| 04 January 2004 | Sunday | 11 Ziqa'ad 1424 |
Baghdad mosque raid
HR abuses in rural areas
The 12th summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation begins in Islamabad today on a high note. On Friday, the foreign ministers of member countries adopted a framework for a regional free trade zone in what can be termed as a historic move. Under the agreement, tariffs between member countries will be reduced by the beginning of 2006, paving the way for greater trade in the region.
While in practical terms, the benefit of any such agreement will not be visible till then, in terms of symbolism, Friday's agreement is a big achievement. There are over 200 regional trade groupings existing in the world today, but a South Asian Free Trade Area (Safta) can well overshadow most of these if its full potential is realized.
In remarks in Islamabad, Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha told reporters that the Indian proposal of a South Asian Economic Union and a single currency had received an enthusiastic response from various member countries. Mr Sinha added that in view of the progress on the Safta framework agreement, India had proposed that the year 2015 should be set for the South Asian Union instead of 2020 as was earlier suggested. The understanding that has been reached among the member countries is to mould the Saarc forum in line with trading blocs like Asean and the European Union. This is a practical step that will go a long way in strengthening the association.
In November 2003, Prime Minister Vajpayee had said in his inaugural speech at the Saarc information ministers conference in New Delhi that members should set aside political differences and aim at speeding up economic growth. Mr Vajpayee warned that if Saarc does not learn from such groupings, its relevance would be diminished. Similar sentiments have been expressed by other regional leaders. It seems that the message is getting through.
Agreement on Safta should also help to facilitate progress at the summit in tackling other common economic and social issues. South Asia is home to about 25 per cent of the world's population, but the average annual per capita income is just $450, which is considered low by world standards. Saarc foreign ministers have agreed on the draft for a Social Charter, and its success will depend a great deal on the prospect of enhanced trade and economic cooperation. This will raise standards of living in the region through a sharing of know-how and expertise, which in turn can lead to more intra-regional investment and economic activity.
It is hoped that the Islamabad summit will live up to the expectations of the people. In the past, what we have seen is that the confrontation between India and Pakistan has been a major factor in not allowing Saarc to function effectively. With the two countries now seriously engaged in a process of normalization of relations, some major breakthroughs can be expected.
The positive response given by other Saarc members to the overtures between India and Pakistan only illustrates the belief that equitable sharing of the benefits of regional cooperation is essential to achieve and maintain a minimum acceptable level of economic and social development in each member state. This should be the bottom line at the summit.
Baghdad mosque raid
According to a report on Saturday, American troops raided a mosque in Baghdad and were said to have recovered some arms. The imam of the mosque said the troops beat up worshippers and took away some computers and a donations box. The US military alleges that the mosque was not being used for worship alone, and that is why they had recovered "a wide array of weaponry."
The occupation authorities should thank heavens the angry worshippers confined their protest to shouts. If they had not exercised restraint, there would have been bloodshed, and that would have been a bad day for the Americans in Iraq. It is true the Americans were accompanied by Iraqis from the civil defence corps and the police. But those who entered the mosque - with boots on - were Americans.
It is unbelievable that they did not know that shoes were not allowed inside mosques. Like the frisking of women by male soldiers, this act too constitutes a grave provocation - and not only to the Iraqi people. If at all soldiers had to enter the mosque, the Iraqis who accompanied the Americans could have been asked to carry out the job without provoking the worshippers. The Americans showed once again that they have no faith in the Iraqi personnel who are aiding the occupation. Perhaps they do not even trust their own hand-picked Governing Council.
From a broader perspective, the raid on the mosque represents the tip of the iceberg as far as America's problems in Iraq are concerned. The resistance has shown no signs of abating, and the American casualties by year's end had reached 244 since President Bush declared major combat in Iraq over. If the Republican administration does not want more body bags to reach home in an election year, it should expedite a transfer of power and end the occupation.
HR abuses in rural areas
The 2003 annual report of the Multan task force of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has some chilling facts to reveal about the state of human rights in southern Punjab. Home largely to an impoverished, tribal population under feudal domination, the districts of Multan, Bahawalpur and Dera Ghazi Khan have been the scene of some of the most gruesome crimes. The report says the three districts recorded over 1,000 murders, many among them described as honour killings. Violence against women and children remained rampant, and the incidence of suicides saw an increase.
Poverty and unemployment were cited as reasons for 81 cases of male suicide and domestic violence for 48 cases involving women. Police torture and abuse in lock-ups and jails remained high, with cases cited of 115 men and 43 women falling victim to abuse. The overall picture constitutes a sad commentary on the level and magnitude of HR abuses in southern Punjab which, like many other parts of the interior of Sindh and Balochistan, consists of backward areas that hardly ever attract the attention of higher provincial and federal authorities.
Another more worrying observation made in the HRCP report pertains to the failure of the local bodies and district public safety commissions to help the victims of abuse get relief or justice. With the formulation of local and district governments under the devolution plan more than two years ago, it was hoped that the outreach of the civil administration and law enforcement agencies would improve. But this does not seem to be happening in the rural hinterland; in fact, reports are that most state functionaries are complacent and some indeed a party to oppression.
This disturbing trend indicates that overhauling of the local bodies - or revamping of the police force under the police act of last year - alone will not result in any improvement as long as social attitudes remain unchanged. The state needs to join hands with the non-governmental sector to create awareness among the public about the norms of civil society and put pressure on local administrations to be more responsive to the people's miseries.