A joint statement by the editors of the Jang Group and The Times

For the past 2 years the Jang Group and Geo have been working on a project of great national interest; one that we hope will help usher in an era of peace and prosperity in the country and indeed, in the region. And one that hopefully all Pakistanis can be proud of.

The Jang Group has entered into an agreement with the Times of India Group, the largest media group of India, to campaign for peace between the two countries. This huge initiative by the two largest media groups of India and Pakistan – appropriately called Aman Ki Asha – will advocate the many benefits of peace while also discussing core and non-core issues that have resulted in a state of hostilities and mistrust between the two countries for the past 60 years. Both groups have agreed to honestly and forcefully articulate issues such as Kashmir dispute, the water dispute, issues relating to terrorism and all other obstacles to peace. At the same time, Aman Ki Asha will promote the economic, educational and cultural benefits that an honorable and durable peace between the two neighbors will bring.

We have held detailed consultations with many stakeholders, including the government, the establishment, major political parties, the civil society and a large number of businessmen and corporate leaders. We have been delighted and encouraged by the endorsement and support we have received from all these quarters,

Aman Ki Asha been launched today, on New Year’s Day. We hope that through Aman ki Asha the New Year will herald a wonderful change in Pakistan, in relations between Pakistan and India, in our lives and the lives of our future generations. This is a paradigm shifting initiative in which all segments of society – the civil society, students, the business community, artists, politician, and academia – will be involved. Over the next few weeks and months many events will be held; thousands of people involved in a campaign championing the cause of peace. We hope that the initiative receives the pro-active support of all Pakistan and India – indeed, we are banking on it as the fruits of the endeavour will be reaped by the people of the 2 countries.

We invite everyone to help; to give ideas and let us have their opinions. Happy New Year !!!!

Amir Khan lauds Aman ki Asha

KARACHI: Indian actor Amir Khan appreciated ‘Aman ki Asha’ jointly projected by Jang Group of Newspapers and Times of India, terming it a positive development to bring about the peace in the region and draw closer the people living in Pakistan and India.

Addressing a telephonic press conference on the occasion of his film ‘Three Idiots’ being shown at a local cinema here, he said the likes of Aman Ki Asha need to be replicated.

‘The success of my film in Pakistan is a welcome sign and we should work for love and harmony in other countries,’ he maintained.

Responding a question, he said Indo-Pak joint venture in filmmaking is the need of time.

Raj Kumar Harry said he has strong connection with Pakistan, as his ancestors belonged to Nawab Shah, adding he would visit Pakistan along with his father.

Salma Agha proposes fund-raisers for Indian hockey team

As the Indian hockey team continues to boycott the crucial practice before the World Cup, they have found a surprising supporter. Yesteryear singer-actress Salma Agha, best known for her superhit debut ‘Nikah’, has decided to support the cause of the protesting hockey players.

Players representing the country at the upcoming World Cup (Delhi in Feb-March) have boycotted their practice at the Balewadi Sports Complex in Pune. They are protesting against Hockey India for ignoring their demands of a salary and incentives which are due to them for their performances in 2009.

Salma Agha has come forward with a proposal to do a series of fund-raising concerts across the country.

When contacted, Agha said that her love for sports prompted her to help the hockey players. She said,” I have a lot of my friends are from Punjab, and their friends and families are connected to this sport. It is indeed a sad situation. No one who is representing the country should go through this humiliation.”

The actress said her love for sports comes from her family. “My husband Rehmat Khan and 11-year-old son Ali play squash. In fact, my husband is also a national-level squash coach. When the plight of the hockey players became known, I spoke to my family members who were very supportive and we got in touch with a couple of hockey officials and decided to have these concerts for the benefit of the players.”

Agha said that she is also writing a letter to the Prime Minister and will ask for support from the film industry. However, Agha confesses, the fund-raiser is now at the ideation stage only. “ We have a meeting with the hockey association today, after which we will finalise the dates and rest of the details.” A British national, who had just come in from Pakistan in the 80s, Salma Agha became an overnight sensation with her distinctive voice and hit song ‘Dil ke armaan’ and ‘Kasam Paida Karne Wale Ki’.

She insists that she is primarily an Indian and she will do everything for the love and affection that the country. Olympian Joaquim Carvalho, spokesperson of the Mumbai Hockey Association confirmed the developments, claiming Agha had empathised with the striking national players. “Salma Agha expressed her desire to hold a concert, the proceeds of which could be handed to the Indian players who are unhappy with the treatment being meted to them by Hockey India,” said Carvalho.

