Economic prosperity and trade links are vital for the progress of South Asia and welfare of its peoples, and for this Pakistan and India need to change its perception from 'military' to 'economic and trade', so as to compete in the Western-dominated world.
Former vice-chairman of the Indian Chief of Army Staff, General Jain Moti Dhar, expressed these views while addressing a reception held under the auspices of Anjuman-e-Asiaya Awaam, in honour of a 22-member Indian delegation that arrived here on Thursday.The Indian delegation, which is headed by prominent Indian parliamentarian, Nirmla Desh Panday, is comprised of educationists, parliamentarians and social workers.
Jain Moti Dhar maintained that when he was in the army, he worked for breaking Pakistan, but three factors have compelled him to change his stance to Indo-Pak peace.
"First, unimaginable bloodshed has taken place in Indian occupied Kashmir. From 1989 till today, between 60,000 to 70,000 people have been killed in the area, and the common man has suffered the most.
Second, Pakistan and India, being nuclear powers, in just five minutes nuclear loaded missiles could hit both Delhi and Lahore, and the casualties from the nuclear blast would be astronomical.
According to an estimate, in Delhi, 300,000 people would die instantly, while 250,000 would follow in few days and after 15 days of the blast more than 300,000 people would die," he added.
Thirdly, economic and trade dominance of the West has opened his eyes. He said that after fighting two world wars and losing millions of men, the West has realised that only economic and trade progress could serve their national interests and not military.
"Thus, we also need to change our approach and look at national security from a different angle," he added.
Nirmla Desh Panday said that 'world public opinion' was for the emergence of second superpower, which could challenge the US might during the Iraq bombardment, and we need this power in the region in order to develop peace, and that, too, without nukes.
Guns were not the solution to the Indo-Pak problems - rather these must be resolved in a peaceful manner, she added.
Other speakers, including Abid Hassan Manto, Asma Jahangir, Meena Jain, Bishop of Delhi Karan Masih and Indian parliamentarian Muhammad Saleem also spoke on the occasion.
They said that the security of Pakistan and India was not depended on weapons, but on peace and harmony among peoples of the region.
They were of the view that people on both sides eager for peace, but vested interest on both sides of the borders create obstacles by creating instability in Indo-Pak relations, as their rule was based on Indo-Pak enmity.
They advocated for soft visa policies so as to encourage people-to-people contact, which would help in promoting peace in the region.