One week after the abhorrent attacks in Mumbai, the aftermath is proving as combustible and complex as the perpetrators of the assault had likely intended it to be.
A sharp wedge has been shoved into the historical and emotional crevice between India and Pakistan.
The accusations and counter-statements flying around are likely to muddy the already challenging and sensitive investigations needed to unmask the diabolical masterminds behind the Mumbai siege.
We understand the outrage felt by Indians. This is the pain felt by Indonesians in the wake of the Bali bombings, the anger at the shattered peace Jakartans felt after their city was repeatedly attacked by terrorists.
But only through clear thinking did Indonesia overcome its grief and set about putting things right by conducting a thorough investigation that led to the arrest of several terrorists.
Vengeance is not justice, and the diplomacy needed to arrest those making cross-border threats will succeed only with cool heads, objectivity and, sometimes, endlessly tough negotiations.
We welcome the arrival of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to New Delhi to help diffuse tensions and focus on the clear facts of the attacks.
The world must join in supporting these combined efforts to uncover and annihilate the terrorist cells involved.
As a close friend of both India and Pakistan, Indonesia can offer its services -- either bilaterally or using other existing frameworks of cooperation -- to bridge the widening viewpoints between the subcontinental neighbors.
Whether or not the offer is taken up is irrelevant at this juncture. The intended message will have been sent: No effort should be spared to cool the heads ever ready to think about putting a finger on the hot nuclear button.
We concede that evidence is purportedly mounting implicating various non-state elements burrowed within Pakistan as being responsible for the attack.
If this evidence is corroborated beyond emotionally driven speculation, then Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari will surely be eager to assist his neighbors in eliminating this threat.
The "how" will be challenging, but Zardari must realize that any terrorist threat to India within Pakistani borders is an acute cancer that ultimately weakens the authority of Islamabad.
We are confident that Zardari's administration will want to eradicate such threats. Pakistanis have been equally distressed by terrorism. The fate of the late Benazir Bhutto is testament to this fact.
We also urge our friends in New Delhi to act wisely without succumbing to the frustration of a domestic constituency hungry for quick retribution.
The operative word in the "war against terror" is that it is a war. Wars are not won in a single battle, nor can they be advanced without sustained, coordinated measures.
Wars, especially those involving the local population, must also take into account the context.
The prevailing context in Pakistan is one of transition -- of poor consolidation, impotence and frail legitimacy.
Indonesia knows full well the impact of political transitions in securing its own population. Fortunately, we survived this tumultuous process, albeit with more tears than cheers.
It is our belief that New Delhi must take into account the recent and fragile rise of the civilian administration in Islamabad.
While it may even be to his own domestic advantage to assist the unchecked demands of New Delhi, Zardari still has to balance the perfidious slop between civilian democracy and military influence.
If the international community cannot get these two great countries to find avenues of cooperation in the fight against terror, then the repercussions could be even worse than the Mumbai casualties.
| 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|