Siachen: What does Pakistan want?

[1]

Pakistan on Thursday said that there has been no change in its policy regarding Siachen and that its forces will not be withdrawn from the snow capped frontiers.

“There has been no change in Pakistan’s policy regarding Siachen,” foreign office spokesman Muhazam Khan said.

He, however, told reporters that the ongoing dialogue process between Pakistan and India included discussions regarding troop deployment.

Meanwhile, after army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and PML(N) chief Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan’s cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan has also voiced his support for the withdrawal of forces from the Siachen.

“The withdrawal should not be unilateral. Both Pakistan and India should withdraw their forces simultaneously from Siachen,” Mr Khan said.

On Wednesday, Gen. Kayani had said that Pakistan is open to hold talks with India to de-militarise Siachen. On Tuesday, Mr Sharif had also called upon the governments of Pakistan and India to withdraw their forces from Siachen.

Hindus feel distressed and insecure

The Hindu community in Pakistan said they are distressed and feel insecure in this predominantly Muslim country.

The Pakistan Hindu Council said that it will soon call a nationwide conference to decide the future plan of action. The reaction came as three previously Hindu women 'decided' to live with their Muslim husbands after the Supreme Court allowed them to decide their fate.

The Hindu community believe that the women were forced to take this decision as they feared for their lives. “We don’t have guns, but we, the Hindus of Pakistan, will use our economic power against the oppression being meted out to us,” said Dr Ramesh of the Pakistan Hindu Council.

The three women — Rinkle Kumari, Dr Lata, and Asha Kumari — who have been at the centre of the forced conversion case said on Wednesday they wanted to live with their Muslim husbands.

The statements come after around 150 Pakistani soldiers and civilians were buried under tonnes of snow in the Gayari sector near Siachen on April 7 as a massive avalanche hit an army headquarter.
“Both countries should undertake the process of pullout as per the spirit of the 1984 Agreement,” Mr Khan said in Islamabad.

“Both nations are wasting resources by deploying their forces at the Siachen glacier. The practice is also adversely affecting the environment in the region,” he said. Mr Khan criticised Mr Sharif for his recent remarks for floating the idea of unilateral withdrawal from Siachen.

Gilani lawyer gives UN immunity report

Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan on Thursday presented before the Supreme Court the UN report on immunity for Heads of States, arguing that his client did not commit any contempt of court by not reopening corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.

“Mr Zardari enjoys immunity so Mr Gilani did not commit any contempt of court by not writing to the Swiss authorities to reopen cases against him,” Mr Ahsan said in the court.