Diplomatic Martyrs Indian Express

Martyr Diplomats

By T.P. Sreenivasan

Diplomatic life has never been a bed of roses. Legend has it that in ancient times, a cannibal king told a newly arrived envoy that his predecessor was "delicious"! Today, diplomats are exposed to slander, arrest, expulsion, physical attack and even assassination for no reason other than being the accredited representative of a country.

We are not unfamiliar with stories of punishment being meted out to the messenger for the message. Duryodhana ordered imprisonment of Krishna for the message that the Kauravas would be destroyed in the Kurukshetra war if they did not do justice to the Pandavas. Ravana ordered ignition of Hanuman’s tail for bringing the message that Lanka would be burnt down if Sita was not returned with honour. If they did not have supernatural powers, both these Envoys Extraordinary would have perished for no other crime than performing their duties. The messages would have, however, outlived the messengers.

The recent expulsion and counter expulsion by the US and India of their diplomats may be linked in some way to their actions, but often the expulsion is a bolt from the blue. A classic case of expulsion was the ordering out of the Australian High Commissioner in tiny Nauru for showing the expenditure incurred by the Australians on erecting a lamp outside the High Commissioner’s residence as aid to Nauru. Nauru prides itself that it never receives any foreign assistance and the Australian action was seen as a national insult even though it was dependent on Australia for its very existence.

The pattern of expulsion of diplomats around the globe reveals that it is often the weaker partner in a bilateral relationship that resorts to expulsion of diplomats to make a point. When a country feels powerless to change the opinion of a foreign country, it feels tempted to use its prerogative to expel diplomats. Such actions can only make matters worse in the bilateral relationship. Eventually the bilateral relationship gets repaired, but the sudden dislocation and the adverse publicity affect the diplomats concerned and their families. One consequence of such expulsions is that those declared persona non grata, even for technical reasons, are unable to get back to those countries. In the case of specialists, the expertise lost is regrettable to both the countries concerned.

In the case of Devyani Khobragade, the expulsion came as a solution rather than as a provocation. A quiet withdrawal of the officer in September last year would have been a better solution than the series of events that rocked bilateral relations. The reciprocal expulsion of the US diplomat, it turns out, was more than deserved, as he had not only conspired to evacuate Indian nationals to the United States on a false pretext, but also had made no secret of his hatred of India and Indians. Gossip about the host country, its manners and its leaders is common in diplomatic cocktail circuits, but to put it on social media is to attract adverse comments, and worse, expulsion.

In our own diplomatic service, we have had several instances of quiet transfers and even expulsions in similar circumstances. Since these are not always publicized, statistics are not available in one place. There have been the highly publicized reciprocal expulsions by India and Pakistan at lower levels. Reciprocal expulsions with friendly countries are done most discreetly and sometimes diplomats under orders of transfer are technically expelled to complete the quota. The Chinese deliberately publicized the expulsion of two of our diplomats from China during the Cultural Revolution. One of them left the Foreign Service as a result of the trauma, while the other rose to the highest level in the Service, though his expertise on China could not be fully utilized. Quiet advice by host Governments and financial irregularities have brought back diplomats with little or no publicity. They will figure in the whispers in the South Block corridors for a time and then die out.

If there is any truth in reports that the American ire was more against India than against Devyani, the tragedy of her treatment and expulsion become all the more sad. The bilateral relationship will recover, while she will be deprived of the opportunity to live in the United States with her husband and children even after retirement. The present sympathy and support extended to her by the Government will diminish and she will have to resolve her problems herself. Nobody senior from the Ministry of External Affairs showed up at the airport to receive her. She must have also been advised not to speak to the media to avoid contradictory pieces of information coming out.

The distinction, which was sought to be made between official and private activities with regard to consular immunity, is patently unfair. A diplomat lives abroad simply because he is assigned there and his life cannot be divided into private and public. Immunity and compensation should cover all activities, regardless of the venue and nature of the event involved.

Lack of public sympathy for diplomats, who are seen as privileged and spoiled, is universal. Even those who enjoy multiple supporting staff at public expense in India sneer at one domestic assistant that diplomats are permitted. Drivers and cars are provided only to the heads and posts abroad, while the civil servants in India take such facilities for granted even at junior levels. Diplomats with no support system abroad should be treated with the same concern as soldiers in the frontline. It is a fact that the casualty rate in the Foreign Service is not less than in the fighting forces.

India has had its share of martyr diplomats, some murdered, some brutally attacked, some insulted and expelled and some quietly whisked away. India has reacted differently to different cases without a formula to nurse the survivors back to normalcy or to ensure that their careers are not affected adversely. Even worse, there is no grievance mechanism to deal with the trauma or to compensate the diplomats for the pain and suffering. Each finds his or her own way to contend with the enormous problems arising out of armed attacks or expulsions. No record is available in the public domain of the concessions or compensation given to the affected members of the service. Such information may give some cause of comfort for those who face dangers in the line of duty.

