KARACHI: President of Pakistan Mamnoon Hussain has said, ‘The destiny of South Asian nations is linked and together they can fight the battle against poverty, unemployment, climate change and militancy and the problems faced by the people,’ he was speaking at “Peace in South Asia: Opportunities and Challenges” conference
Conference was organized by Pakistan Institute of International Affairs (PIIA) to mark their 70th anniversary.
He added that “Deep rooted poverty and social backwardness provide a fertile ground for the growth of extremism and radicalization. With transnational threats on the surge, South Asian neighbors should actively support each other to alleviate poverty and improve Social conditions of their people.
“The lack of access to basic amenities of life increases the possibility of internal conflicts thereby rendering regional states vulnerable to ethnic and sectarian Violence. Peace building efforts, economic cooperation and human security are the least focused areas in South Asia and regional peace has remained hostage to. the unresolved.
“China’s growing interest and investment in the region provides a significant incentive to South Asian countries to draw maximum benefits from various Chinese initiatives relating , to regional connectivity and infrastructure development such as One Belt and One Road (OBOR), CPEC and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB),” he said.
Dr. Masuma Hassan, Chairperson PIIA said, ‘South Asia is no exception to war and conflict. It is home to some of the most intractable disputes, including that of Kashmir. We have invited scholars from south asia and other countries so that we can discuss the dynamics and factors in pursuit of peace in our region.”
Chairman Parliamentary Committee on CPEC, Senator Mushahid Hussain in his keynote address further said that Peace in the region can help us achieve untapped potential of South Asian natural resources while providing employment opportunities to millions of youth and eradicating poverty in the region.
It will also help us wipe out threat existing in the form of problems of water sharing, climate change, environmental degradation.
Pakistan is the center of the regional trade and has geostrategic value. CPEC is the centerpiece and flagship in the history of Pakistan.
Scholars from leading think tanks, academia and diplomats in the region were invited to participate in this conference, says a release.
Ms. Devika Mittal, Convener, Aaghaz-e-Dosti, Delhi, India, through video message said about ‘Peace Education in India-Pakistan Context: Praxis and Potentials’ in the same session highlighted that “Focusing specifically on peace education, a lot depends on the attitude of teachers like the school management, towards peace education, its objective and importance,”
“Teacher's own understanding of these issues is crucial. In the situation of a conflict between a teacher's understanding and the narrative in textbooks, it will be the teacher who will tend to have an upper hand.”
Naresh Prasad Shrestha, Chairman, Director Institute of Strategic and Socio-Economic Research, Kathmandu, Nepal, spoke about Peace, Connectivity, Trade and Investment in South Asia: A Nepalese Perspective.
The session three was about Informal Diplomacy and Connecting with the People which was chaired by Ambassador Najmuddin Shaikh, while Ambassador Aziz Ahmed Khan, Honorary Vice President, Jinnah Institute, Islamabad, spoke about Informal Diplomacy and Connecting People: Track II Dialogue Process.
Jehan Perera, Chairman, National Peace Council, Colombo, Sri Lanka, spoke about ‘Priority Issues for Reconciliation in Sri Lanka’.
The session four is ‘Cooperation on Social Issues’ which chaired by Senator (R) Javed Jabbar while Ms. Mahnaz Rahman, Resident Director, Aurat Foundation, Karachi, delivered speech on ‘Women’s Movement and Peace Building in South Asia’.
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