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Wednesday, March 17, 2004

Cricket tour provides acid test for

India-Pakistan relations
MANI GOEL

India's historic cricket tour of Pakistan for the first time in fourteen years
is symbolic for several reasons. The nuclear-rivals are great lovers of the
sport, and this cricket Test series will be savoured by both nations keen
to pit their cricket skills against each other.

The two countries come to a virtual standstill during an Indian-Pakistan

cricket match with even the parliament sessions being rescheduled in
India. Victories by either side are followed by grand victory
celebrations.

It is no surprise then, that a pledge to resume their cricketing ties in2AA4

has been met with popular support from the majority in both countries.

It is being viewed by some political analysts as a strong indicator of

India and Pakistan's thawing relations, and the benchmark of success of
their nascent and long awaited peace process.

Such drama and symbolism is not new to South Asia. The 1999 peace
initiative widely perceived as an unprecedented march forward towards
fruitful negotiations2 was marked by a dramatic bus journey from Delhi
to Lahore by the Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. However,
the peace initiatives were soon shattered by the infainous Kargil War.
The 1997-98 peace talks, which laid the ground for the subsequent peace
efforts amidst great fanfare, broke down in the wake of South-Asian
nuclear tests. The 2001 Agra summit, underscored by the India-born
Pakistani President's homecoming met with a similar fate due to India
and Pakistan's disagreements over the Kashmir issue.

The latest peace process which aims at a multi-level composite dialogue

between India and Pakistan, comes two years after the Kashmir region
was proclaimed to be the most dangerous nuclear-flashpoint in the
world. A terror attack on the Indian Parliament in December-200l" led
India to deploy millions of troops on its border facing Pakistan
subsequently resulting in an unprecedented engagernent by the
intemational community particularly the United States, in the region.

Gven the volatile security relationship between India and Pakistan, and