The time has come to ensure that we reduce the number of diplomatic martyrs and have a formula to treat those affected with sympathy and magnanimity.

Final Text of the Thiruvananthapuram Declaration on Transnational Education

International Meet on Transnational Education

Thiruvananthapuram Declaration on

Transnational Education

The Kerala State Higher Education Council organized an International Meet on Transnational Education in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, between 3-5 January, 2014, which brought together over 100 academicians and academic policy makers from India, Afghanistan, France, Germany, Nepal, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States, Kenya and the United Nations.

This group, having debated various aspects relating to transnational education from a global, national and local point of view in 12 separate sessions over 3 days, have agreed to issue the following Declaration as the consolidated outcome of the International Meet.

The Thiruvananthapuram International Meet on Transnational Education,

Acknowledging the potential role that transnational education can play in making quality higher education available to those desirous of improving their knowledge across the world without restrictions of national boundaries

Noting the explosive growth of the Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS) and associated infrastructure, which are transforming the way educational content is delivered across boundaries

Recognizing the imperative to shape a strategy for higher education in Kerala in the light of international experience to catch up with the education revolution taking place around the globe

Acknowledging the fact that the new trends in transnational education also has the potential to affect the capacity and legitimacy of national educational institutions and educational policy regimes

Noting   the fact that currently there is no global framework which facilitates or governs transnational education and other related issues including quality control

Expressing concern that the national academic governance regime is currently inadequate to govern the complex nature of technology-enabled quality education

Taking into account that there are a number of global processes, such as the discussions on Sustainable Development Goals and the follow-up discussions on the education for sustainable development that are currently ongoing

Noting that a number of Indian universities have already taken the initiative to establish International Branch Campuses in other countries

 Recalling that UNESCO has in 2005 issued Guidelines for Quality Provision in Cross Border Education

Acknowledging that developing countries, including India, have a number of structural inadequacies in areas such as language proficiency and last mile connectivity, which inhibit them from taking full advantage of online education

Taking into account that KSHEC has identified infrastructure, use of technology, teachers' training, research, autonomy and internationalization as areas for immediate attention in shaping a "Higher Education 2.0" for the twenty-first century,

Noting that the Government of Kerala has constituted an International Relations Group (IRG) to promote cooperation between the Universities in Kerala and foreign Universities,

Acknowledging that KSHEC is currently engaged in framing an IT@Colleges Programme to improve connectivity in colleges.

Noting with appreciation the initiative taken by KSHEC to call a timely  International Meet on Transnational Education, which provided a platform for all participants to understand and deliberate on the opportunities and challenges posed by technology-enabled transnational education. 

Requests

1.              The student community across the world to urgently take note of the rapidly changing scenario of technology-enabled higher education and new trends in transnational education and to supplement their learning opportunities regardless of their country, language, age and educational background

2.              The teaching community across the world to proactively consider the opportunities and challenges posed by technology-enabled transnational education and harness the potential to supplement and improve their own teaching approaches but also contribute to global learning

3.              The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to organize a meeting of the Member States to discuss the formulation of a global policy regime, including an international convention on open education, which will harness the potential benefits of technologically enhanced transnational education for all Member States

4.              Academic policy makers in all countries, particularly the University Grants Commission in India, to urgently take note of the rapidly evolving scenarios of technology-enabled transnational education, such as MOOC, and formulate national policy regimes, including on quality control, which will ensure that the positive effects of this new trend are maximized

5.              Universities and other academic institutions around the world, including those in the developing world, to evaluate the new technologies of course delivery being promoted by transnational education with a view to harness the positive features of the new development to improve academic quality in their institution

6.              Government and other regulatory bodies to provide flexibility to academic institutions to engage in curriculum development, pedagogy and international collaboration

7.              Countries around the world to factor in the opportunities and challenges provided by transnational education in the discussing the follow-up to the Education for Sustainable Development decade (2014) and the Sustainable Development Goals (2015) which will most certainly have significant educational components

8.              Universities and Private Sector Organisations to work together to consider the changes happening in the academic regime, in particular, technology-enabled transnational education,  could be harnessed to create a better trained workforce

9.              Government of India to establish a working group of academicians to review the implications of the new opportunities in transnational education and understand what the key constraints are for leveraging to improve access and quality of higher education in India.

10.           Government of India to consider establishing  a national online platform for delivering massive open online courses including in National Languages which will not only increase access of our students to best of our education but also train out universities to familiarize with such technologies

11.           Government of India to create policy regime to attract foreign students, including students from the Indian Diaspora, to study in Indian universities and academic institutions

12.           National academic administrators, such as UGC and AICTE, to establish a system of credit transfer, similar to the European Credit Transfer System, which will enable increased mobility of students nationally

13.           Universities and Engineering Colleges, to  consider the potential of MOOC and flipped classrooms to supplement the current training approaches especially in topics where there is severe shortage of qualified faculty

14.           Private sector in India to collectively consider how opportunities of transnational education can be leveraged to provide continuous learning opportunities for their employees as is already practiced by many Multi National Corporations (MNCs).

