Author: PTI
Publication: Rediff of Net
Date: December 10, 2001
Britain will continue to condemn
cross-border support of terrorism in Jammu & Kashmir and the "Pakistan
government can be under no illusion on this matter", Sir Rob Young, the
United Kingdom's high commissioner for India, said on Monday.
"We know for a fact that cross-border
infiltration is a contributor to terrorism in Jammu & Kashmir, and
Britain condemns it," Sir Rob told a meeting in New Delhi on the role of
India and Britain in the war on terror. The meeting was organised by the
NRI Institute.
"Britain condemns terrorism everywhere,
including in Kashmir. Terror tactics cannot be justified anywhere in the
world, including in Jammu & Kashmir," he said.
Asserting that Britain's Terrorism
Act of 2000, which has outlawed outfits like the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Tayiba,
aims to make it impossible for Britain to be used as a base by anyone to
threaten the security of other countries, he said the current process of
establishing an interim government in Afghanistan was a unique opportunity
for stability in the region.
Maintaining that the military offensive
in Afghanistan was only the first phase of the fight against terrorism,
he said there is a long global campaign ahead in which India and Britain
have active roles to play.
Former prime minister P V Narasimha
Rao was chief guest at the meeting which was addressed, among others, by
Dr L M Singhvi, former Indian high commissioner for the UK, non-resident
Indian industrialist Srichand Hinduja and Air Chief Marshal (retired) N
C Suri.
Maintaining that only a beginning
had been made in fighting terrorism, Narasimha Rao reminded the audience
that nations also have to address the minds and guns of terrorists.
"Better late than never, we have
started feeling the reality of terrorism," he said. "But the tougher task
is to address the mind and gun of the terrorist, which will take the longest
time."
Dismissing theories painting the
war as a clash between religions and civilisations, he said, "We will have
to look into how the ramifications of the fight against terror are addressed."
He appreciated Britain's co-operation with India in this regard.
Hinduja said the problem of Kashmir
should also be resolved to bring lasting peace to South Asia. He emphasised
that economic development was the only way to address the root causes of
terrorism.
"Economic development of the people
will prevent them from depending on terrorists," he said, adding that the
money spent in war should be used to create basic physical and social infrastructure,
which would lead to economic growth and a better quality of life.