“We have taken note of her suggestions and are willing to help her in every possible way. Agha is a sports enthusiast as her son is a squash player,” he added. “This proposed concert could also help the hockey fraternity unite,” observed Carvalho. WHAT STRIKING PLAYERS ARE ASKING FOR Monthly salary from Hockey India (HI); there is no monthly remuneration system for the players. Incentives: They won the Azlan Shah tournament in Malaysia after 19 years in 2009, finished second at the Punjab Gold Cup which included strong teams like Netherlands and Germany and won bronze at the Champions Challenge in Salta (Argentina). There were no incentives from the HI to honour their achievements. Grading system: Want HI to form a grading system where salary structure of players can be decided according to a player’s experience and ability.

Jang, Times of India peace initiative hailed

By Mehtab Haider
KARACHI: Former chairman Competition Commission of India (CCI), Vinod Dhall, on Tuesday praised the initiative taken by the Jang Group and the Times of India for promoting peace and harmony under the title of ‘Aman Ki Asha’, saying there was a need to establish close links in various areas of life for achieving sustainable peace .

During the second day of National Conference on Competition Regime in Pakistan organised by the Competition Commission of Pakistan here, the former chairman CCI said that the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry had requested the Pakistani authorities to enhance cooperation in promoting the bilateral trade between the two countries. “On behalf of the Indian business and trade, I am conveying this message that we are ready to promote trade between the two countries.”

He said before coming to Pakistan, he met with the editor of the Times of India and asked him what kind of message he wanted to deliver for the people of Pakistan. Vinod said he asked him to recite well-versed poem “Dkhai Dayta Hain” and gave them message of peace and harmony. “I have come here to give you message of peace and prosperity from the people of India,” he added. On the issue of promoting cooperation among the Saarc states in areas of competition, he said that the establishment of supra body would take a long time but the cooperation at the bilateral level could be enhanced for promoting competition. He proposed the Saarc Law Forum should have a separate chapter on competition law in order to ensure exchange of information among the regional states.

It is always very easy for the powerful lobbies and influential groups to pressurise the government through political supports, he said, adding that there was a need to ensure full backing of the government to avoid political pressures. He mentioned some clauses of the Doha agreement of the World Trade Organisation talks about the competition laws. These references have been specified in the WTO agreement to ensure free ad fair competitive trade through effective implementation of competition laws.

Earlier, CCP Chairman Khalid Mirza proposed establishment of South Asian Competition Network in order to provide a platform to the regional countries for enforcement of the competition laws. The coordination, he said, was needed between countries while simultaneously conducting inspections and search in cases of organised international cartels.

Indo-Pak schools to exchange students under Aman Ki Asha

By our correspondent
LAHORE: All Indian Schools Association President PK Sehgal and Private Schools Management Association Central President Adeeb Javedani have agreed on a students exchange programme as a goodwill gesture under ‘Aman Ki Asha’. According to the programme, 50 students from each country will visit the other in February.

During a telephonic conversation with Javedani, PK Sehgal said ‘Aman Ki Asha’ was the best way forward for peace between the two countries. He said the effort by the Jang Group and the Times of India would pave the way for a congenial environment for the two countries and it would help them understand each other’s concerns and address them accordingly. He said better Indo-Pak relations meant better educational systems as both countries could share knowledge and educational reforms through student and professional interaction.

Adeeb Javedani commended the friendly gesture of PK Sehgal of inviting Pakistani students to India and said that a delegation of 50 students would visit Delhi In February and Pakistan would host a similar delegation from India in March.

He said ‘Aman Ki Asha’ had kindle a new hope for pleasant relationship between the two country and it gave everyone of us a chance to play our role in the mammoth step forward taken my the media groups of India and Pakistan.

Indo-Pak peace to have lasting impact on people: Ulema

JEHLUM: The Ulema of Jehlum have said that peace between Pakistan and India would have a lasting impact on the people of both the countries while their cordial relations would also help bring stability across Asia.

These were the views of Allama Nadim Raza Qadri, Qari Attaullah, Maulana Mufti Noor Hussain, Maulana Ikramullah Zahid Maulana Muhammad Akram Siddiqui, Syed Khalil Hussain Kazmi, Qari Inamullah, Sheikh Jaffar Hafzi, Mufti Muhammad Habibullah Naimi, Pir Imran Haider Chishti and other Ulema.

