Karazi rejects, Pakistan defends border mining
KABUL: Afghan President Hamid Karzai rejected on Thursday a decision by Pakistan to mine and fence the frontier between the neighbours, saying this was not the way to cut back cross border ââ¬Återrorismââ¬Â.
Pakistan said this week it had tasked its Army with working out ways to fence or mine parts of the rugged 2,500-kilometre frontier to stop Taliban militants entering Afghanistan to carry out attacks. But Karzai told reporters this was no solution and would only hamper the movement of people in the ethnic Pakhtun area, with some families and tribes separated by the colonially demarcated border drawn up more than a century ago.
ââ¬ÅIt is only going to prevent, hinder all movements by civilians, families, same tribes,ââ¬Â Karzai said at a media briefing at the presidential palace in Kabul. ââ¬ÅIf they need the separation of people that is the way, if they need the prevention of terrorism that is not the way.ââ¬Â
The Afghan president said he would use ââ¬Åevery methodââ¬Â to stop mines being planted on the border. ââ¬ÅWe will use every method, every way of peaceful means, of dialogue and of friendly cooperation to prevent the laying of mines on the border because the laying of mines is not going to get us anywhere,ââ¬Â he said. The United Nations in Afghanistan echoed the concern. ââ¬ÅThe UN is opposed to the use of landmines,ââ¬Â spokesman Aleem Siddique told AFP. ââ¬ÅAfghanistan is already heavily mined and a lot of its civilians, mainly children, have been killed and maimed. ââ¬ÅFrom a UN point of view, fencing or mining the border is not a way to build trust and confidence among Pakistan and Afghanistan.ââ¬Â
Karzai said if Pakistan were serious about curbing the Islamic militancy, it should address its roots. ââ¬ÅThen we must remove their sanctuaries, then we must remove the places where they get training, the sources of finances and equipment and training. That is the best way and that is what our view is,ââ¬Â he said. Karzai also said that Afghanistan had suffered enough from mines within its borders. Afghans ââ¬Åhave suffered and we are very much for the removal, prevention of mines than laying of mines,ââ¬Â the president said. ââ¬â-Agencies
Mariana Baabar adds from Islamabad: Pakistan on Thursday stood by its decision of mining its border with Afghanistan, saying the Army will ensure that the border areas selected for the purpose of mining are appropriately marked and the public dully informed.
ââ¬ÅWe are not happy to take this step but as the foreign secretary said these are extraordinary times for which extraordinary measures have to be taken. Basically, the fencing will take a long time to finalise and it is also a very expensive exercise. While mining some areas we are fully aware of human rights and the requirement of the people in the area who should continue to have the right of movement. We realise that we will be unable to either fence or mine the entire border,ââ¬Â the Foreign Office spokesperson told The News.
In the eighties when the Soviet forces were withdrawing from Afghanistan the leadership had handed over the maps of the mined areas to the then Afghan president Najibullah. At that time diplomatic sources had told this correspondent that the United Nations was unable to lay its hands on these crucial maps. Hence over the decades hundreds of Afghans and others have lost their lives or have been crippled because of the Soviet mining.
ââ¬ÅYes, the mines inside Afghanistan left from the war have still not been cleared and there are continuing casualties. We will be mindful of the areas that are to be mined and there will be clear indications to avoid accidents,ââ¬Â the spokesperson added.
Interestingly, while both India and Pakistan had laid mines in different areas of the international border, foreign observers told The News that it is rare for any accident to have taken place on this border because of the excellent cooperation between the two states which also relates to exchanging information about the areas which have been mined.
On Thursday the UN criticised Pakistanââ¬â¢s plan to mine selective parts of the Pak-Afghan border saying they feel concerned from a human rights perspective. ââ¬ÅWell, the UN should look at other areas on the globe, especially in areas of conflict where mining takes place. In fact India has illegally fenced and mined large areas near the Line of Control (LoC), which is in fact a disputed territory. How come all these voices which have criticised Pakistanââ¬â¢s plans are quiet on this,ââ¬Â the spokesperson questioned.
However, there appears to be no plan to enforce an international border with Afghanistan because there is realisation of the fact that the tribes straddling these border areas essentially need to frequently cross the frontier.
...did you forget the shameful Indian acquiescing to Iranian referral to the UNSC just bacause US doled out the Nuclear incentive? Pawns are made in such ways..so before you regret what you write with such conviction about Pakistan, realize that India is not going to fare much better as Chinese pressures increase and India has to look more and more towards the US to lessen the Chinese pressure. Your leadership even in the times of most avowed Non-alignment turned to the US and begged them to bomb the Chinese back to the stone-age when the 62 conflict occurred. So maybe you should stick to humility instead of your never-ending bruhaha about how Pakistan is such a pawn etc. (it actually stinks of misplaced arrogance).
-Indian Army, they are the two faces of the same kind?
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