PRESIDENT Pervez Musharraf s announcement made in Muzaffarabad on Tuesday to allow cell phone companies to extend their network to Azad Kashmir enabling Kashmiris across LOC to communicate with their brethren in the areas hit by the horrible earth quake constitutes a bold step based on purely humanitarian considerations. The Indian Government has welcomed the move by saying that it always wanted to expand people-to-people contact. President Musharraf has also decided to open LOC for Kashmiris living in IHK to travel to this side of the border to help the victims of the natural calamity. IHK residents’ movement across LOC will depend on New Delhi’s positive response. The authorities in Pakistan are doing whatever they can to facilitate the earth quake victims. The Government appreciates generous assistance being received from various countries, NGOs and international organizations including India which is rushing relief supplies to Pakistan. A third train carrying medicines, food items and tents arrived in Lahore from New Delhi on Tuesday.
With the rains having stopped, fair-weather has allowed relief workers to fan out to the remote areas. Helicopters and transport planes are increasing their operations even in inaccessible areas. At long last, there is hope for the victims in hitherto unattended areas. The enormity of the damage is yet to be assessed. One World Food Programme official estimates that out of900 villages around Balakot in the Kaghan Valley so far aid could be sent to only 300. Where rescue teams have managed to reach, injured persons are being evacuated. In one case, a young man was rescued alive after nine days by Army Jawans and relief workers on Tuesday from the debris of his house in a village near Balakot. Of course, there are complaints that influential persons are grabbing relief supplies and ordinary villagers are without any significant aid. President Musharraf has rightly observed that some misappropriations can not be ruled out in a massive operation in the ruined areas. However, he has assured the people that every effort is being made to provide relief assistance to the needy.
The foreign donors have announced to provide so far 630 million U S dollars in cash and kind. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz says that in his view the damage caused could require at least U.S. $ 5 billion to reconstruct. It is being assured that long term rehabilitation plan envisages construction of structures suited to earth quakeprone areas. The United Nations has rescheduled rich countries’ conference for 260` October to raise foreign assistance. The country’s worst disaster has left behind a trail of massive destruction, thousands of deaths, injuries to over 80,000 people and reduced several towns and thousands of villages into mass graveyards. The entire nation is shocked. Fortunately this colossal tragedy has helped to unite the people of Pakistan whose exemplary sacrifices are a matter of pride for us. All must join hands to continue to help the millions of victims regardless of political considerations.

Debating a non-issue

PRIME MINISTER Junichiro Koizumi of Japan has the country’s neighbours fuming, yet again. Following his recent landslide victory in re-election, Koziumi paid yet another visit to a controversial memorial to the World War II dead. By taking a huge high profile delegation with him to the Yasukuni war shrine, Koizumi apparently sought to send out the message that he is still firmly rooted in his political convictions. Not surprisingly, Japan’s neighbours notably China have reacted in anger to the Koizumi visit, his fifth since 2001. Beijing has called off a crucial visit by Japanese foreign minister Nobutaka Machimura to the country this month. South Korea has voiced its protest, too.
Despite the strong passions Japan’s imperial past evokes in the neighbouring countries, it is hard to see why it should be an issue now, 60 years after the war. We have no sympathy for the World War II criminals regardless of their nationality. But what is the point of going on and on about the war-plagued past after such a long period of time? Except for generating more hatred, enmity and bad blood between nations and neighbours, this dangerous preoccupation with history doesn’t help anyone in any way. In the end, nations like individuals, have to forgive and forget their enemies, however vile their role may have been.
Asia can learn a lesson or two from Europe in this regard. Europe went through two of the bloodiest wars the world has ever seen. But the continent decided to put its past behind it in its larger interests. Neighbours such as Germany, Britain, France and Russia went to many wars against each other. But today they are close friends and good neighbours cooperating with each other and benefiting from each other’s experience in all areas. If Europe could do it, why can’t Asia do it? There already exist strong economic and social ties between Japan and China. Ditto with Koreas. China, along with other Asian tiger economies, has benefited immensely from Japanese technology, so has the rest of the world. Besides, Japan is the biggest trade partner and donor of China. Japan may have made some mistakes for which it has apologised numerous times. But it has also made immense contribution to the world economy and progress.
China and other neighbours of Japan, therefore, would do well to ignore such small irritants like occasional visits to a war memorial. Koizumi, the consummate politician that he is, may have his own reasons to justify the visit. So it’s not the external gallery but domestic audience that may have been the target of Koizumi’s message. In the end, it’s in everyone’s interest to ignore the issue as what it essentially is: a non-issue.

—Khaleej Times