They said the issue of Kashmir had continued remain unresolved due to the flawed policies of India. Kashmir stand of is actually the bone of contention between the two nations, they observed.

Amir of International Tanzeem Ahl-e-Sunnat Jehlum, Sahibzada Allama Nadim Raza Qadri said that friendly bilateral ties and peace have become indispensable for the two countries. Peaceful atmosphere will bring economic stability, he stressed.

Amiable bilateral relations between Pakistan and India would help make the entire continent of Asia a secure region.

Khatib Jamia Masjid Madni, Machine Mohalla, Qari Attaullah linked achievement of durable peace with resolution of Kashmir issue. “India is Pakistan’s enemy … it (India) has not recognized Pakistan till this day and caused irreparable loss to Pakistan whenever it got opportunity,” he added.

Maulana Mufti Noor Hussain, Maulana Ikramullah Zahid, Maulana Muhammad Akram Siddiqui, Syed Khalil Hussain Kazmi, Central President Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan and Qari Inamullah said it is utterly essential to build peace between Pakistan and India.

Dr Fehmida supports ‘Aman Ki Asha’ initiative

LAHORE: National Assembly Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza has urged the need to resume the composite dialogue process between Pakistan and India, hoping ‘Aman Ki Asha’ initiative will thrive.

Speaking to newsmen at the Lahore airport on Saturday, Dr. Fehmida Mirza said Pakistan and India are faced with terrorism and other challenges, which need to be sorted out by sitting together for the cause of regional peace.

The dream of world peace cannot be materialized without restoration of peace in Pakistan and region, said Fehmida.

She announced that a ‘friendship group’ would be established between Pakistan and India. The Indian authorities have given their consent in this regard, she added.

Dr Mirza suggested that there was need to start parliamentary diplomacy between the two neighboring countries.

Aman Ki Asha ‘a positive step’: Fazl-ur-Rehman

ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JI) Chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman has hailed ‘Aman Ki Asha’ – an initiative of peace between Pakistan and India launched by Jang Group and Time of India – calling it a ‘positive step’ towards building a promising future for nations of both sides as well as for the entire population of the region.

Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman felicitated Jang Group and Time of India on joining hands for the cause of peace and held out assurance of his support in this regard.

“Nations of both the countries, despite having issues, differences and a bitter past, will have to adopt a path of peace for a better future of their people,” he stressed, adding, this would enable them to shift their resources from ambitions of defence to education and welfare of people.

The JUI Chief said this kind of effort was also made in the past which helped promote people-to-people contact between India and Pakistan. We were part of that effort, he said, adding this latest move is also a step in the right direction.

Two voices sing one anthem for Indo-Pak
Shankar Mahadevan and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan lend voice to Gulzar’s lyrics for Aman ki Asha — an initiative by Times of India and Pakistan’s Jang

Reagan Gavin Rasquinha
Times News Network

An anthem, written by Gulzar and sung by Shankar Mahadevan and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan as part of Aman ki Asha – the cultural and emotional people-to-people peace initiative by The Times of India and Pakistan’s Jang Group has been released. It’s sung in Urdu, naturally, because language is one of the first big things common to both nations. Followed by an unequivocal love for music, films, the fine arts… all based on a common culture that was tragically cut down the middle on August 15, 1947. Now Aman Ki Asha seeks to build bridges between the people of the two nations 63 years after Partition (or is it Independence?) starting with the campaign’s tune called Nazar Mein Rehete Ho Jab Tum Nazar Nahi Aate. It has taken on a life of its own and become a full-fledged song already, dispelling ignorance and fostering trust, based on the fervent belief that Indians and Pakistanis want peace and stability.

BT dropped in on Gulzar and Shankar when they were recording the song for Aman Ki Asha at a Mumbai studio. Shankar, who put together the vocals and tune for Nazar Mein Rehte… said, “It has a heart-to-heart appeal, sounds warm and personal, and through its simple message of brotherhood between both sides of the border represents something that everybody would love to see happen. It took me just a minute to get the melody. Certain lyrics in this song are so powerful that they just reach at you and dictate a melody. While reading Gulzarsaab’s lyrics, I spontaneously sang it, and that was the melody.”

Gulzar, who provided the words to the song, was full of praise for Shankar. “The spontainety that comes from him is unmatchable,” he said. As for Rahat’s contribution, Mahadevan added, “We’re planning to use his voice from Pakistan. We’ve worked together in Bollywood and our chemistry is heart-to-heart. We apprecaite each other and love each other’s music. It’s a lovely relationship. We’re going to send the music to him and he’s going to overdub his parts.”

