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The UN resolution on Sri Lanka: a welcome step By Ms. Sheen Handoo In his
book ‘Civil War’, Eric Castren contends that,
“the cause of outbreak of a civil war… is often
the dissatisfaction of a large part of the population and
the refusal of those in power to surrender their privileges
and authority.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- US- Pakistan Relations: Chicago Summit and Beyond By Mr. Amartya Ray The April
15, 2012 attacks by the Taliban in Kabul and other parts of
Afghanistan have significantly altered the security configuration
in South Asia. While the region had assumed a key position
in the global security matrix, the presence of NATO and other
foreign forces under the International Security Assistance
Force (ISAF) has changed the equations among the states in
the region, especially between Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bhutan and Gross National Happiness: An Attempt at a Shift in Global Development Paradigm By Dr. Lopamudra Bandyopadhyay Recently, after the conclusion of a high-level meeting on “Happiness and Well-being: Defining a New Economic Paradigm”, held at the United Nations headquarters in New York on April 2, 2012, Jigme Y. Thinley, the Prime Minister of Bhutan stressed upon the importance of Bhutan’s eternal policy of Gross National Happiness. Thinley further stated that he wanted the international community to realise that a paradigm shift in addressing the issue of sustainability in both the areas of environment and global development is of urgent need. The Prime Minister explained that in his country, “gross national happiness” is a development paradigm that has guided Bhutan’s advancement for several decades. He hoped that the world community would embrace a similar model in the near future. Detailed Paper ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NUCLEAR
MYTHS AND POLITICAL REALITIES IN SOUTH ASIA By Anurag Sinha Introduction Analyses of South Asian nuclearism take two polar positions in explicating the effects of nuclear weapons in the subcontinent. The first argues that their advent has made for a more stable South Asia, circumscribing armed conflicts and terminating major wars by the logic of deterrence. The second claims that nuclear proliferation has destabilized both Indo-Pakistani relations, in particular, and South Asian security, in general, by encouraging aggressive Pakistani military postures and massive conventional build-ups on either side of the Line of Control. This paper weighs the merits of either case by considering the turn to nuclearism by India and Pakistan, followed by the ‘stability/instability’ debate.Detailed Paper
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION: A CAUSE OF DEEP CONCERN IN INDIA-BANGLADESH BILATERAL RELATIONS By Ms. Sayantani Sen Mazumdar India in its quest to stimulate its Look-East Policy has developed cooperative ties with the South-East Asian as well as South Asian nations and has subsequently undertaken multifarious initiatives for this enterprising venture. In this significant endeavour, India’s relation with the South Asian neighbour- Bangladesh deserves special focus. History reveals instances of both cooperation and differences between India and Bangladesh and there was a time when their bilateral relations used to revolve around manifold disparities. Though India made several attempts to augment and stabilize its bilateral ties with Bangladesh, the latter is blamed for not reciprocating in the same manner rather it is alleged of indulging in hostile activities threatening India's security and territorial integrity. But the 2010 visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina to India greatly altered the contours of bilateral relations which may be expected to bear positive ramifications on the future of bilateral ties. In order to bolster their mutual bonding and assure the international community of each others commitment towards mutual cooperation, both India and Bangladesh need to accord a proactive direction to their thoughts and endeavours. Detailed Paper ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AFGHANISTAN’S NATIONAL SECURITY FORCES: THE TURBULENT PRESENT AND THE UNKNOWN FUTURE By Dr. Lopamudra Bandyopadhyay Introduction The departure of the U.S. military forces from Afghanistan has always been a controversial issue to reckon with. Their eventual exit is subject to the restoration of Afghanistan's domestic security forces to the point that they can effectively take over the country's security. Very recently, in July 2010, NATO nations agreed to support President Hamid Karzai's goal of Afghanistan assuming the sole responsibility for its security by 2014, although that particular goal appeared to be somewhat elevated in nature. Key U.S. military leaders in Afghanistan, such as former commanding army General David McKiernan, stated that the transfer of security to indigenous forces is “years away.” Further, the new commander of international forces in the country, General David H. Petraeus, has discreetly departed from any attempt to surrender provincial security operations to the indigenous forces. Detailed Paper ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INDO – BHUTANESE RELATIONS: A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
Relations between nations have often been observed to harbour dormant political ambitions that are seldom made public. Incidents of nascent political ambitions invisible to the astute diplomatic eye is not a novel phenomenon. However, in the midst of such difficult conditions caused by intricacies of realpolitik, lie certain bilateral relations that are relatively free from the skirmishes of egocentric domestic political aspirations. The bilateral relations between India and Bhutan present a scenario of contentment in which two neighbouring countries coexist peacefully with political goals and democratic aspirations in harmonious equilibrium. Although, quite often it has been stated that India has played a game of one-upmanship with Bhutan, the veracity of the matter lies in the fact that both the countries have throughout the decades of mutual association played roles that have been complimentary to each other. This particular paper, which is in fact a segment of a series of articles based on Indo-Bhutanese bilateral relations, wishes to trace the historical antecedents of the same as well as analyse the political implications of a mutual relation based on the ideals of liberalism and democracy. Detailed Paper ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BHUTAN: THE WIDENING FISSURES WITHIN A FLEDGLING DEMOCRACY
Introduction
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INDIA’S ROLE IN SOUTH ASIA – PERCEIVED HEGEMONY OR RELUCTANT LEADERSHIP? By Dr. Madhavi Bhasin "
The Indian elephant cannot transform itself into a mouse.
