised to stay indoors for 24 hours.

 

[shuntmaster]

All facts in the article are false. India never supported the soviet occupation of Afghanistan. India only supported the northen alliance against the Taliban after the withdrawal of the soviet forces.
Operation brasstacks was initiated in an attempt to stop Pakistan from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Also, why does the OP hide the original link of the article from 'Kashmir despatch' under the name 'India'??

 

[IndoCarib]

Rupee news, Mark the truth and now Kashmir dispatch. A terrorist and Pak symapthetic news portal trying to portray India as a terror sponsor. What an irony !

Skyline, Get a life ASAP

 

[oct605032048]

India is big fun of terrorists who smuggle guns and explosives into South West China.

 

[Skyline]

All facts in the article are false. India never supported the soviet occupation of Afghanistan. India only supported the northen alliance against the Taliban after the withdrawal of the soviet forces.
Operation brasstacks was initiated in an attempt to stop Pakistan from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Also, why does the OP hide the original link of the article from 'Kashmir despatch' under the name 'India'??

I didnt hide, it appears like that. it's not my issue.

 

[American Pakistani]

India is obviously supporter of terrorism covertly, the Indian Army is carrying out terrorism in Indian Occupied Kashmir while the terrorist group RAW fully supported by high ranking Indian Army generals & majors are doing their terrorist activities in Balochistan & FATA & supporting BLA & TTP terrorist via Afghanistan.

 

[Skyline]

This is the hot news in Sri Lankan news papers in this week. Norway says this!!!

INDIA, LTTE MET ’SECRETLY’ BEFORE SRI LANKA TRUCE: ERIC SOLHEIM

 

[IndoCarib]

Best part of the article. A sign of author running out of ideas

Why is it that Pakistan always finds right partners at right times while Indians are always left groping with decaying powers? How many friends India has? Can it even count five friends! The answer will be no.

Cant get dumber than this !

---------- Post added at 08:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:55 PM ----------

This is the hot news in Sri Lankan news papers in this week. Norway says this!!!

INDIA, LTTE MET ’SECRETLY’ BEFORE SRI LANKA TRUCE: ERIC SOLHEIM

India wanted LTTE 'put in its place': Norway report - Times Of India

---------- Post added at 08:58 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:57 PM ----------

India is big fun of terrorists who smuggle guns and explosives into South West China.

You are mistaking India for some other nation

 

[American Pakistani]

Best part of the article. A sign of author running out of ideas

Why is it that Pakistan always finds right partners at right times while Indians are always left groping with decaying powers? How many friends India has? Can it even count five friends! The answer will be no.

Cant get dumber than this !

India is supporter of terrorists, mutki banhi, ltte in Srilanka, 1984 against sikhs, 1989 till today indian army terrorism in indian occupied Kashmir, ttp, bla in Pakistan, mao baghis in Nepal, tibet terrorist in China. Denying won't change facts.

 

[IndoCarib]

India is supporter of terrorists, mutki banhi, ltte in Srilanka, 1984 against sikhs, 1989 till today indian army terrorism in indian occupied Kashmir, ttp, bla in Pakistan, mao baghis in Nepal, tibet terrorist in China. Denying won't change facts.

Hehe. Maos are anti Indian and pro China. There goes the credibility of your post "TUSSSS"

 

[T-Rex]

NEW YORK: Renowned Indian activist and novelist Arundhati Roy has decried the silence of the international community over the continued “brutal Indian occupation of Kashmir” and said Kashmiris should be given the right to self-determination.



“Kashmir is one of the most protracted and bloody occupations in the world — and one of the most ignored,” she told a large audience at the Asia Society during a discussion on “Kashmir — a case for freedom”.

Under the Indian military rule in Kashmir, Ms Roy said, freedom of speech was non-existent and human rights abuses were routine. Elections were rigged and the press controlled.

She said the lives of Kashmiris were made miserable by gun-totting security personnel who harassed and terrorised people with impunity, adding that disappearances were almost a daily occurrence as also kidnapping, arrests, fake encounters and torture. Mass graves have been discovered and the conscience of the world remains unstirred.

The outspoken activist, who surprised the audience with her candour, called for demilitarising Kashmir as a step towards peace in the region. “Why the international community doesn’t see that when you have two nuclear-armed states, like Pakistan and India, there couldn’t be a better thing than a buffer state like Kashmir between them, instead of it being a conflict that is going to spark a nuclear war.”

