British Foreign Secretary David Miliband visited India and Pakistan in the first fortnight of January 2009. And he received a bad press particularly in India with his comments on Kashmir and terrorism. He linked, for instance, the recent Mumbai attacks with Kashmir. There is no such link except that terrorist assault on Mumbai and the attacks in Kashmir (since the mid-80s) have been crafted and carried out from Pakistan.
The Mumbai attacks were carried out terrorists recruited, trained, funded and armed by Jamaat-ud Dawa and its armed wing, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), both of which could not have survived almost two decades of condemnation and bans but for the strong support the groups draw from Pakistan Army.
LeT is not a Kashmiri group but a purely Punjabi group—it is based in Lahore, Pakistan’s Punjab province, it is led by Hafiz Saeed and his family members, all of whom are Punjabis. To annex Kashmir through violent means is one of its agendas which matches quite conveniently with that of Pakistan Army.
The ramifications of the Mumbai attack should be seen outside the prism of India-Pakistan. Consider this—10 guys were trained in commando assaults, given specific arms and directions and launched on a sovereign nation to target some of its economic symbols. They were trained in Pakistan, there is no doubt any longer.
The July 2005 London bombings were carried out by guys who were trained in similar camps. So were several others since then, making it quite obvious that Pakistan has become an epicenter of terrorism and needs special attention from the global community.
Put aside, for the moment, who sowed the seeds of terrorism (it would become uncomfortable for the British and Americans to come to terms with their involvement).
Pakistan is today struggling hard to contain the roots of terrorism which seem to be spread far and wide, beyond the `no go` areas, right into the heart of `civilized` Pakistan in North West Frontier Province and Punjab.
British Foreign Secretary tripped on facts unlike his Prime Minister Brown, who visiting India and Pakistan immediately after Mumbai attacks, said three quarters of terrorist attacks on his country are traced to Pakistan.
Rt. Hon Miliband also spoke about Pakistan not handing over the Mumbai terror suspects to India for interrogation and trial. He said there were no such agreements between the two countries. A naïve opinion it is because Pakistan, since 2001, has been quite willing to hand over Pak nationals to the US as well as UK for interrogation.
Amnesty International and other human rights campaigners have pointed out time and again the number of Pakistani nationals being held in Guantanamo Bay. In 2005, human rights organisations were given details about 115 prisoners under the Freedom of Information Act—55 per cent of them were Pakistanis detained inside Pakistan and handed over to the US authorities. Likewise, the 314 transcripts released to the Associated Press under a Freedom of Information Act in 2006 showed that 145 of them were captured in Pakistan.
Today, more than ever before, Britain faces far more serious threats from terrorist groups directly or indirectly influenced by Pak-based groups like LeT who are supported, not to forget, by Pakistan Army, the trusty ally in the west’s Global War on Terrorism. It would be more useful to persuade Pakistan Army to give up its jihadi option, hunt down all hues of terrorist groups and cooperate willingly with India in finding the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack. Such an action would do well to enhance the prestige of the British government which, since the Bush days, has had a serious credibility crisis.