Does Latest Indo-Pak Ceasefire Arrangement Signal Lasting Peace?

On 25 February, India and Pakistan issued a joint statement agreeing to strictly adhere to their ceasefire agreements of the past. Is this a signal for lasting peace, or yet another formality on the road to disturbances, wonders PRATIK PATNAIK.

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THE first book of Genesis of the Bible is akin to a modern commentary on Indo-Pak relations. It tells the story of the twin sons of the aged Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Esau. Esau was born before Jacob, who came out holding Esau's heel as if trying to pull him back into the womb to become the firstborn.

Jacob means he who grasps the heel, which is also a Hebrew idiom for deceptive behaviour. Like the fraternal biblical twins, India and Pakistan were born out of the same geographical entity, with Pakistan clutching undivided India's Achilles' heel of separate electorates.

Since their genesis (pun intended), both nations have seldom seen peace with each other, as if to vindicate the biblical narrative of Jacob and Esau, who were entangled in conflicts to the very end.

International Law; a casualty of the conflict

Apart from all loss of life that this conflict has brought upon the two nations, one of its most important casualties has been international law, including principles against the use of force, nuclear proliferation, countermeasures vis-à-vis water treaties, and a host of other principles.

Since the great peace of Westphalia, nation-states have not only been wary of the actual use of force but have also considered the threat of use of force a breach of international peace, albeit with lesser emphasis.

Hidden away in Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter is a lesser-used, yet most-abused, principle of international law: the principle against the threat of use of force. Article 2(4) says, "All members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations".

While nation-states are quick to condemn any actual use of force (and rightly so) but the practice of nation-states in calling out the threat of use of force as illegal is scarce. Apart from three wars and one limited war (Kargil conflict), India and Pakistan have been involved in at least three large-scale stand-offs, which is a euphemism for muscle-flexing in the international order parlance.