India tests three nuclear devices

``The Clinton administration should reverse course and recognise that India is a legitimate nuclear state, like Britain and Russia, not a dangerous nuclear rogue like North Korea. It (the United States) should allow India to keep its nuclear weapons and sign the non-proliferation treaty, with all the attendant rights and obligations,``says University of Chicago political scientist John Mearshimer.

Mearshimer backs the idea of cultivating New Delhi to counter Beijing, saying ``it would be difficult to fashion an effective coalition of Asian countries (against China) without India as a central pillar.``

``Nuclear weapons are an excellent deterrent against aggression, and India lives in a dangerous neighbourhood... As a start toward closer political ties, the administration could support India`s membership in the UN Security Council... A more realistic policy toward India would benefit both Asia and American interests,`` he wrote in a New York Times commentary under the headline ``India Needs the Bomb.``

Hello, I am also very concerned about the political implication of India`s action, but also, what about the health implications for the people living in the surrounding area and also the tourists visiting the area. Jaisalmer is about 100km from Pokharan, and has a population for about 50,000 people, 40,000 army and is a major tourist epicentre? Can anyone provide me with any information on this?

alishan@start.com.au

CLIP THE HAWKS’ WINGS

The government of Pakistan is sending a three member legislative delegation to Washington next week. The purpose of the delegation is not specifically stated, however, it is clear that their context is the ongoing nuclear drama in South Asia.

The delegation consists of two MNAs, Ijaz ul Haq and Sarwar Cheema and Senator Akram Zaki, who is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee. While Zaki was formerly secretary general foreign affairs and ambassador to US, China, Nigeria and Philippines, the qualifications of the other two members are open to conjecture.

Three qualities, however, are shared by this trio:
(1) Their egotistical and ambitious political opportunism,
(2) their hawkish jingoism, and
(3) their utter oblivion towards the economic realities of today’s world.

The trio lands in New York on June 29th and ‘goes to work’ on the Pakistani community in the NY area on May 30th and 31st. Their program is being handled by Mr. Zaidi, the consul general.

On the first of June they travel to Washington to meet with Congress. (Interestingly, a congressional sub-committee is scheduled to start hearings on the cancellation of IPP agreements by the Pak Govt - this had been scheduled way ahead of all this nuke business, but still, the timing couldn’t have been worse for Pakistan.)

The purpose of this posting is to invite all those chowkwallas who clamor for ‘action’ to converge on New York and intercede with the delegation members. I, for one, intend to go there and raise the voice of reason in the nest of misguided Pakistani hawks.

Make yourselves available on Saturday and Sunday if you can get to New York. Perhaps someone can talk sense into the deaf ears of the hawks that they should stop waving their little atomic ‘lulli’ (mini-penis) in front of that exhibitionist Vajpie’s nuclear ‘Long Dong.’ It will impress no one, and will earn a lot of hardship for the already impoverished and exploited population of the Indus Valley.

Mr. Zaki, in yesterday’s daily Nation, had the temerity to suggest that Pakistan could refuse to honor its debt obligations if the West puts pressure on Islamabad. What this could do to the country’s financial well being does not take an economics Ph.D. to figure out.

They claim that New Delhi’s mood is very aggressive as was that of Nazi Germany in 1938. The analogy could back fire on Mr. Zaki. What moral claim can a Pakistan Government have on decrying the ills of Nazism when their owns blasphemy laws put them in league with the National Socialists of the Third Reich?

Unfortunately, our ruling elite has no concept of reality. They live so deep down in their well that to them the sky is a tiny round-shaped blue disc directly overhead. If you tell them about the horizon they look at you funny.

...SR

re: NYR

I agree with you. The people of Pakistan - my country - and India, who are jubilant at missile launches and nuclear tests, have to re-think national `power` and `success`. I dont care how many bombs India has or paksitan has -- the dignity,liberty and quality of life of the ordinary citizens of south asia are more important than bombs. a nation is powerful when its people are empowered, not when its fascist government possesses the capability to destroy masses of poor, defenceless people of another country. (After all, whenever there are wars, the poor suffer disproportionately). the US bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima remains the most heinous, barbaric, unforgivable act of war in recent history. those indians and pakistanis who think that weapons and militarization will make them feel good about their countries should question why and how violence and destruction can be sources of pride.

