DECLARATIONS
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Calcutta Declaration
More than three hundred Pakistanis and Indians met in Calcutta for the
Third Convention of the Pakistan-India Peoples' Forum for Peace and
Democracy, formed in September of 1994. Of the 165 Pakistani delegates
present at the convention, from diverse regions and varied professional
backgrounds, 142 had crossed the border by rail and road, itself a historic
event in the 50th years since Independence and Partition.At the four
day convention held between Dec. 28-31, 1996, delegates had intensive
discussions to develop action-plans on four major themes that had been
adopted by the Forum through the Lahore Declaration of September 1994:
1) Demilitarisation, Denuclearisation and Peace Dividends 2) Religious
Intolerance 3) Kashmir and 4) Governance. They also reviewed their journey
through the first fifty years of Independence. Postures and policies
adopted by the two states have deprived the people of the promise of
freedom . Diversion of precious resources to wars and preparation for
war, has condemned millions of people in the two countries to poverty
and squalor. This has resulted in the denial of people's fundamental
rights and basic needs like health, education, housing etc.On the fourth
and final day, the convention endorsed and reiterated the Forum's standpoint
contained in Delhi and Lahore resolutions and unanimously adopted the
following in the Calcutta Declaration.The most fundamental interest
of the people of Pakistan and India, as also of the South Asian Region
as a whole, demands that both countries celebrate the Fiftieth Anniversary
of Independence by taking a solemn pledge to devote the second half
century of freedom, to realizing the shared aspirations of the people
for peace, democracy, justice, tolerance and equal opportunities for
all citizens regardless of belief, ethnicity, gender, and social status.That
in order to realise this objective, the two states must sign, by 14-15th
August 1997, a comprehensive treaty providing for the employment of
internationally recognised mechanisms of mutual negotiation, mediation
and arbitration for conflict resolution that could guarantee durable
peace.
That the two states must enter into bilateral agreements
to ensure the following:
- Free travel across the border
- Free exchange of information and publications and reduction
of communication and travel costs.
- Removal of trade barriers and grant of MFN status to each other.
- That while celebrating the Fiftieth Anniversary of Independence,
the people rejoice in one another's freedom and integrity.
- That the members of the Forum have
a historic responsibility to carry out the action plan adopted
at the convention in particular.
Demilitarisation, Denuclearisation and Peace Dividends
The members of the Forum must use all means available to them
to persuade their respective governments to adopt effective Confidence
Building Measures, to agree not to use military capabilities against
each other, to stop intermittent firings across the border, to put
an end to proxy wars and to demilitarise Siachin. Both governments
must ensure transparency in their defence budgets. The Forum members
should redouble their efforts to secure an agreement between the two
countries to desist from nuclear preparations and work for regional
disarmament and a nuclear weapon free world. A public campaign should
be launched to ensure that the resources released by reduction in
defence expenditure are devoted exclusively to meeting the peoples'
basic needs.
Governance
The convention calls upon the national committees of the Forum
to mobilise all groups and associations concerned with basic freedoms
and rights in their respective countries to secure the objective of
genuine participatory democracy; to sponsor and undertake comparative
studies in decentralisation of authority, to facilitate meaningful
contacts between professionals, especially lawyers, farmers, traders,
academics, scientists, physicians, women's activists, and media persons
for sharing of experiences and to help in evolving common strategies
to deal with the effects of global shifts in areas of governance and
economy.
Religious Intolerance
The national committees should create national and joint sub-committees
to combat intolerance and prejudice in the following areas: education,
specifically the teaching of history; media and performing arts; state,
law and politics; literature and culture. Priority should be attached
to supporting and replicating projects like Communalism Combat's Khoj
removal of prejudice and distortion from history works, cooperation
among media persons, exchange of writers and students, evolution of
uniform guarantees of human rights in laws and codes, relief to persons
detained across borders, rights of migrant labour and promotion of
dialogues amongst religious scholars.
Kashmir
The Forum will work toward creating favourable public opinion to
make it possible for the two governments and the people of Kashmir
to find a solution to this long standing problem. The following recommendations
are made:
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The PIPFPD joint committee on Kashmir will hold
regular meetings with Kashmiri leaders on both sides of the LOC.
The understanding obtained from these meetings can be used for recommending
future course of action.
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The joint committee on Kashmir will attempt to organise
a meeting where representatives of Kashmir from both sides of the
LOC can come together.
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Activities will be undertaken which educate people
and decision makers about the facts and real issues about Kashmir
and the urgency for resolving the conflict. In particular it is
recommended that a newsletter should be published by the Forum.
The joint committee should also organise meetings with parliamentarians
to acquaint them with issues on Kashmir which concern peoples of
India and Pakistan.
Gender Justice
Given the lack of gender justice in the legal systems of the two
countries, the Forum decided to formulate a Joint Charter of Egalitarian
Principles which will be the determining factor in civil, religious
and personal laws in both countries. It shall campaign and lobby with
the governments and the citizens of the two countries to commit themselves
to this charter. |
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