You may catch Nazar Mein Rehte… on Times Now and Radio Mirchi from today, the lyrics are contagious, especially the lines Nazar Mein Rehte Ho Jab Tum Nazar Nahi Aati, Yeh Sur Bulatey Hai Jab Tum Idhar Nahi Aati… Of the song, Gulzar said: “This subject is very close to my heart. I was born in Dina, Pakistan, so I have a soft corner for that country. There is not a day where I don’t talk to someone about this, Being an Urdu writer, that’s my playground and I have got a lot of recognition there. This friendship is inborn; so there is no ‘effort’ involved in being friends with them. At the same time, what’s all this about ‘differences’ between Indians and Pakistanis? Are there no differences between Indians? You must meet one-to-one respectfully, give and receive respect.”
(Courtesy :Times of India)

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Top Indian, Pakistani media groups join hands for peace
Jang Group, Times of India launch Aman ki Asha initiative

By Gibran Peshimam
KARACHI: The turn of the decade brings with it a momentous shot in the arm to the moribund Indo-Pak peace process with the unveiling of a grand cross-border collaborative peace project. The initiative, titled Aman Ki Asha, promises to be a path-breaking collaboration between Pakistan’s Jang Group and Geo and India’s Times of India Group, the largest media groups on their respective sides of the border. It will look to inject impetus into the Indo-Pak dialogue in a manner that is unparalleled, on a scale that is unprecedented.

The project aims to provide the ultimate mutual platform to debate the major sticking points in the hitherto fickle peace dialogue on both sides of the border — whether it is Kashmir, the water dispute or security. The mission statement is unequivocal, declaring that the two groups commit themselves to a movement that will bring the people and civil institutions of the two countries closer together in fostering an honourable, genuine and durable peace.

While the ultimate aspirations of Aman Ki Asha are undoubtedly lofty — to resolve amicably all outstanding issues that serve as hurdles to peace and campaign for collaboration on economic, cultural issues through a media-led civil society movement — great care has been taken to figure in realistic and deliverable means to ensure the sustainability of this endeavour.

This commitment is calculated and structured. It seeks to deliver tangible results to push forward the peace process and bring to the fore the benefits of harmony, cooperation and trust that have eluded the people of the subcontinent for over six decades because of restrictive visa regimes and confrontational politics. Involving everything from cultural exchanges to policy debates, the joint undertaking is the product of detailed discussions and meticulous planning by both media groups.

The Aman Ki Asha campaign boasts an exciting feature in the form of a moving peace anthem composed by famous Indian lyricist and poet, Gulzar, which is recited by none other than Bollywood’s Amitabh Bachchan — a star, who, few will deny, is larger than life on both sides of the border. The anthem is sung by Pakistan’s Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and India’s Shankar Mahadevan, two of the subcontinent’s most celebrated vocalists.

Cultural and people-to-people ties will be strengthened through an array of entertainment programmes, ranging from music concerts to fashion shows featuring the best of both India and Pakistan. Academic and literary exchanges have been arranged to inspire strong intellectual links.

The project also plans to transcend glamour and glitz by cultivating tangible material cooperation. The heavyweights of the business communities on both sides of the border have been invited to exchange ideas and promote industrial and trade initiatives on a sustained basis in a unique annual economic conference to be held alternately in India and Pakistan. This conference promises tangible and concrete cooperation in vital economic sectors.

It doesn’t end there. Aman Ki Asha has also commissioned comprehensive cross-country surveys in India and Pakistan which will be published on a regular basis. For the first time in history, independent research agencies have carried out parallel surveys on both sides of the border to determine the people’s opinions on issues that matter, and will continue to do so to gauge popular opinion. This research, which has yielded astounding results, will not only serve as a yardstick to formulate policy, but also be used to measure the effect of the peace initiative.

The media groups have promised to continue to take the campaign forward on all fronts. They have established permanent secretariats to ensure the continuity necessary for success. All major stakeholders on both sides of the border have been taken on board ñ from government to businessmen, from the literati to the glitterati.

Clear-cut goals have been identified, targets have been set and a mission statement hammered out. The campaign has been launched. As of the first day of the new decade, Aman Ki Asha is all systems go. And the destination is peace.

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Indian mega artists also catch peace train

NEW DELHI: The Bollywood mega star Amitabh Bachchan has promised to a shoot for ‘aman ki asha’ – a joint initiative of Jang Group and Times of India for peace between Pakistan and India – on Sunday morning.