15.           Government of Kerala to establish a committee, including representatives from academics, private sector and the Malayalee Diaspora, to review the opportunities created by the recent changes introduced by the Government of India on allowing International Branch Campuses

16.           Director of Technical Education (Kerala) to conduct a study of the high failure rate of students in engineering programme to see if it could be partly addressed by the opportunities offered by technologically enhanced learning

17.           Kerala State Higher Education Council to conduct a series of road-shows on Transnational Education across Kerala to increase awareness about its opportunities among academic decision makers, teachers, students and private sector actors in Kerala

18.           Kerala State Higher Education Council, along with Malayalam and Sanskrit Universities  to review what are the potential for developing and delivering Niche Open Online Courses (NOOCs) on global platforms such as EdX and Coursera in niche areas

19.           Kerala State Higher Education Council to establish an online community of practitioners, including those who attended the Thiruvananthapuram International Meet of Transnational Education so that the dialogue and information exchange could continue

20.            The private sector educational providers in Kerala to leverage Kerala’s reputation as a friendly and economical global tourist destination to market their capacity to deliver quality higher education at affordable costs across the developing world in order to attract more international students to come to Kerala and increase diversity in classrooms

21.           Kerala State Higher Education Council to establish a Committee of Experts to study the possibility of recommending to the Government of Kerala to permit private universities in Kerala to enhance direct investment in the higher education sector

22.      Requests the education stake holders to make full use of the Academic Journal of the Kerala State Higher Education Council ‘Education for the Future’ which was released at the meet.

23. Requests the Government of Kerala to recognize and enforce governmental regulations for ensuring social and economic justice and making quality TNE  accessible to the marginalized.

24. Requests that the  implementation of MOOC should be done by considering the students with special needs.

25.Requests a feasible financial model to generate additional resources for further growth of off-campus institutions and to take up measures to improve the quality of the curriculum.

The participants of the International Meet on Transnational Education further resolves:

To continue the discussions individually in coming days in their respective countries, academic forums and educational institutions they represent, to harness the potential of transnational education

To explore opportunities to collectively come together in 2015 at another venue to continue the discussion, including increased participation from the providers of transnational education

To promote, in their respective countries and sphere of influence, the relevant conclusions from the Thiruvananthapuram Declaration on Transnational Education

 The participants of the International Meet on Transnational Education further requests

the Kerala State Higher Education Council, the hosts of the International Meet on Transnational Education to widely publicize the Thiruvananthapuram Declaration on Transnational Education so that students, teachers, academic policy makers and other stakeholders of higher education can use it as a basic document to advocate and promote transnational education.

The participants of the International Meet on Transnational Education express appreciation to the Kerala State Higher Education Council for the excellent arrangements and warm hospitality.

Issued in Thiruvananthapuram, on 5^th January 2014

International Conference on Transnational Education

My welcome remarks at the IMTE yesterday may be of interest to some of you. Please note that the purpose of the Meet is not to supplant the traditional system of education, but to supplement it. We are acutely aware of the problems of power, connectivity and mindset, pointed out by Dr.Shashi Tharoor, but designing a new strategy in the light of global experience is absolutely imperative.

TPS

Welcome remarks by Amb(Rtd) T.P.Sreenivasan, Executive Vice-Chairman of the Kerala State Higher Education Council at the Inaugural Session of the International Meet on Transnational Education (January 3, 2014)

Hon.Chief Minister, Shri.Oommen Chandy,

Hon.Education Minister, Shri. P.K.Abdu Rabb,

Hon.Minister of State for Human Resource Development,

Hon. Vice-Chancellor of Delhi University,

Distinguished Delegates,

Friends,

This International Meet on Transnational Education is an effort to grasp the extent of the education revolution, which is taking place around the world and to design a strategy to catch up with the latest trends.

From the transformation of the black board to the white board to MOOCS, Flip Schools, Studio schools and TED Talks, dramatic changes in the way the world teaches and learns are sweeping the globe.

An eminent educationist, Nathan Harden made the dire prediction that “in Fifty years, if not much sooner, half of the roughly 4500 colleges and universities now operating in the United States will have ceased to exist. The technology driving this change is already at work, and nothing can stop it.”

Some contrary developments must also be taken into account. If 2012 was the “Year of the MOOC”, as the New York Times famously called it, 2013 might be dubbed as the year that online education fell back to earth.

Faced with the prospect of the extinction of conventional educational institutions, many have begun to rebel against the rapid expansion of online education. In response, MOOCS like Coursera, Udacity, Edex and the Khan Academy are bringing further changes.

The world is bewildered that the education revolution, like the technological revolution, has come without a Users Manual, as stated by Picco Iyer. There is even a demand to slow down the education revolution.

