From Nuclear standoff to economic integration, only it can happen in Sub continent. Peace and freedom is the eventual winner.
On your post < may there be peace and a lasting new republic around you>
Our region has escaped disaster several times before luckily and we as a whole know some how know how to act gentlemanly.. this was what happened after all that sabre-rattling..This is no Arafat or Saddam this is a region that wants to live and live in peace, ..
President Pervez Musharraf shook hands Saturday with Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee after speaking to the South Asian leaders, saying he was offering "a hand of genuine friendship."
Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee welcomed President Pervez Musharraf's dramatic handshake gesture at the South Asian summit on Saturday but urged him to convert it into concrete action quickly.
"I am glad that President Musharraf extended his hand of friendship to me," Vajpayee told the summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). "I have shaken his hand in your presence, now President Musharraf must follow this gesture by not permitting any activity in Pakistan or any territory in its control today which enables terrorists to perpetrate mindless violence in India," he added.
Soon after the handshake as Mr Jaswant Singh said that India welcomes President Pervez Musharraf's extension of his hand Saturday to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, but the gesture must be backed up by action, Indian Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh said.
"We welcome the hand of friendship that the general has extended to the prime minister," Singh told reporters. But echoing Vajpayee's remarks at the summit, Singh said the move "must be accompanied by acts of friendship."
The real action happened late last night..
Pakistani authorities have detained more than 100 activists in a crackdown on extremist organisations involved in religious militancy and sectarian violence, officials said Saturday.
"Over 100 people have been arrested in the past two days," a senior official said. "These people are involved in various cases in the country." The detainees include activists from sectarian parties and Muslim militant organisations, the official said, requesting anonymity.
"Cases of violating local laws are pending against them at various places in the country," he said, adding that the government wants to bring them to book.
The Pakistani President requested in his speech that "The region that gave birth to many sages who upheld the cherished goal of peace and harmony, a region who is home to some of the oldest civilization, and region that takes pride in the diversity and beauty of its culture heritage, has in the modern era failed to resolve its many contradiction, differences and tensions," he said.
He emphasised the need to "bring to bear, the wisdom, the sagacity , tolerance, and sense of justice of the ages in which we take so much pride to resolve all our problems."
The President said, performance of SAARC so far with comparison with other regional organizations need much to be desired. "While SAARC limps along, organizations like the European Union and ASEAN have galloped ahead."
The national leaders in these organizations, he said, had a vision for their people and the regions. They work with commitment, and with sincerity to resolve political issues while embarking on the road to economic integration, he added.
The President called to learn lessons from their experience and sincerely address and resolve the problems afflicting the South Asian region. |
