Peaceful - and effective By Trividesh Singh Maini

South Asia has been a victim of stereotypes. This is especially true regarding India and Pakistan, where preconceived notions about each other have influenced the broader narrative emerging from both countries over the last 65 years. Peacemakers too, have been subjected to unfair labelling. Many write off those involved in the unofficial peace process as a few English-speaking individuals from privileged backgrounds, oblivious of ground realities and interested primarily in cross-border junkets. Certainly these criticisms may apply to some individuals - after all, these efforts, like any other initiative, are not immune from the ills which plague our societies. On the whole, however, peace efforts are becoming more result-oriented and are beginning to seriously address these issues too.

An excellent example was the four-day workshop (August 23-26) organisd by WISCOMP (Women in Security Conflict Management and Peace), a Delhi based NGO, which I had the privilege of attending for the second time. WISCOMP hosted the first such workshop over a decade ago, continuing even during times of tension.

For starters, the workshop was diverse in every sense of the word. Participants included young men and women, mostly young, from a diverse range of professions and social strata of Pakistan, India and Srinagar and Muzaffarabad. Secondly, even controversial issues were discussed threadbare, in a civilized manner, not only in the context of India and Pakistan, but also including the viewpoint of Kashmiris from both sides.

The workshop was not just descriptive but also prescriptive. Participants, especially from Pakistan, spoke about serious efforts being made to counter the hatred being spread by the educational curriculum and certain sections of the media.

Eminent individuals from both sides who have distinguished themselves in politics, the bureaucracy, academia and journalism presented their views and responded to queries from both sides in a forthright manner. The workshop ended not just with participants bidding each other goodbye and promising to keep in touch individually, but with each participant resolving to join the crusade for peace in South Asia in different ways.

My own takeaway was that such sustained efforts contribute towards ensuring that peace process between both countries grows not only in numbers, but also in substance.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

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