If South Asia is to get itself out of the crippling binds
of conflicts and cleavages, the six will have to accept the
bigness of the seventh. And the seventh, that is India, will
have to prove to the six that big can indeed be beautiful.”
- Bhabani Sen Gupta. Detailed
Paper (Originally published in Indian Foreign Affairs Journal, vol.3, No.4, October-December, 2008.) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DEMOCRATIC DEFICIT IN BANGLADESH: A CAUSE FOR CONCERN By Ms. Amrita Chowdhury A theoretical representation of an idea or a concept remains unconsummated till it is married to the practical implementation of the same, more so for a concept such as democracy. Democracy in pen and paper can at best be a quasi- democracy if the basic democratic principles continue to be violated. Certain specifics have been laid down the attainment of which would enable a nation or a country to be qualified as a democratic state. Bangladesh is one such country which having imbibed the democratic principles constitutionally, fails to bring forth the same beyond pen and paper. Detailed Paper ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INDIA’S “LOOK WEST” – POST TALIBAN INDIA’S ENGAGEMENT WITH AFGHANISTAN By Ms. Shreya Ghosh Historically India and Afghanistan have shared very close political and cultural ties. Contacts between Afghanistan and India date back to 6 BC, since the inception of the Gandhara civilization. Present day Afghanistan came into being after the Third Anglo-Afghan War of 1919. Post India’s independence and partition, India and Afghanistan have shared very close ties. In 1947, Afghan king, Zahir Shah had opted for friendship with India over Pakistan. Pakistan and Afghanistan then had extremely troubled relations over border issues with regard to the Durand line separating the two countries. Detailed Paper ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOUTH ASIA AND THE FOURTH WAVE OF DEMOCRACY By Dr. Madhavi Bhasin The Third Wave of Democracyi swept through South Asia accompanied with apprehensions and anticipation about how democracy would treat South Asia and how South Asia would treat democracy. This exciting interaction led to helpful answers and new questions regarding the prospects of democracy in the developing countries. South Asia’s reactions to the third wave and consequent developments can provide an insight into the design of the distinctive democratic models emerging across the globe. The third wave was characterized by five forms of regime change, three of which have been witnessed in South Asia. Detailed Paper ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AN ANALYTICAL SURVEY OF THE AFTERMATH OF MUMBAI TERROR ATTACK By Ms. Sayantani Sen Mazumdar
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE "BULLDOZER" COMES TO PAKISTAN By Dr. Madhavi Bhasin President Barack Obama appointed Richard Holbrooke as a Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan and other related matters. Though these ´other related matters´ have not been elaborated, Kashmir and India-Pakistan relations conveniently fall into the category. Hence the recent appointment should be of particular interest to India. A backgrounder to Richard Holbrooke´s prior diplomatic missions helps to comprehend the future course of U.S. policy in the region. Richard Holbrooke was the chief architect of the Dayton Peace Accords designed to resolve the ethnic crisis in former Yugoslavia. His distinct style of diplomacy and negotiation emerged clearly during the drafting and implementation of the Dayton accords. In getting the warring leaders to the negotiating table Holbrooke adopted an uncompromising and confrontationist style which earned him the reputation of "the Bulldozer" or sometimes "Raging Bull" in the region. In May 1995, a major crisis emerged when 300 UN peacekeepers were held hostage by the Bosnian Serbs. Holbrooke´s simple solution to the complex diplomatic situation was: bomb the Bosnian Serb leader Karadzic´s capital at Pale if the hostages are not released within 48 hours. The day he initialized the agreement at Dayton, Hoolbroke publicly stated there would be many problems along the way and surprisingly most of the problems encountered in implementing the Dayton Accords were predicted by him. In an interview with Elizabeth Fransworth in 1996, Holbrooke stated "You have to match your method to the moment and your style to the substance and the situation." As evident Holbrooke´s style is aggressive, pragmatic, focused and inspired by a deep faith in America´s power and responsibility. Holbrooke´s reputation and approach to negotiations implies that Pakistan is likely to face his creative and aggressive diplomatic style. His views with regard to Pakistan are equally discerning. Holbrooke has referred to the ´arc of crisis´ distinct from Former President Bush´s ´axis of evil´. The arc of crisis includes Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. With regard to Afghanistan he has identified four major problem areas - the tribal areas in Pakistan, the drug lords who dominate the Afghan system, the national police, and the incompetence and corruption of the Afghan government. Zooming on the issue of the tribal areas in Pakistan, Holbrooke has already presented a specialist´s perspective. According to him vastly improved, better-equipped, better-trained and better-paid Frontier Corps is urgently required to manage the tribal areas of Pakistan. The Frontier Corps in its present avatar is an ancient force, created by the British in the 19th century, with only 50,000 troops and faces a better-armed Taliban and local rebel groups. He has categorically stated that Washington has been sending mixed signals to Pakistan which will be rectified under the Obama administration. His message for Pakistan is clear: democracy, reconciliation, the military out of politics, a new policy for the tribal areas -- and more democracy. Interestingly, Holbrooke´s rejection of labeling Pakistan as "the world´s most dangerous place" highlights his sensitivities regarding Pakistan´s challenges and the optimism of countering the same. It appears that despite the aggressive rhetoric of Pakistan, the Obama administration is preparing to "bulldoze" the terrorist safe havens in tribal Pakistan. (This article also appeared in American Chronicle on 01/23/2009, http://www.californiachronicle.com/articles/view/88694) |