Press Releases/Documents
Contents
- Press statement by the Communist Party (Marxist) India 17 June 1999
- Text of Agreement between Nawaz Sharif & Bill Clinton July 5 1999
- Address by Indian Ambassador to Pakistan, 17 May 1999
1. Press Statement by the Communist Party (Marxist) India 17 June 1999
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
Central Committee Office
A.K. Gopalan Bhavan
27-29, Bhai Vir Singh Marg, New Delhi 110 001
Tel.
3747435, 3747436 Fax: 3747483
June 17, 1999
Press Statement
The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) met on 15-16 June 1999 at New Delhi. It has issued the following statement:
Remove Intruders: Defend LoC
The Polit Bureau strongly condemned the systematic and large-scale infiltration of armed intruders by Pakistan across the Line of Control in the Kargil area of Jammu & Kashmir. It is clear now that this aggressive action violating the Line of Control was planned by the Pakistan side with a view to threaten the Srinagar-Leh highway and make India's position in Siachen precarious. The Pakistan government also anticipated the internationalisation of the Kashmir issue as a result of the stepping up of hostilities.
The Polit Bureau expressed its high appreciation for the arduous struggle being waged by the ordinary soldiers and officers in the most difficult conditions in the operations against the armed intruders. The Polit Bureau pays its homage to all those who have laid down their lives in this battle. It conveys its heartfelt sympathy to all the families of those who have lost their lives.
It is highly unfortunate that such a widespread infiltration went unnoticed and unchecked because of major lapses on the side of the Indian authorities, a matter which will have to be taken up seriously at the appropriate time. The initial handling of the serious situation in Kargil by the Vajpayee government was marked by irresponsibility, lack of cohesion and incompetence. Such mishandling stemmed from the complacent attitude and misreading of the outcome of the Lahore visit of the Prime Minister. The Pakistan initiated conflict in Kargil has also exploded the illusion of the Vajpayee government that peace can be assured through nuclear deterrence.
The Polit Bureau is of the firm opinion that at the present juncture, all efforts, military and diplomatic, must be concentrated to remove the intruders from areas within the Indian side of the Line of Control. This exercise in defence of the legitimate territorial rights of India can be explained and accepted by international public opinion. The Polit Bureau reiterates its support for all the necessary measures to be taken to ensure that the Line of Control remains inviolate.
The Indian government should adopt all necessary measures to accomplish this aim and should not accept any move to internationalise the Kashmir issue. There are foreign powers who would like to utilise the present situation to bring Kashmir on the international agenda as a basis for future intervention. There should be no excessive reliance on the United States to buttress India's case as this would open up opportunities for internationalisation of the issue.
The Polit Bureau does not want the Pakistan intrusion to become the reason for a wider conflict between India and Pakistan. It will allow imperialist powers to directly intervene in the dispute between the two countries. A full-fledged war would be against the interests of both the peoples of India and Pakistan. After clearing off the intruders, India and Pakistan should continue to hold talks bilaterally as per the Shimla Accord and the Lahore declaration.
Thousands of residents in the Kargil area have been displaced by the shelling from the Pakistani side. The steps taken to provide shelter and rehabilitation have been meagre and insufficient. Both the central government and the Jammu and Kashmir government should make more comprehensive and permanent arrangements for the relief and rehabilitation of the people affected by the conflict.
Election Preparations
The Polit Bureau opposed the BJP President's suggestion to postpone elections in view of the conflict in Kargil. The elections should be held as scheduled so that an elected government is in place as soon as possible.
The Polit Bureau heard reports about the political situation at the national level and in the different states in view of the forthcoming elections. The Central Committee of the Party in its meeting held in May 1999 had adopted the line to be pursued by the Party in the elections. The main task is to defeat the BJP and its allies and to ensure that there is no repeat of the disastrous performance of the BJP government.
The Polit Bureau emphasised the importance of strengthening the Left representation through these elections. This can be ensured by the CPI(M) and the Left emerging successful in its strong bases in West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura and in other areas too. The success of the Left nationally is important for advancing the struggle against the reactionary communal forces represented by the BJP and for alternative policies. In the recent years, the right-wing communal forces have been able to advance cashing in on the discontent engendered by the policies pursued under Congress rule. The economic policies and the misrule of the Congress contributed to this rightward shift. The CPI(M) and the Left should work to prevent a two-party system emerging in the country which will not be in the interests of the people.
In countering the main threat posed by the BJP alliance, the CPI(M) and the Left will work to mobilise the secular and democratic forces so that a third alternative can be developed. However, in the fight against the threat posed by the BJP alliance, it will be detrimental to adopt a position of equidistance against the BJP and the Congress as advocated by the Nationalist Congress and the Samajwadi Party. At the present juncture all efforts must be concentrated to prevent the BJP from coming back to power.
The Polit Bureau decided the election tactics in the various states keeping in mind the main task of defeating the BJP alliance. Specific tactics were finalised for the states particularly Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Bihar and Punjab.
The Polit Bureau decided to hold a meeting of the Central Committee on July 24-25 to finalise the election manifesto and the details of the election campaign.
