South Asia Citizens Web

An Indian Peace Delegation visited Pakistan from 17th to 25th March 2011. During their stay they visited Karachi, Hyderabad, Islamabad and Lahore. They met Pakistan Prime Minister Mr. Yusuf Reza Gilani, Sindh Chief Minister Mr. Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Senators of various political parties, civil society activists, journalists, members of business community, and students amongst others. The 12 member Indian delegation was led by Mr. Kuldip Nayar (veteran journalist) and included Mr. Mahesh Bhatt (Film Personality), Mr. Bhalchandra Mungekar (Memeber, of Parliament) Mr. Shahid Siddiqui (Editor, Nai Duniya), Mr. Jatin Desai (FOCUS), Dr. Mazher Hussain (COVA), Ms. Kamla Bhasin (SANGAT), Mr. Ramesh Yadav (FRI), Mr.Sanjay Nahar (SARHAD), Mr. Haris Kidwai (Peace Activist), Mr. Y. Laxmi Prasad (Former MP) and Mr. A. Krishna Rao (Journalist).

The government continues to demonstrate deniability on the phenomenon of enforced disappearances in Jammu and Kashmir. According to the government agencies we the family members of those who have been subjected to enforced disappearances are maligning the state agencies. The government wants the people to believe that most of the disappeared persons have actually crossed over to Pakistan administered Kashmir for arms training or have left for some other places. The government refers to these persons as missing people.

THE March earthquake and tsunami in Japan have already claimed more than 10,000 lives, and some 17,500 people are still missing. This disaster has been compounded by the continuing threat of widespread radioactive contamination from the accidents at four nuclear reactors at the Fukushima-Daiichi site and the pools that contain their still hot, intensely radioactive spent nuclear fuel. Even if the nuclear accident is contained, it carries many lessons for South Asia.

150 million people live in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the peninsular India, 25 million more than that in Japan. It is the spices capital of the world. People cultivate cardamom, pepper, tea, coffee, ginger, turmeric, coconut, cashew and many more edible crops. Besides, our fishermen harvest exotic fishes high in nutrition and low in carbon footprint from the seas and the backwaters. These reach the food baskets of more than half the population of this planet. A large portion of the land in this Spice Capital of the world will be severely contaminated if a Fukushima type event occurs in one of the eight 1000 MW(e) reactors being built/ planned in Kudankulam near Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. Besides ruining the lives of our farmers and fishermen, this will deprive billions of people of their spices.