This is just to inform you that today (15May) at 3pm(Indian time), there was a huge rally in New Delhi in protest against the Nuclear tests by the
BJP govt. Thousands of people took part in this rally which started from ITO area of Delhi and ended at Mandi House Chowk. Most people condemned the move by the govt. and pledged for no-further- tests as well as a long term plan for peace in South Asia. I think all the people who are concerned about peace process in Indian subcontinent in any part of the world should show solidarity with us, and should make people aware of this.

Dear Sumeet

Thank you for presenting your views on some of the points that I raised.

I do hope that India exercises restraint in developing nuclear weapons as you suggest but unfortunately you will accept that statements by your premier `big bomb etc` today and other harder evidence of India`s preparations points very much in the other direction.

Unfortunately the conclusion must be that Indians have been and are heavily involved in double speak and this is a view shared by many in the world (Bill Clinton`s comments about the Indian deception before the test is an illustration of this).

I suggest that reasonable people in India recognise the damage that has been caused to world peace by their determination to pursue the nuclear option. I wish that they recognise the senseless waste of resources that will ensue through the inevitable escalation in the arms race. All this when countless millions live in squalor, mass illiteracy, and abject poverty in your country and mine. I hope some humility returns to the Indian psyche so that they can concentrate on the real war (which lies at home) and thereby give Pakistanis the chance to do the same. On winning that war is when `ladoos` should be distributed.

It should be a source of great sadness to all of us if we let the blind lead everyone to blindness. Indians who desire peace need to do some soul searching over whether justifying the policy of your establishment is simply fueling the boldness of the blind. I regret to say that Pakistanis can have no confidence that in the absence of strong contrarian voices, Indians rank the desire for peace above baser desires for vainglory, domination and power; Pakistanis can have no confidence that in the post cold war world, Indians share the emerging consensus for a more tolerant, democratic and depolarised world.

Regretably for Pakistan, India appears to be stuck very much in the old paradigms. It`s time you moved on.

re: Sumeet

The reasons you set out, no matter how rational they sound do not change the fact that India`s actions have made the world a much more dangerous place to live. You may rationalise it in the way you have, to make it sound respectable, but India`s tests and the lack of effective world response to them will encourage other nuclear threshold states to test their capability and make the world a much more dangerous place (which means the exact opposite has happened to what you say India intended for its safety -where is the logic in that?)

I would say that the real reasons for the tests are more mundane and to do with evil and frailty of human nature (as evidenced by the self congratulatory behaviour and total euphoria of the Indian government and public). These reasons are as follows:

- India is led by a narrow minded, arrogant and jingoistic party (overtones of fascist Germany and Serbia come to mind) which represents the ugliest side of man`s nature. After all this is the party that can mobilise a nation to destroy an ancient disused mosque so that its followers can walk tall with pride.

- this party is weak and knows what stimulates the masses (we have had experience of this sort of facism/jingoism in the period of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto). This nuclear test will helps it win domestic acclaim and consolidate its position. So much so that no Indian leader can dare to voice an opposite view lest he strengthen BJP`s hand further.

- this party`s real intention is to develop nuclear weapons. Lots of them.

- Notwithstanding the attitude of this party and the very ugly trend in India`s body politic it reflects, Indians in general appear to have a massive chip on their shoulder about not having their `rightful place in world affairs`. Do you not understand that that position only evolves from earning the admiration/ respect of fellow nations? India`s nuclear test has only served to earn the world`s disgust. It shows that India is not capable of leadership in making this world a better place. It is a weak, frightened nation that is incredibly insecure about itself and which is hell bent on playing the role of a regional bully to get itself noticed. None of your neighbours want your leadership. Does this really make Indians feel proud??

Logic dictates that a country the size of India`s should serve a leadership role in making the South Asian region a better place. However the narrowness, humbug and false arrogance of the Indian mentality means that it will never represent a role model for the human spirit.

