India & Pakistan: Exploited by ‘Merchants of (Arms) Death’?
By Ghazala Khan • Jan 26th, 2008 • Category: Politics • 7 CommentsPublic in India and Pakistan wants peace. Yes, it does after having lived through a turbulent past. But the peace process is always thwarted because the leaders in the two countries, alongwith the leaders in the Western world, seem to have developed a vested interest in fanning insecurities among the large populace, and thus encouraging arms’ race in the Indian subcontinent. Never mind that in the past few years there has been a sea change in threat perspective.
Today Indian government entered into the biggest defence deal with the USA, while the French President has reached India promoting better ‘defence ties’. More here…
Every leader from the powerful countries that comes visiting India and Pakistan (or for that matter any developing country, including the Middle East) has a bagful of arms, nuclear deals, aircraft and naval vessels to sell…Did someone say ‘merchants of death and destruction’…Arms manufacturing and sales, it is said, is big business and the deals provide the biggest kickbacks to the high and mighty…so who would among them object if the going is good!!!
Billions of dollars/rupees that go down the drain building up the huge arsenals could well be utilised for feeding, educating and keeping the teeming masses healthy in these extremely poor countries (where two square meals is a luxury). My earlier post clearly gives instances of how leaders dupe the public for their own good. Thus ordinary simple folks, living in extreme poverty in Pakistan & India, become a plaything in the hands of their leaders or religious radicals…with little to choose between the devil and the deep sea.
Military spending, says an expert, devours about two-fifths of Pakistan’s budget. It claims a seventh of India’s budget — the highest head after interest payments. This is three times higher than what India invests in primary education in government and private schools, and 275 percent higher than her public expenditure on health. These were 2005 estimates.
For an important site that keeps track of militarization of India and Pakistan please click here… Cernig wrote an informative piece on arms bazaar in his blog…please click here.
In the early 1990s I wrote about this in The Tribune in India. The article was printed in full in Pakistan’s The Nation (mind you the President at that time was General Zia-ul-Haq). I wrote 17 years ago under the heading ‘A War India and Pakistan Must Win’ saying Indian and Pakistani leaders had been taking their people for a ride by creating insecurities in their minds about the imminent attacks across the border (Americans would now be in a better position to understand how they have been taken for a ride by their leaders and making them paranoid about the Osamas and Saddams).
By Swaraaj Chauhan
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You have “benignly” referred to the rising militancy in Pakistan and then launched yourself in the familiar Indian gear of friendship. I would also with same naivety point out towards the rising Hindutva in Hindustan (the place where Hindus live). Gujrat pogrom, Ayudhia rapes, Mumbai arsons and attacks on Christians in remote villages, caste system and many others things are there to occupy you, before you start nodding your wise and worried head about Pakistan.
I think it’s Pakistan’s fault for trying to take over India’s Kashmir region. Pakistan doesn’t have a right to Kashmir simply because a majority of Kashmir’s people are Muslims. Pakistan has been involved in numerous terrorist attacks against India in its drive to take over Kashmir.
Politicians are culprit for the bad blood created between two countries
An educated nation (leaders, citizens) will see the Light, the wisdom and the truth that these war, the greed for power and deaths are the so called “cancer” of this world. That in order to cure it, we must start within ourselves.
War is a waste of resources in a part of the world where population is densest and resources scarce. Musharraf inaugurated an ancent temple in Lahore the other day. It is in the best interests of the whole region to increase trade and cooperation in the area and eventually have a tension free zone.
how can a sensible and reasonable person can question on friendship for being right or wrong..its always right and infact proper and necessary for two neighboring countries to b frnds…….
[...] the teeming masses healthy in these extremely poor countries (where two square meals is a luxury). - pakspectator U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had telephone talks with Pakistani President AsifAli [...]