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US team to assess peace process in J&K

A four-member US congressional team led by Edward Royce, Republican member of the House of Representatives from California and co-chairman of the congressional caucus on India, will visit India and Pakistan for 10 days from February 16 to assess the progress of the peace process in Jammu & Kashmir.

The proposal for the visit came from David Bonior, member from Michigan, which has a large Pakistani community, besides Syrians and Iraqis. Indian American sources said Bonior espouses Pakistan's cause in the Kashmir dispute.

Talking to the United News of India, Democratic Representative Jim McDermott, co-chairman of the India caucus, said the team would try to figure out if they could play any role in resolving the longstanding dispute.

He, however, made it clear that the congressmen have no plan to be interlocutors for the peace process.

Besides Royce and Bonior, the other members of the delegation are McDermott and Joseph Pitts, a Republican from Pennsylvania.

"We want to look at the Kashmir situation, get a feel from both sides and try to figure out if there is any role for us," McDermott said, adding that the team would visit the Kashmir valley as well.

The congressmen are scheduled to meet both Indian and Pakistani leaders during their visits to New Delhi and Islamabad, though no schedule has been worked out. They will also visit Lahore and the earthquake-affected areas of Gujarat.

McDermott said the proposal was mooted during a chat he had with Bonior a few days back. "We both came to a decision to contribute to the peace process in Kashmir and approached the House speaker to provide us a military plane to transport the delegation to India," he added.

He admitted the Bush administration had not moved as quickly as it should have in the Gujarat tragedy. "There is no need to wait for protocol as you see the human tragedy unfolding before you in a friendly country," he said, referring to the argument that New Delhi had not approached Washington for assistance.

The India caucus is also handicapped by the fact that President George W Bush is just putting his administration together and there is no assistant secretary in the South Asia division in the state department who can debate proposals.

But the near unanimous resolution adopted by the House of Representatives expressing solidarity with the quake victims was intended to send a message to the White House that Congress is keen to see the executive branch act. "If only the tragedy had occurred five days earlier, things would have been different as the Clinton government was still there," McDermott added.

US assistance to the earthquake victims should be a generous contribution reflective of the wealth of the country, he said.

The congressman said a decision to fill up the vacancy caused by the resignation of Assistant Secretary Karl F Inderfurth would be taken by the end of February. But the post of ambassador to India would need longer to be filled once the incumbent, Richard Celeste, demits office in a month's time.

Celeste has been asked to continue until alternative arrangements are made. But "we may end up having a long gap before the next ambassador is posted to India", McDermott said, referring to the long Senate confirmation process that will have to be gone through.

He said Senator Sam Brownback, Republican from Kansas, is currently spearheading a move to have the remaining sanctions against India lifted. The 100-member congressional caucus will extend full support to the move. The desire to lift the remaining sanctions is widespread and pressure will build up on the new administration soon. "Everything in politics has a timing," McDermott remarked.

UNI

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