“Don’t be late, Mr B is very punctual,” was the line we gave each other the day before the shoot. Early Sunday AM, we were all on the sets, making sure everything was in place before the superstar arrived. Director Shoojit Sircar walked around like a man in control. “I’ve just finished a 3-month schedule with Mr Bachchan. There can be no better person to recite this poetry than him,” he announced confidently.

The set is a chai ki dukaan that could be on either side of the border. There’s a tea boy with a cloth duster slung carelessly over his shoulder, serving two women who’ve stopped by for chai and conversation. Swirls of smoke waft out of the giant pan in which tea is being brewed. The menu has pride of place on a wooden board. ‘Born Vita’, ‘Om Late’ and ‘Nes Coffee’ are a few of the gloriously misspelt items available. At a slight distance stands a makeup van, simple and understated, much like its famous occupant.

Repeated light and sound checks later, the team seems ready to welcome Mr B. Confirming all rumours about his punctuality, Amitabh Bachchan drives in exactly at the allotted hour. His car rolls up to the makeup van and Sircar hurriedly follows him in. Minutes later, Bachchan walks onto the set. A hush descends. He is dressed casually in a navy blue tracksuit and funky orange slip ons. His back is straight, his strides long and his voice is strong. “Dikhai dete hain door tak aaj bhi saaye koi, magar bulane se waqt laute na aaye koi” are the lines Gulzar has penned for Aman Ki Asha. Mr B rehearses his lines and walks back to his van.

The director calls for order on the sets. Final checks are in process when the actor returns, this time in a spotless white kurta pajama. He motions for his assistant to get something from the van and the man returns with two shawls. After a short discussion with Sircar, Amitabh Bachchan drapes himself in a beige printed shawl and is ready to roll. At least a dozen people call for silence on the sets, one after the other. An over enthusiastic biker is stopped in his tracks by security who inform him about the proceedings. The biker joins a large group of onlookers who’re all there to see AB shooting.

“Patang udaein chhaton pe chadd ke mohalle wale, falak toh sanjha hai usmein paiche ladaye koi,” says Bachchan. “The severity of words will always be a delight to speak,” he tells us after the shoot is wrapped up. “But these are such casual lines about simple habits, they touch the heart. Unfolding a durree, bringing out the dholak and singing folk songs together, these are things we have done as children.” Bachchan recalls the days he and his friends would enjoy the carefree pleasure of flying kites in Allahabad. “There’s also a line in there about playing kabaddi across the border. At the heart of that line is that if they came over to our side while playing, we would not let them return, and keep them here as our guests.”

Pakistan is close to Bachchan’s heart. His mother was born there. “The only time I have visited was when she took me to Layallpur, where she was from. I was about two then and of course, I don’t remember that trip,” he says. His ties with the neighbour country, though, have remained intact throughout. “I’m in touch with my mother’s friends and their families. In fact, when my daughter got married, my mother’s friend sent her a traditional shaadi ka joda all the way from Pakistan. That’s the sort of bond we still share.”

Lauding the Aman Ki Asha initiative, the actor adds, “I believe it is more important to build bridges than to complain that the road is bumpy. This campaign will help the two countries hold hands in friendship.”

The essence of this distinct idea stayed with him and late Sunday night, Bachchan posted these lines on his blog: “We are now two different countries, India and Pakistan, but our cultures match, as do our food and living habits and our speech. We have been in dispute and rancour on many an occasion and continue to be so, but how wonderful for the media of both the nations to want to start this unique move in building each other’s confidence and faith in the other.”

The shoot is pronounced perfect in just a couple of takes. And Amitabh Bachchan leaves the sets exactly the way he had come in.

Quietly and without any fuss. Director Sircar looks pleased with what he’s canned and strolls about unhurriedly. “It’s time to bury the past and look ahead,” he says. “Pakistan is another country. We must celebrate our similarities and embrace our differences.”

(Courtesy Times of India)

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One and a half billion people just want peace

By Mohammad Malick
ISLAMABAD: The two nations have repeatedly gone to war in the past. Their governments continue sabre rattling and spewing bellicose rhetoric. But identical nationwide opinion surveys conducted by the Jang Group and the Times of India Group in India and Pakistan show that a majority of the billion and a half people of the sub-continent want to live as peaceful and friendly neighbours and share the same humane goals like any other civilised polity; economic prosperity for all, education for the youth, health for the needy, absence of violence and elimination of existential threats.

