An initiative to get Indians and Pakistanis to understand each other deserves support
Understanding starts with communication – and that's exactly what Indian/Pakistani entrepreneur Tanya Daud wants to achieve with her new initiative. As The National reported yesterday, UAE-raised Ms Daud has launched an online platform, including a website and Twitter feed, to promote goodwill between Indian and Pakistani expatriates in the lead-up to their independence days tomorrow and Friday. It's called Baat Karain, a Hindi-Urdu term meaning "Let's Talk".
Since becoming independent from British colonial rule in 1947, the two countries – one Muslim and the other with a Hindu majority – have developed separate national identities that have manifested in political rivalry, territorial disputes and even a nuclear arms race. Yet at the same time, Indians and Pakistanis have much in common – from the food they eat to their similar customs and fashions, and their passion, bordering on obsession, for cricket.
The UAE – home to people of more than 200 nationalities – is the perfect exemplar of tolerance and mutual understanding, and a logical place to host such an initiative. Ms Daud may not change the world with her website, but she has provided a positive example of the power of one that will, hopefully, inspire the many.