Kerala’s higher education system has remained largely unaffected by the new trends in the methods of teaching and learning. We, therefore, have a blank page two write on. We do not have to reinvent the wheel, but the time has come for us to reshape our education in the light of global experience. In other words, we need to catch up with the rest of the world. If we do not do that, as Prof. Madhava Menon said earlier today, “God alone can improve the quality of higher education in God’s Own Country.”

We have brought to this Meet, experts from different parts of the globe with our own educationists to shape our own education for the future. I hope that we can absorb the best practices and find a package that suits our genius and our purse.

We hope that the Meet will produce a Thiruvananthapuran Declaration on “Higher Education 2.0”, which will mark a new beginning in our quest for an education system that is relevant for the 21^st century India.

Those who have seen the documents of the Meet may have noticed that it has been fully prepared with a Concept Note, a background paper and even Guidance Notes for the chairs and the speakers. We have done this to guide the debate in the right direction and to provoke discussions. Needless to say, additional thoughts and ideas are very welcome.

I have worked with three distinct teams of excellent colleagues--- a team of IITians, led by Dr.Muralee Thummarukudy from the United Nations, the International Relations Group, including Dr.K.A.Abraham, the Additional Chief Secretary to the Government of Kerala, a preparatory committee, led by my colleagues in the Executive Council Dr. Jayaprakash, Prof. Lopus Mathew and Prof. C.I. Abdul Rahman and a logistics team from my office, led by Dr.Anwar, the Member secretary. I am grateful to all of them.

A landmark event will take place today when Dr.Shashi Tharoor will release the first issue of the first volume of our academic journal, “Higher education For the Future”. I congratulate the Editorial Board on this accomplishment.

Apart from designing a world class Meet, we are also trying to develop a new culture for academic meets by reducing unnecessary rituals and wasteful paraphernalia. I am sure that you will notice the new features, no lamps, no flowers in plastic bags, no flex boards that hurts the environment and no mementos in wood, steel or glass, only books.

One of the new features of the new culture is a short welcome address. The distinguished guests on the dais are too well known and too eminent to require any praise from me. I would, therefore warmly welcome the Hon. Chief Minister, Shri.Oommen Chandy, Hon. Education Minister, Shri. Abdu Rubb, Hon. Minister of State for Human Resource Development, Dr.Shashi Tharoor and the Hon. Vice Chancellor of the Delhi University, Dr. Dinesh Singh and all the distinguished delegates and the entire audience.

Please join me in welcoming all of them with a thunderous applause.

Thank you.

Inaugural Remarks by Former Ambassador and Vice-Chairman of the Kerala State Higher Education Council, T.P.Sreenivasan, at the Kerala History Congress, Kozhikode, November 7, 2013.

I am glad to be invited to inaugurate the Golden Jubilee of the Govt. Arts and Science College, Kozhikode, and the Kerala History Congress today. It is a matter for celebration that the college has made a major contribution to higher education in Kerala for fifty years. We have different kinds of colleges in Kerala, but the Government colleges constitute the backbone of the system. You will be glad to know that the paradigm shift in funding of state colleges under RUSA of the Ministry of Human Resource Development will transform higher education in the country. I am sure the Government of Kerala will give special attention to Government colleges, which are particularly poor in infrastructure.

It is most appropriate that that you have organized a Kerala History Congress with the participation of scholars from India and abroad on this occasion. But I am at a loss, as a non-historian, as to what to say at this inaugural ceremony in the presence of erudite historians. I seek comfort in making these remarks, however, because every individual, in every profession, contributes to the making of history. Our personal histories and accomplishments do contribute to the history of our society, our country and the world. Journalists, they say, write the first draft of history. The celebrated journalist, B.G.Varghese, called his autobiography “The First Draft.”

Diplomats create history in their own way. They also record history. They provide the raw material of history when the archives are opened. Many countries open out even the most secret documents after thirty years to reveal the conversations and negotiations, which led to important international developments. For example, we now know the details of the discussions that took place in the White House during the Bangladesh war. India is still conservative in opening up the archives, but we have the memoirs of several diplomats, which throw light on history as it evolved.

There are different ways of looking at history. I remember that in the Soviet Union, it was believed that the past could always be changed. Only the future was certain! History was rewritten not to rectify errors, but to change it to suit the purposes of the Communist Party. For instance, Soviet history claimed that Soviet citizens made every important invention and discovery. They knew well that this did not happen, but they deliberately rewrote history to instill pride among the Soviet people. The aircraft, the steam engine and penicillin were first made in the Soviet Union, it was taught in schools.

The most important point about history is that if you do not learn it, you will repeat the mistakes of history. When history repeats itself, often the reason is the lack of awareness of what had happened in the past. By reading history, we can learn from the mistakes of the past, as we do not have time to make our own mistakes to correct them.

