04 September 2004	Saturday	18 Rajab 1425

KARACHI, Sept 3: Security analysts on Friday sounded a warning that scarcity of water may become a major source of conflict in the 21st century, posing a serious threat to human development and security.

The focus was more on Central Asia and South Asia, and the experts also emphasized that regional initiatives are important to ensure human security through joint utilization of water resources.

Participating in the deliberations on the second day of the fifth international workshop on "human security: global and regional perspective," they emphasized that territorial problems in the bordering areas were a common threat of international terrorism and there was a need for managing the inter-regional migration; combating human trafficking and drug trafficking.

The workshop is being organized by the International Relations Department of the University of Karachi, in collaboration with Hanns Seidel Foundation. Besides Pakistanis, participants from Bangladesh, China, Russian Federation, Kazakhastan and Greece took part in the discussion.

Dr Shaista Tabassum of the Karachi University, while presenting her paper "water conflict in South Asia and human security" traced the history how civilizations rose or vanished owing to abundance or lack of water.

She said water had been a source of conflict both historically as well as in this contemporary world and it was considered a potential threat to any state's security. One very important and contemporary dimension of state security was the human security, which was directly threatened by conflicts over distribution of fresh water resources.

Looking only to the human security of the people of South Asia, there are at least three major water settlement issues that had affected a large number of people in South Asia.

These were the Indus water's distribution between India and Pakistan, the Ganges Water conflict, the construction of Farrakha barrage by India and related water distribution issues between India and Bangladesh and the Indo-Nepal conflict over the Mahakali river. In this context, she also referred to the Indian river interlinking project.

She said that their impact was far-reaching, ranging from low agricultural production, brutalization of land owing to low water table and growing salinity, to rehabilitation of the people displaced due to the construction of dams and barrages.

Apart from political settlement made in these three cases, the consequences of some of the settlements were still visible even after 44 years of the conclusion of the treaty i.e. between India and Pakistan. She also pointed out that migration would remain an issue that would need to be addressed.

Dr Zhang Li dwelt on "terrorism in south-east Asia and its implication on China", and referred to the Bali attack and several other major terror assaults throughout that region and stressed that they indicated that the region had currently emerged as a new launching ground for globally linked terrorism.

He said the apparent penetration of globally networked terrorism and its connection with the regional militants offered a basic dimension of observing the issue: Southeast Asian militant terrorism had associated local discontents and social grievances with a much broader agenda upheld by well-organized, well-financed external Al Qaeda network.

Envisaging the growing terrorism in Southeast Asia during the last few years and its connection with the global terrorist network, Southeast Asian governments have taken the initiative to curb the threat individually and collectively by decisively adopting a series of ad hoc security, legislative and political measures, and the tangible results of operations against terrorist outfits have proved to be impressive.

Significantly, along with hardhanded onslaughts, a more balanced and more affirmative approach towards addressing the root-causes of terrorism and violent insurgences is expected to receive increasing attention.

These contribute much to the US-led global war against terrorism. Nevertheless, terrorists in the region still have potential to carry out terror attacks in the near future despite suffering severe setbacks.

Dr. Sabiha Syed focused on Central Asia and said that in view of the past and present political developments there, the question of human security was considered important by the governments in the region.

Shaheen Afroze, Senior Research Fellow of the Bangladesh International Institute of Strategic Studies (BIISS) narrated her country's experience with human security issue and how they were being tackled by the academicians.

Syed Hussain Soherwordi from Peshawar said the issue of redefining security in South Asia can best be addressed through a new approach to diplomacy based on track-2 talks, international organizations, NGOs, and by direct engagement with civil society.

Dr Laura Yerekesheva from Kazakhastan said that in central Asia the problems of migration and identity bear the political dimension and depended on the internal situation in the countries and their interstate relations. Sannat Kushkumbayev from Kazakhastan and KU's Mohammad Ahsanuddin and Dr. Khalida Ghaus also spoke.