| December 27, 2002 | Friday | Shawwal 22, 1423 |
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Daska church attack
Cruel and callous
A CLOSE identity of views seems to have emerged between Pakistan and Iran following President Mohammad Khatami’s three-day visit to Pakistan. The four agreements signed by the two sides and the joint communique issued at the end of the visit show the two sides’ determination to forge closer cooperation in the economic, political, cultural and defence fields. However, the significance of the outcome of the Khatami visit should be seen against the background of Pakistan-Iran relations over the last two decades. Traditionally fraternal, ties with Tehran came under strain because of a host of factors, including the rise of sectarian militancy in Pakistan during the Zia regime and Islamabad’s close defence cooperation with Washington following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Even though the US later ditched Pakistan following the Soviet withdrawal, Tehran developed serious differences with Islamabad over its Afghan policy. Pakistan’s political and military involvement in the Afghan civil war and its categorical support to the Taliban did not go well with Iran. In the Afghan civil war, thus, Pakistan and Iran found themselves on the opposite sides when Iran started backing the anti-Taliban factions. The killing of some Iranian diplomats and engineers in Pakistan also cast a shadow on relations between the two countries. Yet, in spite of these setbacks, the two countries did not allow their relations to become inimical.
Under President Khatami — now in his second term — Iran has made determined efforts to break out of its regional and international isolation. It has improved its relations with the Arab countries, especially the Gulf states, and normalized ties with Europe. The fall of the Taliban regime in Kabul has also removed a major irritant in Pakistan-Iran relations. No wonder, the Iranian president should have been the first head of state to visit Pakistan after the installation of a civilian set-up in Pakistan. The joint communique issued at the end of the Khatami visit testifies to the area of understanding that already exists between the two countries. It spoke of Islamabad and Tehran having “common strategic interests” and expressed the determination of the two sides to strengthen their bilateral relations in all spheres, including economic and defence. On Afghanistan, they pledged to uphold the Bonn process, and on Iraq the communique struck a moderate, reasoned note. While the two sides opposed a military strike on Iraq, they urged Baghdad to “respect and implement” the UN resolution on disarmament. Even though the communique did not make a pointed reference to the Kashmir issue, President Khatami made it clear in his speech at the civic reception at Lahore’s Shalimar Gardens that the “unprecedented brutalities” against the people of Kashmir were “intolerable” for Iran. In this context, he made a strong plea for Pakistan and India to resume talks to solve all issues, including Kashmir.
The communique touched on the issue of a projected gas pipeline from Iran across Pakistan to India, and emphasized its importance for the region’s economic development. The major hurdle delaying the project is India’s conditions about the safety of the pipeline. New Delhi wants Tehran to compensate it in case Islamabad cuts off gas supply to India. The fear is unfounded. It is an economic project for the common benefit of all the three countries. One hopes India will give up its rigid stance on the question of security of supply and help in what the communique calls “the implementation of the project immediately.” The Khatami visit could turn out to be a watershed in Pakistan’s relations with Iran if the two countries carry forward the goals and sentiments contained in the communique.
THE grenade attack on a church in Punjab on Christmas day is yet another deplorable incident of violence against a religious minority. Three girls were killed and at least 13 others injured when masked men hurled grenades at a congregation during Christmas service at a small church in Daska near Sialkot. What should have been a joyous occasion for those present at the church was turned by this senseless act into a nightmare of death and destruction. The police claim that they have arrested three persons, all belonging to the banned militant outfit Jaish-i-Mohammad, in connection with the attack. Apart from attacks on foreign targets, Christian places of worship have also been targeted on a number of occasions since September 11.
In October 2001, a church in Bahawalpur was attacked by fanatics leading to the death of 16 persons. In March this year, a church in Islamabad’s diplomatic enclave was attacked, killing five. In August, a missionary school in Murree was targeted when six persons were killed. Days later, terrorists struck again in Taxila when gunmen opened fire outside a chapel in the compound of a Christian hospital. Three nurses died in that attack. In June, eight Christians were shot dead at the offices of a charity organization in Karachi in what was a most chilling and sinister incident. The frequency of acts of violence against what is essentially a peaceful religious community known for its devotion to public service and charity has provoked a wave of fear and anger. Christian leaders have long been demanding greater security for their places of worship and strong action against those who target them out of malicious ill-will and hatred. The authorities must urgently heed such calls and make every effort to deal with the growing menace of religious bigotry and extremism with an iron hand.
WHATEVER little was achieved on the patenting of life-saving pharmaceuticals at the World Trade Organization’s conference at Doha last year, was lost at Geneva last Saturday when the US refused to give any ground to the developing countries, sealing all prospects for reaching a final agreement. Aid organizations fear that the over-protectionist policy — vis-a-vis the multi-million-dollar pharmaceutical transnationals — pursued by a number of rich countries led by the US will lead thousands of sick people in the developing countries to die simply because they cannot afford the expensive patented pharmaceuticals produced in the West. The provisional and unanimous agreement reached at Doha allowed the developing countries to import or produce generic versions of patented life-saving drugs, particularly those required to treat or manage killer diseases like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and certain epidemics. The Geneva session of the WTO completely scrapped the provisional agreement, primarily as a result of the strong lobbying done by the transnationals in Washington.
What happened at Geneva is indeed shocking: commercial interests simply overrode all sense of morality, justice and humanitarian commitment of the rich towards the poor of the world. Put simply, the move to scrap the Doha agreement translates into giving affluent pharmaceutical transnationals monopoly rights over the sale of generic substances patented into medicines carrying brand names and, by extension, over the lives of millions of the world’s poor. So much for the so-called benefits of the free market economy for the developing countries, which the West is pursuing with the killer-instinct of a Wall Street trader. The unjustified stance is sure to end up killing millions of seriously ill impoverished people around the world. If that is the western way of alleviating poverty, then God help us all.