Of course, there is justification for reinterpreting and rewriting history as new facts come to light and such rewriting of history is a responsibility of historians. New biographers of historical personalities appear because different historians see them in different lights. As long as such rewriting is not to serve political or other purposes, it is legitimate and necessary. Very recently, the lives of Jinnah and Sardar Patel have been re-evaluated. New biographies of Gandhi, Nehru and Indira Gandhi keep appearing and all of them enrich history.

Study of history has seen a revival of late, because of the realization that the present cannot be managed without the knowledge f the past. History, it is said, is “carefully and critically constructed collective memory.” Just as personal memory is important for us to deal with others, collective memory is inevitable to deal with public and social choices. Absent or defective collective memory deprives us of the best available guide for public action. Without learning history, we face nasty surprises and frustrating failures. The dimensions of contemporary reality can be understood only if we have knowledge of the story of the human adventure on earth. Public memory need not be fixed. It can be rectified in the light of new facts. An issue, which may have appeared trivial years ago might assume new dimensions in the movement of history. With the wisdom of hindsight, we may be able to assess situations better. At the same time, we should refrain from condemning leaders who made their best judgment at a particular time in history.

Educationists around the globe agree that history should be part of any curriculum. History should be placed somewhere between humanities and social sciences. Historians like Ramachandra Guha focuses on contemporary life with the strength of his historic perspectives. The number of students who offer history and humanities and social sciences has increased in the colleges in Kerala, because avenues of employment such as the print and electronic media have increased. Many commercial companies have begun to appoint social scientists and not necessarily engineers and scientists at the helm, because what is needed at that level is a broad view rather than narrow specialization.

I am glad to see that this seminar will focus on Kerala history. A number of eminent historians like Prof. M.G.Narayanan will be presenting papers here. I noticed in an advance copy of his paper that he is demolishing the widely held belief that “Silappathikaram” was written by Ilangovadigal in the 2^nd century. He has established that a Jain bhikshu composed it in the 9^th century to propagate the tenets of Jainism. Such dispassionate studies will shake the foundations of false versions of history and lead us to new insights. I am happy to inaugurate the international seminar and wish your deliberations every success.

Thank you.

--

'Modi'fication of Foreign Policy

By T.P.Sreenivasan

A tough line towards Pakistan, greater attention to building of brand India and a bigger role for the states in foreign policy making are the proposed modifications of foreign policy put forward so far by Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi. His promise to allow states a bigger say in strategizing and building foreign policy is unexceptionable.

The states, which have special links with certain countries, either because of a common border or cultural and commercial affinities should be consulted in framing policies towards those countries, he said. As examples, he gave links of Gujarat with Africa, West Asia, China and Japan, Odisha with Indonesia, Goa with Portugal, Pondicherry with France, Tamil Nadu with Sri Lanka, Singapore and Malaysia and Bihar with Buddhist countries. One could add Kerala and the Gulf countries, West Bengal and Bangladesh, Bihar and Nepal and Mauritius. Most states have links with the United States because of the large number of immigrants from these states. As stakeholders in India's relations with the countries concerned, it is only legitimate that these states be consulted and kept informed of developments.

The Chief Minister did not question the constitutional position on foreign policy, which is crystal clear. It is within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Centre and there is no mechanism to consult the states. Some people believe that the Indian state is only quasi-federal because of the lack of autonomy given to the states in certain vital matters.

In his letters to the Chief Ministers, Pandit Nehru often took the regional leaders into confidence on some aspects of foreign policy, more to educate them than to consult them. Foreign policy advocacy by certain states was not uncommon even then. But with the advent of coalitions, in which the regional parties had the power to make and unmake governments, state leaders began to play a decisive role in foreign policy. With globalization and economic reforms, ethnic, immigration and economic issues and even simple prejudices of regional leaders began to play a role. The most recent dramatic instances were of Mamta Banerjee holding up the Teesta water sharing agreement with Bangladesh and Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi pushing India to vote in favour of a US sponsored human rights resolution on Sri Lanka. The Tamil Nadu legislature even passed a resolution, asking the Government of India to move the United Nations Security Council to ask for a referendum in Sri Lanka on establishing a Tamil Eelam there. In its latest resolution, Tamil Nadu legislature has demanded that India should boycott the Commonwealth Summit in Colombo. It was not long ago that the Kerala legislature passed a resolution against the India-US nuclear deal. Less dramatically, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu slowed down the Jaitapur and Kudankulam nuclear projects, Odisha forced a revision of a South Korean project and Kerala made it hard for the Centre to deal with the Italian marines, who killed two fishermen off the cost of the state.

There have been other state interactions with neighbouring countries. Pakistan announced readiness to buy power from Gujarat, the Bihar Chief minister has been hosting dinners for Nepal politicians and the Chief minister of Punjab has received a gift of a buffalo from the Chief Minister of Pakistani Punjab. Taking these into account, the noted columnist, Nitin Pai has suggested the setting up of a Subcontinental Relations Council, headed by the Prime Minister and comprising of the External Affairs Minister and the Chief ministers of all states that have external borders.   

