On Tuesday, March 28, the Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Committee members met with Chairman Senate, Mr. Raza Rabbani along with seven other senators; Mr. Mushahid Hussain, Ms. Sehar Kamran, Mr. Daud Khan Achakzai, Mr. Usman Khan Kakar, Mr. Shahi Syed, Mr. Azam Khan Musakhail and Mr. Baaz Muhammad Khan, at the Parliament House. CRSS Executive Director Mr. Imtiaz Gul briefed the participants of the Center’s Pak- Afghan track Ii project Beyond Boundaires, progress made during the six meetings held so far, objective of the Beyond Boundaries project- to improve Pak-Afghan bilateral relations- and the purpose of the visit of the PAJC members.
The Chairman welcomed the joint delegation and appreciated the efforts of CRSS for organizing the track II dialogue to ease tensions between the two countries and enhance people-to-people contacts. He stated that both countries have joint historical and cultural linkages, shared objectives of national and regional security and trade which will hopefully help the two overcome their bilateral issues. Referring to the recent dialogue between representatives of the two countries in London, he said, “Some progress on a positive note has been made.”
The Chairman stated that the recent decision by the government to open the border was a welcome step and that peace in the region was of mutual benefit for both countries. He stressed that Pakistan strongly supported Afghan-owned and Afghan-led efforts to bring peace and stability in Afghanistan, whether at a bilateral, international or national level. In addition, the differences between Pakistan and Afghanistan can be dealt across the table and addressed. Stating that “we can feel your pain and concern when there are acts of terrorism in your country,” he said Pakistan was an equal victim of terrorism and that joint efforts were required to root out this menace.
He also called to attention that there was a great need to give parliamentary diplomacy a chance to bring the two sides closer to each other and work together for peace and prosperity of the two peoples. He advised the Afghan parliamentarian delegates to put together a Friendship Group when they go back into their Parliament. Such a Friendship Group, he said, already exists in the Pakistani Senate and National Assembly. “Parliamentary diplomacy is a very useful tool to open a logjam. Such was seen two weeks ago when ECO summit was hosted in Pakistan. After the Pakistan-hosted SAARC conference was cancelled following the refusal of certain countries to attend it, the Pakistan-hosted ECO summit in Islamabad had representatives from 23 countries including Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, which had refused to come in the SAARC,” he said.
In response to the welcome address by Chairman Senate, both Afghan and Pakistani delegations shared their views. From the Afghan side, Mr. Khalid Pashtoon, Member of Parliament, stated that over the last two years, the PAJC members using the Beyond Boundaries forum had reached many consensuses incorporating demands from both countries and now they were looking forward to their implementation and strengthening the relations between the two Muslim countries. Mr. Mirwais Yasini, Member of Parliament and former Deputy Speaker stated that while the challenges were greater and complicated, “the current and the future generations will not forgive us if we are not able to correct and reform things.” In this regard, Mr. Yasini urged his brothers and sisters to step up their efforts.
Another Afghan Member of Parliament and delegate, Ms. Elay Ershad stated that when Afghans cook food, they put Pakistani masala (spices) in it. “We don’t want that masala to be taken away from us. The closure of the border took us far away from each other,” she said. Mr. Abdul Hakeem Mujahid, head of executive council of the High Peace Council in Afghanistan, stated “We do believe that there’s a need to listen to each other, help each other and respect each other.”
From the Pakistani side, Mr. Shoaib Suddle, former Federal Tax Ombudsman told Chairman Senate, “We have been in this exercise with Beyond Boundaries since the last two years trying to build bridges. We have been going to Afghanistan and they’ve been coming here. This is the last meeting and we hope that the governments do something now in terms of trade, education, scholarships and cultural exchanges. There’s a need of required will.” Adding to Mr. Shoaib Suddle’s statement, Mr. Mian Sanaullah, former Ambassador stated, “This is the last phase. We hope the government will at least accept, help promote or perhaps implement some of the recommendations. We think our recommendations are good enough for implementation. They are largely small steps and very practical.”
Mr. Qazi Humayun, former Ambassador stated, “When governments talk, they keep their fixed positions. When informal groups such as ours talk, they can reach a middle consensus.” He also commended the efforts of CRSS and Mr. Imtiaz Gul for creating such a platform for dialogue between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Mr. Aized Ali, Project Director of Beyond Boundaries added that the dialogue had been expanded to the youth and academia through visits to leading universities in bith the countries, and media for dissemination to the general public and for more civil society contact in both countries. Former Ambassador of Sweden to Pakistan and Afghanistan, Ms. Ann Wilkens stated that her role on the forum was as an international facilitator and that she was aware of the extent of affection that lay between the two countries.
In response to the views shared by the Afghan and Pakistani delegations, Senator Sehar Kamran extended a warm welcome. She said her recent visit to Kabul had been very fruitful, especially when she saw Afghan women in the Afghan Parliament, adding that “We look forward to strengthening relations between the two countries.”
Senator Mushahid Hussain stated that the two countries had been getting exploited for the past ten years and there was a need for a new opening. “Now as sovereign states, we should ensure that we work on our brotherly bond and not allow our soils to be used for terrorism and work towards peace, security and stability.” He also added, “We look forward to seeing you in Kabul soon InshaAllah (God willing).”
Senator Shahi Syed stated that when 3.5-4 millions of Afghan refugees came to Pakistan, Pakistan provided for their health, education and refuge. Today, unfortunately, they are not thankful to Pakistan and do not recognize that India is Pakistan’s enemy, he said. It is to create a rift between Pakistan and Afghanistan that India has on purpose lowered the price of air tickets to India for Afghans to Indian Rs. 4000. He also said that he believed that a happy and stable Afghanistan meant a happy and stable Pakistan and that there was a need for both governments to sit together and discuss their bilateral issues. Senator Baaz Muhammad Khan was of the view that the solution lay in negotiations and discussions between both sides.
The chairman concluded by saying that he looked forward to building on this contact and was optimistic about Pakistan-Afghanistan relations, adding that the current tensions were only a bad phase between the two countries. Congratulating Mr. Imtiaz Gul and CRSS on the Beyond Boundaries initiative, he stated that he was perturbed that this was the last meeting and hoped that the organization would continue this excellent initiative.