India`s chip on its shoulder did not arrive yesterday. It was a direct consequence of this chip that Pakistan came into being. The insecurity of the Hindu political establishment was such that as the British were leaving they wanted to absolutely ensure that the new India would have their absolute domination. This lack of vision, foresight and magnanimity seems even more shameful when one thinks that Hindus represented more than two thirds of the population of undivided India and represented an even more disproportionate percentage of India`s educated and commercial populace. It is no wonder that Pakistan came into being. I heard that the Gujral doctrine was meant to be a step away from all that. How interesting that this was so resoundingly rejected for the doctrine of the BJP by your fellow citizens.

Can you please explain how Gandhiji`s doctrine of non-violence squares with the nuclear test? Or is he now just a convenient marketing icon for modern India?

India seems like a little child who has just shot off a gun and its little brain makes it think that makes it a man- I am afraid this test shows that there is a long way to go before India acts its age. From the reaction of your leaders and public to this nuclear test, the lofty principles and reasons you espouse ring very hollow indeed. But what is much more frightening for us is that child is sitting on our doorstep, gun in hand. Please, spare us your principles.

Dear All

Keep up the efforts (encouragement from London).

Also why not point CNN to this website so that they can see the genuine concern and anxiety that India`s arrogant and belligirent attitude have caused (see Suresh`s comments for an illustration of this). I leave it to Chowk`s managers to decide. The world should know.

wasiq: i aggree with you, send this letter off
to Dawn etc. now, i will be sending it off to
others I know off - altaf

Dear Pakistanis,

I have been following the goings-on in this board, reading many messages with interest and bemusement.

Many of you seem to have been sucked into the Paki govts propaganda about how India is about to swallow you alive and such hogwash.

The realities are quite different. India that stands today is not the India you knew 50 years ago, one that you never cease to compare yourself with !

India is a secular and democratic nation, with no hegemonistic ambitions. We have the largest scientific pool of talent in Asia (even larger than China). India has manufactured advanced things from missiles, space vehicles, computers, supercomputers to combat aircraft and has a humungous industrial and economic base. We are thus far far superior to Pakistan, and we are nearly a regional superpower. With this responsibility, we must now have the military muscle to correspond to it.

An example of our rich secular traditions can be seen ...our defense minister is a christian Indian and our chief scientist is a muslim Indian !!

As a big brother, we offer the extension of our nuclear umbrella to all nations in the neighbourhood, including Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

There is nothing to fear from us. We are the most responsible power in the sub-continent, and we are here to stay.

People have already realised this...in fact, UK, France and Russia have already called off economic sanctions. US aid is a few million dollars, peanuts for us. As for Japanese sanctions, you will notice that they have sanctioned only 10% of the total pledged aid.

Face the fact : India is now the world`s sixth nuclear power and there is nothing anyone can do to change that.

Become our friends and enjoy the fruits of our success.

Best wishes to all Pakistanis.

Friend of Pakistan: I don`t think that
anything happens in this world with pure
nobility. True what you say about India, and
short term memories. However, the only chance,
I think of Pakistan not conducting a test
right now, is if it gets something substantial
in exchange. Otherwise, I expect a test very soon.
-Altaf

Wasiq: the letter looks good, I`d like to suggest
that this be an ``open letter`` and see if we
can buy some space in Pakistani newspapers to
print it... but we need some ``important`` names
there... people in touch with reasonable people
in Pakistan might want to have them sign this
statement. altaf

MOBILISATION AGAINST TESTING

Wasiq:

Time is of the essence.


Pressure through communication should be brought upon not only PM, but also Army and ISI
chiefs, MNAs and MPAs, as well as major newspapers in the country.

Simultaneously, we should also focus on the media here.Let us not miss this golden opportunity.

Loking forward to Chat at 23.00 EST

regards

Wasiq,

I agree with the gist of the letter. Count me in.

I`ll be back later with some feedback though.

On a slightly different facet of this issue, here`s an interesting website detailing Pakistan`s nuclear program/capabilities:

http://cns.miis.edu/pubs/npr/kochtopping.html

Re: Faraz Hoodbhoy

I don`t know any US Rep.`s or Senators personally, but I think a well-organized letter-writing campaign by the Pakistani-American community on this matter will go a long way. Believe it or not, most politicians here do pay careful attention to the letters they receive from their constituents. The people who write letters are usually the ones that vote, and considering the abysmal rate of voter turn-out in the US, the polticians realize that these voices count a lot more than their numbers would indicate.