The way to deal with the situation is for the Centre to subsume the interests of the states. Coalition politics cannot be permitted to sway foreign policy beyond a point. Trade agreements are particularly important, when products, which are special to different states, are covered in such agreements. The virtual veto given to the states on the issue of FDI in retail is a case in point.

Jammu & Kashmir is, of course, a special case when it comes to foreign policy. The state leaders have always been consulted on our policy towards Pakistan. Moreover, the state has used our differences with Pakistan to push for its own autonomy in various ways. The special privileges that Kashmir enjoys are a consequence of our foreign policy preoccupations. The role that Hurriyet plays in relations with Pakistan is significant. The Hurriyet leaders meeting Pakistani leaders in India has almost become routine. In the name of Pakistani sensitivities, the state adopts positions, which the other states will not be permitted to do.

Of late, Chief Ministers and others have begun to visit foreign countries to canvass investments, to seek changes in immigration policies and to smoothen trade regulations. Increasingly, foreign dignitaries too have begun to visit the states to win potentially powerful regional leaders. Hillary Clinton chose to visit Mamta Banerji in Kolkata and  Jayalalthaa in Chennai. She made a policy statement on the US rebalancing in the Pacific not from Delhi, but from Chennai. A day may come when foreign dignitaries will do their business in the states and go to Delhi only to pay homage to the Father of the Nation and to receive the ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan!

The foreign Consulates have stepped up their activities in several states. Requests for appointment of Honorary Consuls have multiplied. The states have also begun to push for internationalization of education to gain benefits abroad.

Turning to Kerala, there has been sustained interest in foreign affairs in the state, but it was confined to sending some Menons, Nairs and Panikkars to the South Block and trusting them to take care of Kerala’s interests.  Today, Kerala pressurizes the Centre to send Malayalee envoys to the Gulf, in the expectation that they would look after the Kerala labour in those countries better. The possibility of the forced return of Kerala workers from the Gulf creates tremors and Kerala Ministers rush to the Gulf even when two Central Ministers from Kerala deal with the issues. At the time of the nuclear deal, the leftist Government in Kerala campaigned strongly against it. The same Government raised alarm when a trade agreement between India and ASEAN came up. It agitated that the loss of revenue to the state should be avoided even if there were more than corresponding benefits for the Centre. Kerala insisted that the bilateral relations between India and Italy should not be dragged into the legal case against the Italian marines. Even the United Front Government, dominated by the Congress Party, felt deceived when its jurisdiction in the case was questioned. Kerala was confident that a settlement could be reached with the Italians with the help of the church, if the Centre had not intervened.

The Centre should be more sensitive to the needs and concerns of the states. Some methods of institutionalized consultations between the Ministry of External Affairs and the states have been mooted in the past. Apart from the MEA Branch Secretariat in Kolkata, which was set up under special circumstances, a proposal to station senior MEA officials in major state capitals was mooted by the then Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran and it was partly implemented. Other suggestions such as annual consultations with the states on foreign policy, inclusion of the relevant Chief Ministers in the Prime Minister's delegations to certain countries etc have been suggested.

Serving officers of the Ministry of External should brief think tanks and other groups, who are interested in foreign policy through outreach programmes and provision of support to them for sustaining themselves. More courses should be started in international relations in the Universities to enthuse youngsters. State media take interest in foreign affairs only when something of their immediate interest happens and they tend to be negative about them. The successes in foreign policy elsewhere go unnoticed in the process.

Intensive and continuous interaction between the Centre and the states is important to allay the fears of the states regarding foreign policy being made in Delhi. 

Foreign policy making cannot be shifted out of Delhi and the regional satraps, who do not have a national perspective, should not be allowed to dominate foreign policy. But regional inputs should be integral to foreign policy making at every step of the way. If regional leaders, think tanks and media are fully briefed, they will become partners in foreign policy making and implementation rather than hurdles. 

Federalism and Foreign Policy

(Remarks at ICWA-JNU Conference)

Oct 9, 2013

By T.P.Sreenivasan

Some years ago, I worked with a Foreign Secretary, who believed that no Punjabi should deal with Pakistan and no Tamil should deal with Sri Lanka. In fact, when I offered to be posted to Sri Lanka, he told me that I should not go there because of my Tamil sounding name. I pleaded that the name was not uncommon in Kerala, but he said that it was not possible to convince every Tamil Tiger and Sinhala extremist that I was not a Tamil. Today, he might say that no Bangali should deal with Bangladesh, no Bihari should deal with Nepal or Mauritius, nobody from the North-East should deal with China and no Malayalee should deal with the Gulf. Such are the interlinkages that have developed between our border states and our neighbours. Their concerns about our relations with these countries are so real that foreign policy can no longer be framed or practiced without taking into account their interests.

