Lahore:
Given the history of bilateral tensions, for most people on both sides of the Indo -Pak border, the worsening of links arouses two nonchalant reactions – curiosity or fun.
However, for a small segment of the population – those captured in cross -border weddings – the closure of the border means offering an emotional farewell to their loved ones through the ditch.
Recently, in the aftermath of a terrorist attack targeting tourists in Indian, Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), the Indian government, announced a series of drastic reprisal measures against Pakistan, including the closure of the border and the unilateral suspension of the industrial water Treaty.
While India’s impulsive decision to close the border and cut the water supply encountered sarcasm and humor through social media users in Pakistan, the real burden of the aggravation of bilateral links is supported by thousands of couples in cross -border weddings.
AFSHAN SAIF, who lives in the capital of India, New Delhi, is from Karachi, Pakistan. After her marriage, she moved to her husband in India. “My maternal grandfather is seriously ill and hospitalized. I had to go to Karachi with my family in May to visit him, however, this will not be possible in the light of recent events,” deplored Afshan.
Likewise, Naseeb Akhtar Bilal, who was married in a family in Karachi, was from New Delhi, India. Due to the recent tensions between the two competitors, his hopes to visit his parents and siblings in India next month seem to fade. “Now I can only talk about my family in video calls. I haven’t met my brothers and sisters for years,” said Naseeb.
Mohammad Saif, a citizen of New Delhi, told L’Express PK Press Club that he had married a woman from Karachi. The real complexities of a cross-border wedding struck the couple during the cocovid-19 pandemic, when his wife visited his parents in Karachi and the border closure prevented them from meeting. “I know at least 30 couples who have cross -border weddings. Pakistani women who get married in India are granted a visa” without objection to return to India “, but as soon as tensions degenerate, they are confronted with many challenges,” said Saif.
According to Abdul Basit, former Ambassador of India and expert in diplomatic business, cross-border relations are a sub-consistency reality of the subcontinent. “If we do not know the existence of these marriages, we will in fact destroy a natural bridge of peace between the two nations. These couples are also confronted with complex legal issues concerning citizenship, the legal rights of their children and property. If the couple decides to separate, the legal proceedings are tangled in international jurisdiction”, “Basit is developed.
Stressing the ostracization encountered by couples in cross -border weddings, Professor Dr Shabnam Gul, President of the Department of International Relations of Lahore College for Women University (LCWU), revealed that people who had family ties through the border were often considered with suspicion, in particular with regard to their loyalty with their country of origin.
“Such people are rarified to have links with an” enemy country “. In India, it has become a common practice to call these people “Pakistani agents”. By the two countries, fueled hatred among people, “said Dr. Gul.
Dr. Gul thought that brewing this hatred isolated families linked to the border. “Sometimes their personal relationships are deeply affected because it becomes difficult to maintain love for his own country and a negative perception of the country of the spouse at the same time. In such situations, the restoration of peace and reconciliation efforts becomes almost impossible because when distrust and hostility prevail in the atmosphere, the voices of peace are suppressed,” explained Dr. Gul.
In light of the dominant bilateral tensions, diplomatic experts suggested introducing a special “family visa card” for cross -border families, allowing visa installations on emergencies such as parents’ disease or death in the family. They also proposed to establish a special crossing point at the Wagah-Attari border, where families could meet in specific conditions.