We can all write to the President at president@whitehouse.gov or Vice-President Gore at vice-president@whitehouse.gov. Of course, Bill and Al don`t personally read these mails, but their staffs regularly read them and present brief summaries to these two on a regular basis. If enough people write in on this matter, they will get the message.

In California, you can contact Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein and your local Representatives. The contact information is located in the front section of your yellow pages or you can get it off their websites. People in other states can do the same.

However, for this to be effective, we must all be saying the same thing and asking for the same course of action by the US government. For that, we need a detailed outline of the points to raise, or even a form letter if possible. Perhaps Wasiq or someone else could formulate such a letter.

Finally, does anyone know which Rep.`s and Senators serve on the foreign relations committees of the House and Senate? Which ones have a specific focus on South Asia? Perhaps it might be beneficial to target our writing campaign to them in particular.

Just some thoughts. What else can we do sitting here in the US?

Dear all, here is a draft of a letter (produced by Farrukh Azfar and yours truly) for the PM. Please bombard us with your comments, and take the time to make revisions and suggestions.

Whether India signs CTBT or not, it will NOT sign NPT, and therefore the parameters of the scenario remain unchanged.

--W


DRAFT LETTER TO THE PM ...

Respected Prime Minister of Pakistan
Mian Muhammed Nawaz Sharif Sahib

Pakistan again stands at a critical juncture in its history. The recent nuclear detonations by India have jeopardized the stability of the entire region and has put Pakistan`s security at a severe
risk. As patriotic Pakistanis who are currently not resident in Pakistan, we stand by our leadership and our country in this sombre
hour of reflection and decision.

Respected Prime Minister, though the current situation is very tense in the sub-continent due to the rash actions of our belligerent
neighbour, we should not fail to recognize that history has granted us a golden opportunity that can be decidedly turned into Pakistan`s favor. By sheer lack of foresight, India has put Pakistan in a dominant position globally, evidenced by unanimous condemnation of India`s actions. This position can be translated into substantial
political and economic gains for Pakistan. In addition, we have also been granted the luxury of producing a deliberated response to India
which translates into a maximal benefit for Pakistan. It would be unfortunate if we do not benefit from this unique position.

It is our humble advice that Pakistan not follow India`s footsteps immediately to detonate a nuclear device of its own. Instead it should
demand a substantial price from all the concerned countries across the world for its restraint. We suggest some of the demands:

1) That Pakistan be provided a guaranteed nuclear umbrella by China or the West, with nuclear weapons on our soil, with the guarantee that they
will be used in case of a nuclear aggression against Pakistan.

2) That Pakistan be provided with a comprehensive anti-ballistic missile defense system, including early warning systems and anti-ballistic
missile weaponry.

3) That the inventory of Pakistan`s conventional forces be brought up to par with NATO standards. This will guarantee that any conventional
military misadventure by India will not be translated into a necessity for the use of nuclear weapons in a desparate situation. The cost of
re-equipment of Pakistani forces and our subsequent military budgets for the next decade be borne by nations not wishing a nuclear arms
race in South Asia.

4) That Pakistan be provided with substantial economic and developmental aid over the coming decades to stabilize the region.

5) The latest detonations by India clearly demonstrate the regional political circumstances which have placed severe demands on the Pakistani
economy over the last decade. Pakistan has repeatedly tried to bring this matter to the attention of the global community. However Pakistan`s efforts in this regard have sadly not been recognized. Therefore, Pakistan should be
compensated for the additional economic burden it has had to bear over the last decade in terms of relaxation of the conditionalities related to
Pakistan`s foreign debt.

Respected Prime Minister, we realize that there is intense pressure within our dear homeland to respond to the aggression of India. However, we must not let the heat of the moment drive us into a course of action that denies us any aspect of this golden opportunity. This is a moment for calm and deliberated decision, and we hope that you will show your characteristic foresight in this
matter.

We would like to re-iterate that this immediate course of action does not preclude the testing of a nuclear device of our own at any time in the
future. However, this course of action allows us to fully exploit the unique opportunity afforded to us at the moment.