The constitutional position on foreign policy is crystal clear. It is within the jurisdiction of the Centre and there is no mechanism to consult the states. Some people believe that the Indian state is only quasi-federal because of the lack of autonomy given to the states in certain vital matters.

In his letters to the Chief Ministers, Pandit Nehru often took the regional leaders into confidence on some aspects of foreign policy, more to educate them than to consult them. Foreign policy advocacy by certain states was not uncommon even then. But with the advent of coalitions, in which the regional parties had the power to make and unmake governments, state leaders began to play a decisive role in foreign policy. With globalization and economic reforms, ethnic, immigration and economic issues and even simple prejudices of regional leaders began to play a role. The most recent dramatic instances were of Mamta Banerjee holding up the Teesta water sharing agreement with Bangladesh and Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi pushing India to vote in favour of a US sponsored human rights resolution on Sri Lanka. Less dramatically, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu slowed down the Jaitapur and Kudankulam nuclear projects, Odisha forced a revision of a South Korean project and Kerala made it hard for the Centre to deal with the Italian marines, who killed two fishermen off the cost of the state.
The only way to deal with the situation is for the Centre to subsume the interests of the states. But coalition politics cannot be permitted to sway foreign policy beyond a point. Trade agreements are particularly important, when products, which are special to different states are covered in such agreements. The virtual veto given to the states on the issue of FDI in retail is a case in point.

Kashmir is, of course, a special case when it comes to foreign policy. The state leaders have always been consulted on our policy towards Pakistan. Moreover, the state has used our differences with Pakistan to push for its own autonomy in various ways. The special privileges that Kashmir enjoys are a consequence of our foreign policy preoccupations. The role that Hurriet plays in relations with Pakistan is significant. The Hurriet leaders meeting Pakistani leaders in India has almost become routine. In the name of Pakistani sensitivities, the state adopts positions, which the other states will not be permitted to do.

Of late, Chief Ministers and others have begun to visit foreign countries to canvass investments, to seek changes in immigration policies and to smoothen trade regulations. Increasingly, foreign dignitaries too have begun to visit the states to win potentially powerful regional leaders. Hillary Clinton chose to visit Mamta Banerji and Chennai to meet Jayalalthaa. She made a policy statement on the US rebalancing in the Pacific not from Delhi, but from Chennai. The Consulates have stepped up their activities in several states. Requests for appointment of Honorary Consuls have multiplied. The states have also begun to push for internationalization of education to gain benefits abroad.

Turning to Kerala, where I have lived for nearly ten years after leaving the Foreign Service, there has been sustained interest in foreign affairs, but it was confined to sending some Menons, Nairs and Panikkars to the South Block and trusting them to take care of Kerala’s interests. Even today, Kerala pressurizes the Centre to send Malayalee envoys to the Gulf, in the expectation that they would look after the Kerala labour in those countries better. The possibility of the forced return of Kerala workers from the Gulf creates tremors and Kerala Ministers rush to the Gulf even when the issues are dealt with by two Central Ministers from Kerala. At the time of the nuclear deal, the leftist Government in Kerala campaigned strongly against the deal and even adopted a resolution in the legislature against it. The same Government raised alarm when a trade agreement between India and ASEAN came up. It agitated that the loss of revenue to the state should be avoided even if there were more than corresponding benefits for the Centre. Kerala insisted that the bilateral relations between India and Italy should not be dragged into the legal case against the Italian marines. Even the United Front Government, dominated by the Congress Party, felt deceived when its jurisdiction in the case was questioned. Kerala was confident that a settlement could be reached with the Italians with the help of the church, if the Centre had not intervened.
Intensive and continuous interaction between the Centre and the states is important to allay the fears of the states regarding foreign policy being made in Delhi. The Centre should be more sensitive to the needs and concerns of the states. Serving officers of the Ministry of External should brief think tanks and other groups, who are interested in foreign policy through outreach programmes and provision of support to them for sustaining themselves. More courses should be started in international relations in the Universities to enthuse youngsters. State media take interest in foreign affairs only when something of their immediate interest happens and they tend to be nagaive about them. The successes in foreign policy elsewhere go unnoticed in the process.
Foreign policy making cannot be shifted out of Delhi and the regional satraps should not be allowed to dominate foreign policy without the national perspective. But regional inputs should be integral to foreign policy making at every step of the way.

Hopes of Autumn

Indian Express Oct 11, 2013

By T.P.Sreenivasan

The salubrious early autumn in New York offers the ideal setting for the General Assembly session, which opens in the third week of September every year. Kings, Presidents and Prime Ministers, not to speak of Foreign Ministers and professional diplomats throng New York, some to mix business with pleasure, others to mix pleasure with pleasure. Diplomatic activities multiply everywhere and every one reviews policies and projects them to the world. Deals and pledges are made, even if they have to be broken subsequently. After the long speeches, gala dinners and joint statements, the guests return to their homesteads to continue their struggle for power and progress.

