'A Step In The Right Direction'

If the first face-to-face interaction between Prime Minister Manmohan Singhand the "moderate leaders" of the separatist amalgam All PartiesHurriyat Conference (APHC) ahead of the PM's meeting with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf on September 14is any indication, the two sides seem to have handled the situation in keepingwith the script.

The minimal hype around the PM's two-and-half hour long parleys with a five-member Hurriyat delegation headed by Mirwaiz Umer Farooq-- the first in what has been promised as an on-going dialogue -- was indicativeenough of the growing maturity and realism that surrounds this latest initiationof dialogue.

Both sides realised that there was no dramatic 'breakthrough' to be madeor announced. The real purpose, of ensuring that the atmospherics are keptright, and the growing sense of mutual accommodation is maintained, could wellbe said to have been accomplished.

Both sides have made predictable sounds. The PM, on his part, afterstating that violence has no role in a democracy has "reiterated his commitment to ensuring a life of peace, self-respect and dignity for the people of Jammu &Kashmir".

And as expected, after reaffirming his faith in a peaceful resolution of all issues pertaining to J&K,he has agreed to review all cases of those held in detention. He has alsopromised to ensure that violations of human dignity would not be tolerated andthat the government would take all necessary measures to safeguard against human rights violations.

The APHC has made satisfied sounds regarding the PM's agreement to the time-bound review of those held under the Public Safety Act (PSA) andPOTA. They would not really have hoped for more than the statement, which hasbeen made, that if there is a cessation of violence and an end to infiltration,"conditions will be created for the reduction of armed forces".

The APHC delegation's stressing that an honourable and durable solution should be found throughdialogue was of a piece with Pakistan's welcome noises in this regard and theformulation "that all forms of violence at all levels should come to an end"is something that no one would find objectionable. The APHC would be able to goback and tell its constituency that they raised "several issues concerning the rights of people deserving attention of the government".

In keeping with the predictions, the APHC delegation has once again placed onrecord their welcoming the India-Pakistan peace process and the initiatives taken so far by the Prime Minister, including the resumption of the bus service between Srinagar andMuzaffarabad. They also briefed the Prime Minister about their talks with President Pervez Musharraf when they visited Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmirin June.

After the meeting, the Mirwaiz took some pains to point out: "We made it clear that the talks should result in a movement forward as far as Kashmir isconsidered. We have conveyed that the Centre should not see the Kashmir issue as an issue which will be solved by making someadministrative changes or changing the government."

Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, National Security Advisor M K Narayanan, Union Home Secretary V K Duggal, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister T K A Nair, Centre's pointsman for Kashmir N N Vohra, PM's special envoy on Pakistan S K Lamba and Intelligence Bureau chief E S L Narisimhan were present at the meeting. Saifuddin Soz,centre's track-II man for talks with the APHS, had met the Prime Minister ahead of themeeting for a 45-minute briefing session.

The statement issued by the PMO that "it was agreed to carry forward the dialogue process so that all regions and all shades of political opinion in J&K areinvolved," also is no more than perfunctory and predictable.The real testwould come after the meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and PresidentGeneral Musharraf in New York. It is then that what the APHC has promised tobring to the table at the next meeting, viz. "specific suggestions for the honourable and durable resolution of the problem of Jammu andKashmir" would assume importance. While the PMO has announced that the talks would continue, no date has beenfixed so far.So much would depend on what is coyly called the back-channeldiplomacy route.

Meanwhile, Mehbooba Mufti of the PDP perhaps summed up the meeting quitewell:

"We did not expect any dramatic solution to the Kashmir problem in the very first meeting but definitely the Prime Minister has promised the withdrawal of troops and release of prisoners.We have also been saying all the time that if Pakistan really reciprocates and brings down the level of violence, it will help. If all means of violence stop, definitely withdrawal of troops should be the next thing tofollow".

Maintaining that Pakistan and the Hurriyat should "bring accountability" into the peace process, Mufti asked President Pervez Musharraf to "persuade the Kashmiri militants that dialogue is going on and they should put their guns down and give peace a chance".She said that while the security forces have done a "great job" in the state, people ultimatelywant some "breathing space".Mufti has also asked the Hurriyat to play a role in bringing down the violence.

With inputs from the agencies