Ms Roy accused US President Barack Obama of stepping back from calling for a solution of the Kashmir issue after initially supporting it, but relenting after seeing `consternation’ in India over his remarks.

“He (Mr Obama) hasn’t said a word about Kashmir since,” she said, adding that the US president was more interested in selling military aircraft and Boeings to India.

The apathy towards Kashmir, especially in the western world, Ms Roy said, was because of their pursuit of commercial interests in India where they were more eager to “sell their goods than human rights”.

She said India had also successfully used the argument that if it gave up Kashmir another Islamic state would emerge — a prospect the West feared. “That’s why India had made no effort to bring back to the valley Kashmiri Pandits who fled to camps in New Delhi at the height of the 1998 uprising in the state. Aren’t 700,000 troops enough to protect the Pandits?”

She said so little was known about the atrocities being committed by more than half a million Indian troops, the continuing repression and indignities let loose on Kashmiri men, women and children.

More than 700,000 troops were concentrated in the tiny valley, with checkpoints at every nook and corner of Kashmiri towns and cities. The huge Indian presence, she added, was in sharp contrast with 160,000 US troops in Iraq.

Ms Roy alleged that Indian army or security personnel were killing young children, adding that Kashmiris were not radical Islamists or jihadists as India portrayed them. She deplored the Indian government’s attempts to demonise Kashmiris who were moderate Muslims.

 

[shuntmaster]

I didnt hide, it appears like that. it's not my issue.

OK.. Got it

 

[American Pakistani]

NEW YORK: Renowned Indian activist and novelist Arundhati Roy has decried the silence of the international community over the continued “brutal Indian occupation of Kashmir” and said Kashmiris should be given the right to self-determination.



“Kashmir is one of the most protracted and bloody occupations in the world — and one of the most ignored,” she told a large audience at the Asia Society during a discussion on “Kashmir — a case for freedom”.

Under the Indian military rule in Kashmir, Ms Roy said, freedom of speech was non-existent and human rights abuses were routine. Elections were rigged and the press controlled.

She said the lives of Kashmiris were made miserable by gun-totting security personnel who harassed and terrorised people with impunity, adding that disappearances were almost a daily occurrence as also kidnapping, arrests, fake encounters and torture. Mass graves have been discovered and the conscience of the world remains unstirred.

The outspoken activist, who surprised the audience with her candour, called for demilitarising Kashmir as a step towards peace in the region. “Why the international community doesn’t see that when you have two nuclear-armed states, like Pakistan and India, there couldn’t be a better thing than a buffer state like Kashmir between them, instead of it being a conflict that is going to spark a nuclear war.”

Ms Roy accused US President Barack Obama of stepping back from calling for a solution of the Kashmir issue after initially supporting it, but relenting after seeing `consternation’ in India over his remarks.

“He (Mr Obama) hasn’t said a word about Kashmir since,” she said, adding that the US president was more interested in selling military aircraft and Boeings to India.

The apathy towards Kashmir, especially in the western world, Ms Roy said, was because of their pursuit of commercial interests in India where they were more eager to “sell their goods than human rights”.

She said India had also successfully used the argument that if it gave up Kashmir another Islamic state would emerge — a prospect the West feared. “That’s why India had made no effort to bring back to the valley Kashmiri Pandits who fled to camps in New Delhi at the height of the 1998 uprising in the state. Aren’t 700,000 troops enough to protect the Pandits?”

She said so little was known about the atrocities being committed by more than half a million Indian troops, the continuing repression and indignities let loose on Kashmiri men, women and children.

More than 700,000 troops were concentrated in the tiny valley, with checkpoints at every nook and corner of Kashmiri towns and cities. The huge Indian presence, she added, was in sharp contrast with 160,000 US troops in Iraq.

Ms Roy alleged that Indian army or security personnel were killing young children, adding that Kashmiris were not radical Islamists or jihadists as India portrayed them. She deplored the Indian government’s attempts to demonise Kashmiris who were moderate Muslims.

It is sad world knows very little about Indian terrorist activities in Kashmir. Why is UN waiting? They should send their Peace Keeping Forces & held a refrendum there.

 

[KS]

Yeah we are evil.

Deal with it !