By Arvind Padmanabhan, IANS,
Pretoria : The trilateral forum of India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) Tuesday condemned last month’s terror attack in New Delhi and called for early conclusion of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism.
In a joint declaration after the summit among Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and their host, South African President Jacob Zuma, the three leaders said there was an urgent need to curb the menace since it was the most serious threat to international peace.
“The leaders in the same vein reiterated their strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and encouraged cooperation among states and regional organizations in the fight against terrorism,” the declaration said.
“In this regard, they emphasized the urgent need to finalize the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism and called upon all UN member-states to cooperate in resolving outstanding issues with the objective of an expeditious conclusion of negotiations and adoption of this convention.”
A terror attack on the Indian capital Sep 7, outside the Delhi High Court, had left 12 people dead and over 75 injured. Last week, police seized a car in Haryana’s Ambala town with 5 kg of RDX-grade explosives that was supposed to be meant for attacks in New Delhi.
The treaty proposes to criminalise all forms of terrorism and calls upon its signatories to deny any form of financial support or safe haven to perpetrators of such crimes against humanity. But the talks are stuck at the basic issue of what constitutes terrorism.
The Tshwane Declaration, which spoke at length about terrorism and devoted at least a para to conflicts in almost every part of the world and the need to restore peace through dialogue, was silent on such unrest in Pakistan and cross-border terrorism.
(Arvind Padmanabhan can be reached at [email protected])