Functioning of Caretaker Government
The Polit Bureau sharply
criticised the way the Vajpayee government is violating the norms
expected from a caretaker government. It noted that efforts are being
made to make policy changes in the Telecom sector with respect to
private telephone operators. This was the purpose for shifting out
Jagmohan as the minister from the communications ministry. The Polit
Bureau reiterated that the caretaker government has no right to make
any policy changes, which will benefit the private telephone operators
and deprive the government of revenue due from contractual obligations.
(Hari Singh Kang)
For CPI(M) Office
2. Text of Agreement between the American President Bill Clinton and the Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on the withdrawal from Kargil
Washington, July 5 1999. Following
is the full text of the joint statement issued by the U.S. President,
Mr. Bill Clinton,
and the Pakistani Prime Minister, Mr.
Nawaz Sharif, after their three hour long talks in Washington on
Sunday: President
Clinton and Prime Minister Sharif share
the view that the current fighting in the Kargil region of Kashmir
is dangerous and
contains the seeds of a wider conflict.
They also agreed that it was vital for the peace of South Asia that
the Line of
Control in Kashmir be respected by both parties,
in accordance with the 1972 Shimla accord.
It
was agreed between the President and the Prime Minister that concrete
steps will be taken for the restoration of the
Line of
Control in accordance with the Shimla Agreement. The President urged
an immediate cessation of the hostilities
once these
steps are taken. The Prime Minister and President agreed that the
bilateral dialogue begun in Lahore in
February provides
the best forum for resolving all issues dividing India and Pakistan,
including Kashmir. The President
said he would take a
personal interest in encouraging an expeditious resumption and intensification
of those bilateral
efforts, once the sanctity of the
Line of Control has been fully restored.
The President reaffirmed his intent to pay an early visit to South Asia.
Reprinted from The Hindu, Tuesday 6th July.
3. Notes from an Address by His Excellency Mr G Parthasarathy, Indian Ambassador to Pakistan, to the Pakistan Institute of International Affairs, Karachi, 17 May 1999.
Growth priorities
Our
foreign policy priorities are primarily geared in the post cold war
era of globalisation towards facilitating our national
goal of achieving a sustained growth rate of 7% to 8%. Our interest
in regional organisations stems from this commitment.
SAARC, the BIMSTEC, the IORI and the growth Quadrangle sub-grouping
within SAARC of India, Bhutan, Bangla
Desh and Nepal
are all designed to promote a climate for fostering Regional Economic
Cooperation. India's role as a full
dialogue partner
of ASEAN and a member of the ARF are an integral part of our effort
to promote regional economic
cooperation in our neighbourhood
and participate in efforts to promote, peace, stability and cooperation
with partner
States in the South East Asian and Asia-Pacific
Regions.
Relations in South Asia
India's relations with all our neighbours has improved dramatically
in the last decade. We now have free trade
arrangements
in place with Nepal and Bhutan. A FTA had been signed with Sri Lanka
and following the Third Round of
Negotiations on SAPTA
Bangla Desh has preferential access to almost 50% of all items on
the WTO
Schedule. We hope
to achieve the vision of a SAARC
Free Trade Area and a South Asian Economic Community at the earliest,
for the
benefit and welfare of the peoples of South
Asia.
Relations with China
Our
efforts to enhance trust, confidence and cooperation with our great
Northern Neighbor China have been sincere,
even though
there have been some strategic concerns about Chinese Policies on
missile and nuclear transfers. India
believes that all
these issues are best addressed in a candid bilateral dialogue. Our
bilateral trade with China has reached
almost $2 billion
and we are China's largest trading partner in South Asia with
bilateral trade almost double that of
Pakistan. There
were now over 40 India-China Joint ventures functioning successfully.
Pakistan and India - common interests in WTO & on disarmament
As developing countries with similar interests
it was imperative for India and Pakistan to work closely together
in forums
like the WTO where we shared common interests
in the face of efforts by developed countries to devise international
structures on trade, investment and the environment
that were inequitable.
We welcome the fact that
on issues of disarmament India and Pakistan were now working closely
together.
Pakistan supported a Resolution moved by us
in the UNGA in 1998 calling for reducing nuclear risk by dealerting
of all
nuclear weapons and removing warheads from missile.
This Resolution was supported by over 100 countries in the face of
opposition from the nuclear weapons states (except China that abstained)
and their allies.
India and Pakistan also have
millions of their citizens residing and working in the Gulf. We need
to work together in
promoting peace, stability and progress
in this region.
The Lahore Declaration
An important breakthrough in moving towards regional cooperation
and an improvement in bilateral relationships with all
our neighbours, was the Lahore visit by the Indian Prime Minister
Vajpayee. It provided us with a historic opportunity to
enhance cooperation and trust and resolve differences. Kashmir is
a complex issue affecting the very basis of our secular
nationhood. But, at Lahore we agreed to intensify the dialogue process
with a view to arriving at a framework which was
mutually
acceptable. Such a framework would need close exchanges of views
not merely between officials and Ministers
but also between
those who influence public opinion in both countries like parliamentarians,
scholars and journalists apart
from people of goodwill
in both countries. Enhancing people to people exchanges was vital
to promote mutual understanding and trust.
India's ties with the USA and Europe
Our growing relations with the USA and members of the EU are also important to us - they are our largest trading and investment partners.