In Japan, they say that the autumn sky and the woman’s heart are susceptible to frequent changes. Leaves change colours and fall, paving the way for winter. This year, war clouds were visible on the Syrian firmament as delegates were packing their bags for their pilgrimage to the United Nations. Pundits around the globe declared that war was inevitable, now that Syria had used chemical weapons and thus breached the red line. The words from President Obama and Secretary Kerry were warlike. War drums were heard in London and Paris. The United States, they said, could not but attack Syria to maintain its global status and credibility among its allies. Money was no problem, as oil rich Arabs would finance the war.

The experts were obviously wrong. The Americans, the British and the French were in no mood for war even if their leaders were. Regime changes in the Middle East did not seem very attractive after the aftermath of the Arab Spring in other countries. The Morsi phenomenon in Egypt and the murder in cold blood of the American Ambassador, who was the architect of the new regime in Libya, had dampened enthusiasm for change. President Assad seemed still strong and fundamentalist elements had crept into the dissident movement. A dithering US Administration, therefore, grasped the straw that Vladimir Putin extended by way of a plan to eliminate the chemical weapons of Syria, as though the rebellion in Syria was not against President Assad, but his chemical weapons arsenal. President Obama claimed that Syria accepted the deal because of the gravity of his threat. Others thought that it was the defeat of imperialism and triumph of the “Communist” Putin, who threatened the Americans through the New York Times. But there was an element of wisdom and the preference to avoid war in the mind of President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry. Nobody will concede this, as the world is not accustomed to the breaking out of peace. War and violence come more naturally to the Homo sapiens.

The beginning of a thaw in the Arctic freeze of US-Iran relations was more dramatic as the two countries had not spoken to each other since 1979. The feeble signs of a change after President Rouhani took over were dismissed as unreal, but the announcement of the first direct contact between the two leaders by way of a telephone call from President Obama to President Rouhani shook the very foundations of the theory of inevitability of war. What was more, President Obama said that it was not merely a goodwill call, but a discussion on Iran’s nuclear programme and that he was persuaded there was even a basis for agreement. Obama called the discussion an important breakthrough after a generation of deep mistrust and suggested that it could serve as the starting point to an eventual deal on Iran’s nuclear programme and a broader renewal of relations between two countries that once were close allies.

“The test will be meaningful, transparent and verifiable actions, which can also bring relief from the comprehensive international sanctions that are currently in place,” added President Obama. “Resolving this issue, obviously, could also serve as a major step forward in a new relationship between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran, one based on mutual interest and mutual respect,” he said.

The skeptics and the non-believers have ruled out any change in the future and have pointed out the geopolitical compulsions on both sides. They expect that the mirage of peace will give way to war clouds, as it is unthinkable for Iran to give up its nuclear adventure as long as the hidden weapons of Israel posed a threat to the Islamic world.

India too contributed to the autumn of hope with the farewell visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the White House, though seen by many as nothing but ceremonial. A significant step that was taken by the two sides went almost unnoticed in the midst of disappointment of on the Afghan front and the economic liberalization area. The media, which called the move “reckless adventurism” when there were indications that the liability law would be “diluted”, kept quiet when an agreement was signed to begin work on the installation of a Westinghouse reactor in Gujarat. We do not know whether the US relaxed its insistence on no liability for suppliers or we relaxed our liability law, but one irritant in India-US relations seemed to be fading away.

One exception to the general mood of change for the better was the disastrous India-Pak summit in New York. It was a summit, which should have gone the way of Obama-Putin summit and the Dilma Roussef-Obama summit, for which the time was not propitious. India and Pakistan did not even have the courage to announce the meet and it was made to appear as though no decision had been taken. Guns continued to boom across the Line of Control as a cover for infiltrators from Pakistan. The only substantive outcome of the summit was an agreement that Directors General (Military Operations) on both sides should look into cease-fire violations, a job already assigned to them. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif did not even show the courtesy of avoiding his meaningless reference to Kashmir in his speech to the UN General Assembly. Whether he referred to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as a “dehathi aurat” or simply narrated the story of a village woman, who constantly complained about her neighbor, the body language did not show any warmth. Nawaz Sharif had the habit of embracing Prime Minister Gujral and breaking into Punjabi when they met. With his hands and feet tied up, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could only read the riot act on terror to him, for which he did not need to meet him face to face. The summit did more harm than good, because it highlighted that the two leaders were hostage, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to his army and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the Indian public opinion. The claim that we lost nothing was untenable. We lost at least a dozen more lives on the eve of the meeting.

Though the India-Pak summit failed to take things forward, in the eyes of international observers, the summit also fitted into the general trend towards relaxation of tensions. The hopes of autumn, however,  must go through the rigours of winter before blossoming in spring. Chances are that the winter freeze will destroy some of the seeds planted in autumn.