In Pakistan, 72 per cent of the respondents desired “peaceful and friendly relations with India” whereas 60 per cent Indians were hopeful of such an eventuality. This relative lesser percentage may be owing to the fact that presently 88 per cent of Indians consider Pakistan as a high/moderate threat to India’s well being. In contrast, 72 per cent Pakistanis perceive India as a high/moderate threat. The 88 per cent threat perception notwithstanding, it is heartening to note, however, that over 59 per cent of Indians think that a peaceful relationship would be established with Pakistan within their lifetime, an optimism shared by 64 percent Pakistanis.

While vested interests on both sides may have led the people to believe that every Pakistani wakes up paranoid with India and that every Indian goes to bed fretting over the next deadly Pakistani move, statistics show otherwise. Half the people polled in India thought about Pakistan “sometimes”, while only 16 per cent thought about us in a more focused manner. As for Pakistanis, 32 per cent appeared to be seriously concerned over the state of our bilateral relations. Hardly the figures for two peoples supposedly obsessed with each other’s ultimate annihilation, would not you agree?

The adverse ramifications of less than friendly relations too have not been lost on either side. Over half the Indian nation feels that the tense situation has hampered both social and economic development within India itself. This feeling is even greater in Pakistan where 71 per cent people blame lack of social development on this cold war.

But having said that, both the people appear to be greater believers in the art-of-possible than their ruling dispensations. The governments stated positions notwithstanding, the priorities of both nations appear to be clear and positive. Almost three-fourths of the people interviewed on both sides of the border favoured increased business links and were convinced that such a commercial build-up could be one of the best defences against an army build-up between the two erstwhile jittery neighbours. In a significant revelation, 75 per cent of Indians want a settlement of the Kashmir issue which was recognised as a major impediment to normalisation of relations. On this side, the number was understandably higher at 84 per cent. What did not come as any surprise, however, was that cricket reigned supreme. In a region where cricket is god, 93 per cent of Indians viewed it as an important means to be utilised in the peace building process. And Pakistanis too seem to agree to this assessment.

Surveys indicate that the cohabitants of the subcontinent no longer favour the long held belief that at times peace stands on the other side of the war, for many extraordinary routes to destination peace were offered by the ordinary Indians and Pakistanis. Over half the people on both sides of the divide wanted greater people-to-people interaction with almost three-fourths believing that this interaction will dispel ‘myths’ and could lay a solid foundation for a lasting peace. In a sharp contrast, however, relations between the two governments were deemed as outright hostile by the people. Over half the people believed that greater cultural exchanges, with movies bearing the greatest load of expectations, could smooth a lot of ruffled feathers and ease down tensions. There were strong proponents on both sides, again in a majority, arguing for increased tourism including medical-tourism while a good 73 per cent rightly viewed close cooperation in education and student exchanges as another key peace building element.

That said, however, the survey results also betray the adverse impact of long held beliefs and biases, both real and imaginary, which continue to retard various peace building initiatives. While the two nations undisputedly crave peace, mutual suspicions and concerns remain a grim reality posing difficult but negotiable roadblocks on this road to peace. It is worrying indeed that when asked what at once came to their mind when the word Pakistan was mentioned, 78 per cent responded “terror”. Over half of these people attributed this perception to the recent incidents like the Mumbai attack. Over 40 per cent of Indians also feel Pakistan is responsible for promoting extremist violence. But at the same time, 41 per cent blame it on a combination of Pakistan and home-grown factors like Maoists etc. Pakistani nation too has its own fair share of fears. Almost three-thirds are convinced of Indian involvement in extremist violence within Pakistan with 31 per cent blaming it on a US-India nexus. In a sharp departure from the Indian perspective, however, when Pakistanis were asked about the first thing that came to their minds at the mention of word India, 64 per cent responded “Kashmir”. All is not lost indeed, yet suspicion runs nearly as strongly as the desire to make peace.

The surveys show that a serious, sincere and concerted effort is required to attain a peaceful equation between the two countries and it was encouraging to see that when asked to opine on possible milestones in this peace making process, invariably both nations favoured positive options like greater cooperation, rage linkups, improving internal defences and mechanisms, people-to-people contact and neither side showed any inclination towards seeking conflict-oriented resolutions. The tactics may vary somewhat but it is clear that strategically South Asia has voted in favour of making peace.

Links :-
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/amankiasharticleshow/5400932.cms
http://www.thenews.com.pk/blog/blog_details.asp?id=424

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