Chapter Sixteen

Peace in Kashmir de Gaulle was able to take a major step in saving France that a democratically elected ruler could not take. At that time, France still had many colonies in Africa, which it called ‘French provinces’. But this unrealistic policy proved to be so dangerous for France that in the race for ‘progress’ after the Second World War, it became the ‘Sick Man’ of Europe. De Gaulle examined the matter, setting aside French national sentiment. He realized that the only solution to the problem was to unilaterally grant freedom to the French colonies in Africa. This move was completely opposed to the sentiments of the French people. But it was this unpopular decision that granted France the status of a major power in the race for ‘progress’. The current situation in Pakistan is somewhat similar. Pakistan’s undeclared war against India over Kashmir has brought immense destruction to Pakistan itself. The entire world views Pakistan as a very unsafe country. Global financial institutions are not ready to invest there. The unrest among the Pakistani public has led to strife in vast parts of the country. Pakistan’s religious, educational and cultural institutions have become centres for destructive activities. The most horrific result of these developments is the alarming brain-drain that the country is facing. Human beings naturally want to progress and move ahead. And for the progress of any country it is enough if its people have the opportunities to carry on with their efforts. For instance, peace should prevail; there should be good infrastructure; people should be properly compensated for their work. If in any country these opportunities are fully available, every person in that country will himself or herself become actively engaged and the country will automatically begin to progress. However, unfortunately, this could not happen in Pakistan. There, because of the ideology based on agitating against, and seeking to forcibly overthrow, the political status quo, an emergency situation was created that continued uninterrupted. As a result, people had very limited opportunities to progress. That is why large numbers of capable