The Game of Ceasefire

Imagine a scenario wherein it’s your birthday a few days from now and your friend has a surprise for you which he’s willing to give you only on the condition that you’ll open it on your birthday and not once before. You settle on the agreement, but you’re not able to deliver, so you open it not once, but multiple times before your birthday.

The only difference between this and the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan agreed upon in 2003 is that the friend hasn’t promised anything and you’re still violating the agreement even if you know you’re not getting the gift.

In such atrocious times, many ceasefire agreements have been formulated; be it in Gaza or in Syria, but there has also been a new wave of continuous and exhaustive violations. According to the Oxford dictionary a ceasefire is a time when enemies agree to stop fighting, usually while a way is found to end the fighting permanently. Looking towards the current state of affairs it seems as if our neighbours don’t possess an Oxford dictionary.

Has it become a new trend? Or perhaps a new game? To continuously violate what you’ve agreed upon even on the cost of other people’s lives? There have been numerous ceasefire violations by our neighbour, many civilians as well as soldiers’ have lost their lives . Report suggests that there have been 16 ceasefire violations by the Pakistani troops in the month of August, leading to a loss of lives as well as resources.

Exchanging fire from both sides of the LOC is not a solution to the growing instability. If we aspire to be at peace once and for all , this game of ceasefires has to be stopped.