Frank Pallone: “The world witnessed an exciting event last month when India's Prime Minister Vajpayee met with his Pakistani…”

“The world witnessed an exciting event last month when India's Prime Minister Vajpayee met with his Pakistani counterpart, Prime Minister Sharif, to inaugurate a new bus service between the two countries. I applaud Prime Minister Vajpayee's courage in visiting his neighboring country with whom relations have been tense, to put it mildly. But amidst the celebrations about the meeting between the India and the Pakistani prime ministers, a disturbing development from the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir reminds us of what is at stake in the conflict that has hung over the subcontinent for decades. As the New York Times reported, "On the eve of Mr. Vajpayee's visit to Lahore, Islamic militants, whom Indians generally believe are backed by Pakistan, massacred 20 Hindu civilians in three places in Jammu, part of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, apparently in an attempt to derail the peace efforts. In one case, they opened fire on a wedding party, killing eight celebrants." This is from the New York Times, February 23.”