Iran throws down the gauntlet

IRAN’s move to restart its uranium enrichment facility in Isfahan after a delay of eight months has not exactly come like a bolt from the blue. After his election to the presidency in July, Mr Mahmoud Ahmedinejad had made it clear that he would continue with the nuclear programme and would not be dictated to over the nuclear issue. Hence, it is hardly surprising that soon after taking over office, President Ahmadinejad has proceeded to throw down the gauntlet to the western powers. Although the Iranian government has repeatedly said that its nuclear programme is designed to meet the country’s technological, medical and energy needs, the West is very uneasy about it because enriched uranium can be used for manufacturing weapons as well. In another move to send a message to the West, Tehran has appointed a conservative as its chief nuclear negotiator. It is difficult to understand why Iran should decide to rock the boat at this stage when it has been negotiating with the EU for two years and on Saturday the E-3 (Britain, Germany and France) presented a package of economic aid and trade incentives in a bid to persuade it to abandon its nuclear plans.

Now that Iran has taken the road to confrontation, there is need for all sides to display circumspection in the matter before the crisis goes out of hand. The EU had been negotiating with Iran in a bid to head off the crisis which is now escalating rapidly. Washington, which has not had a stress-free relationship with Tehran ever since the Shahinshah was overthrown by the Ayatollahs and its diplomats held hostage, has threatened to take the matter to the UN Security Council and have sanctions imposed on Iran. This will make the stand-off worse and leave no room for a compromise. The saving grace in this difficult situation is that the IAEA has placed the Isfahan facility under the supervision of its own experts.

Iran’s assurance that the enriched uranium will not be used for making atomic weapons will not be very convincing to the West. It may be recalled that many countries — Pakistan, India, North Korea and others — initially claimed their nuclear programme to be a peaceful one and then sprung a surprise by declaring that they had developed nuclear weapons. Hence the need to continue the talks between Iran and the EU. Tehran must be kept engaged so that a solution may be found.

The problem with such crises between the nuclear powers and nuclear aspirants is that the NPT notwithstanding, the members of the nuclear club have not honoured their part of the bargain. Under the treaty, which made it binding on all states to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, the atomic powers were also bound to work towards the elimination of their nuclear arms. This they have failed to do in the last 35 years. In an effort to seek a strategic balance, other states have turned nuclear. They announced their status only after they had carried out successful nuclear tests. Iran could be moving in the same direction. No one can support nuclear proliferation but the big powers’ approach gives one a better perspective of the nuclear arms race. It would be sensible if the goal of total nuclear disarmament is not lost sight of.

Catching foreign militants

IN a concerted effort to stabilize the volatile area of Waziristan, NWFP governor Khalilur Rehman said on Monday that he would root out foreign militants from the area by reaching out to tribal leaders for their support in this move. This strategy of engaging tribal leaders in the “war on terror” has not achieved much success as foreign militants continue to enjoy patronage and protection. Whatever headway has been made, it has come at a heavy price. According to reports, 500 military personnel have lost their lives since the trouble in Wana began. Moreover, three pro-government tribal leaders have been assassinated in the last few months while others have been openly threatened with dire consequences if they side with the government. This strife has only hurt the people in the impoverished area where access to basic facilities is inadequate. The government has recognized how the area desperately needs uplift projects but it needs to move beyond mere promises and begin to fulfil them. Only last month the governor told the tribal leaders that he would ensure that all 253 developmental schemes included in the new financial year’s annual development programme for Fata were completed on time. This must be done at all costs for without development, people will remain steeped in poverty and deprivation.

To develop a relationship of mutual trust and confidence, it is important to take into consideration the tribal leaders’ demands that they be kept abreast of any search operation in the region. By keeping them out of the picture, the government risks alienating the locals and deepening their mistrust of law enforcement agencies. This is precisely what foreign militants want for their safety and protection. To engage local support against foreign militants, the government must go beyond lecturing tribal leaders on “fulfilling their responsibilities”. By initiating uplift projects in the tribal area, and letting the locals see for themselves the benefits of such projects, the government will be able to gain the cooperation it seeks in tracing out foreign militants.

Power breakdown in Karachi

A MAJOR power breakdown caused by the snapping of a main line wire which blacked out much of Karachi late on Monday night highlights the urgent need for refurbishing the KESC’s ill-maintained transmission and distribution network. According to a KESC spokesman, in response, engineers tried to transfer the load on to another line which too tripped. Power was not fully restored till yesterday afternoon. Technical explanations aside, the result was a terrible eight-hour agony and discomfort for the Karachiites, and that too in the middle of the hot and humid weather the city has been experiencing for a long time. The breakdown began at one at night and lasted for almost 12 hours in some areas.

While it might be too early to know what caused the main line to snap, going by past experience, it would be safe to assume that the poor state of repair and maintenance of the KESC’s distribution and transmission system was the main reason. Also, the long time of almost 12 hours taken to restore the power supply, even accounting for the fact that the breakdown occurred in the middle of the night, means that the KESC must improve its capacity to deal with major faults and failures. The distribution and transmission system is overloaded and trips every now and then, causing frequent power breakdowns, especially in the summers. Regrettably, nothing has been done to address the recurring problem by the utility’s management which knows that checking rampant power theft in commercial and residential areas and disconnecting ‘kunda’ connections could help reduce the load on the system and benefit those who pay for their electricity. These are things that the management must concentrate on because that is the only way of ensuring that the utility is better equipped to respond to such breakdowns in the future.