A pro-active hands-on diplomacy on Kashmir issue is the need of the hour. What are our Press Attaches for? Almost all our foreign missions in the important world capitals , including Muslim countries, have Press Attaches whose job it is to cultivate with the media barons of the countries they are posted in, keep them on their right side and off and on project the government’s point of view on Kashmir , besides, exposing the excesses of the Indian forces on the hapless Kashmiris. They need to be jogged into action.
The foreign minister , no doubt, has been going the whole hog to arouse the world conscience in the matter but there are many who feel that he should have airdashed to the capitals of the countries who matter soon after 15th August 2019 as personal contact has no substitute.
The matter should not end with the prime minister’s address to the UN on 27 th September. It should in fact start afresh after his proposed address. The tempo built up in the world media over the recent barbarity of the Indians in Kashmir should not be allowed to taper down. The Foreign office should be prepared for a long drawn out diplomatic offensive. The pot needs to be kept boiling . Small parliamentary delegations should be sent to the world capitals after 27th September 2019 and an all-out diplomatic effort be made to call a conference of heads of Muslim state in Lahore like the one arranged by Z A Bhutto back in 1974. Needless to say that an untiring media war will have to be fought for a long time over Kashmir in order to mould world opinion over this festering issue.