September 22, 2006	Friday	Sha'aban 28, 1427

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window).

RAWALPINDI, Sept 21: Speakers on the occasion of International Peace Day have criticised the United Nations for its failure to keep global peace and stop illegal incursion of powerful states into the weak nations.

The speakers at a panel discussion held under the auspices of United Nations Information Centre in collaboration with the defence and diplomatic studies department of Fatima Jinnah Women University called upon the world body to play its proactive role in resolving disputes across the world.

The panelists included former foreign secretary Tanvir Ahmad Khan, chief administrative officer UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations Paneerselvam Perembalam, Regional Director Sri Lankan Institute of Strategic Studies Dr Riffat Hussain and professors from Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad and the FJWU.

Though Mr Perembalam in his paper highlighted the UN role in establishing peace with the help of peacekeeping troops in 18 countries including Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan, Mr Khan argued that the US war against the three sovereignties was ‘entirely misbegotten’.

“The US did not trace a single weapon of mass destruction in Iraq, nor did it abolish the so-called terrorists in Afghanistan while the war against Lebanon was in fact a war against humanity — a blatant violation of the UN charter,” the former foreign secretary added.

He said in modern era dialogue was the most easy and acceptable means of establishing peace between two rival states, regretting that some big powers particularly the US were much hasty in taking arms against any nation.

“In such type of situation, the UN must not let a country take arms against another and should resolve the issue through a composite dialogue in the large interest of the civilian population,” he suggested. “Ceasefire is not a big breakthrough in case of Lebanon as it is a temporary arrangement, and the root cause of the conflict should be identified and then resolved,” he maintained.

He urged students of diplomatic studies to explore and learn lessons from the Israeli aggression against Lebanon in order to judge who was right and who was wrong.

However, Mr Khan said despite many drawbacks the UN was the only platform and a hope for keeping the globe peaceful.

Dr Riffat Hussain said after World War II civilian casualties in militarised war had risen alarmingly, which should be a serious concern for UN and other humanitarian agencies.

He observed that sustainable peace could not be achieved until and unless the root causes of conflicts were not redressed, adding that peace could be established by peace and not through violence.

Dr Hussain urged the civil society organisations to come forward and make the people realise the importance of adopting peaceful strategies in resolving all kinds of disputes.