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Book
: RESTRUCTURING SOUTH ASIAN SECURITY
(ISBN: 81-7049-121-5)
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: Manas Publications
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Delhi - 110 002
Tel: 91-11-23260783, 23265523
Email:manaspublications@vsnl.com
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UK the book can be ordered from:
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AL2 1EA, U.K.
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In
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UBS
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In
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In case of odering difficulty the author can be contacted
at:
38, Babar Road,
New Delhi - 110 001
Email:vsaighal@vsnl.com |
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ABOUT
THE BOOK
In
his path breaking commentary, the author has woven
a fascinating mosaic spanning not only the subcontinent,
but China, South East Asia, Central Asian Republics
and a host of other regions as well. Many of the proposals
have commanded international respect. The range of subjects
dealt with cover an equally vast spectrum: from demography,
good governance to trauma and critical care. The proposal
relating to the "Demilitraisation of the Himalayas an
Ecological Imperative" is being actively considered
by several world bodies, NGOs and international agencies.
The
chapter on "Understanding the nature of the New
Societal Traumas" poignantly highlights tthe human
tragedies taking place in the rapidly growing cities
of south Asia and the developing world as a whole.
REVIEWS:
Reviewed
by
IAN
CARDOZO
This
work is, in fact, a collection of essays and talks by
the author integrated into a book and reflects Vinod
Saighal’s perceptions of the problems that ail India,
in particular, and the world at large. The book is a mosaic
that covers national and international security, political
philosophy and games nations play, blueprints for better
forms of governance, models for economic reform, restructuring
of India’s armed forces, and concern for the threats
to the world’s social, ecological and demographic
systems. The catholicity of the author’s wide-ranging
interests is amazing and his knowledge commendable.
General
Saighal’s passionate advocacy for better
forms of international governance with just and fair control
systems are a reflection of what the world desires but
is unable to articulate. Globalisation to him has a deeper
meaning than meeting the needs of universal consumerism.
To him, it means the sacrificing of narrow national interests
for a just social order that embraces all nations. His
vision is the integration of ‘the family of man’ and
the security of the universe. Strange views for a solider,
but not so extraordinary when one considers the horrors
of war that a man is exposed to in a time-span that has
covered four wars. After all, it was the ravages of war
that made Ashoka give up his kingdom, renounce the world
and disseminate the tenets of Buddhism to the furthest
boundaries of the Eastern world.
The
author finds today’s world spinning out of
control, driven by consumerism and an insatiable greed
for unjust profit that trap vulnerable developing nations
in a spiral of continued poverty. The United States comes
in for a fair amount of criticism and one cannot but agree
with him when we look at America’s nuclear policy,
her stand on CTBT, and her total disregard for the damage
being done by her to the ozone layer that has serious
repercussions on the global environment. Considering that
these essays were written in 1998, his prescience is prophetic
when considered against the backdrop of the events of
September 11, 2001.
In
1998 he said “There are no
overt military threats to the USA. But when a mighty nation,
blinded with its economic and military might, starts defining
the whole world as its sphere of influence, and talks
of ‘full spectrum domination’ in every region
of the world, the end of such dominance is at hand. It
is against the laws of physics. It is contrary to the
grain of history. It is a challenge to the spirit of freedom
at the end of the second millennium” [pp. 48, 49].
He says a lot more in a similar vein but then the reader
must read and find out for himself. The
author’s pronouncements on the situation in
Afghanistan and on the Taliban have also been prescient.
In 1998 he said ‘it will be remembered that the
strategy for pushing the Taliban into Afghanistan was
predicated upon opening of the oil route through pipelines
via Afghanistan, Pakistan, and on to the Arabian Sea.
Extremely heavy outlays by Saudi Arabia and several US
oil majors [with the tacit support of the US government]
helped to buy out local warlords with exorbitant sums;
thus helping the rag-tag band in overcoming resistance
in huge areas in Afghanistan’ [p. 47]. He goes on
further to say, later in the book, ‘whether the
Taliban succeed in unifying Afghanistan, or fail to do
so, the problems for Pakistan will get exacerbated’ [p.111].
China’s quest for global power status, and its
impact on India and the world, and what needs to be done
in this regard has been well covered. The author’s
assumption, however, that he has the answer on how to “manage” China
is presumptuous. China’s behaviour has always been
an enigma and has puzzled the world. To state that he
has the answer to what the world is looking for is questionable.
The analysis of threats to India, militarily, economically,
demographically and ecologically are masterful and well
stated. His warnings are timely and need to be examined.
His recommendations for restructuring the armed forces
of India have merit and one cannot but be impressed with
the candour with which he outlines the reasons that lead
to the tentativeness with which India addresses sensitive
issues concerning the USA, China and the Arab world.
Although
the analysis of the subjects he has addressed is exhaustive
and is the result of an independent mind,
he tends to pontificate and to be “preachy” at
times. Whatever be the depth and breadth of one’s
knowledge, one needs to accept that it can never be truly
complete, and one needs to give space to others who may
know as much and more.
The
general’s desire to change the culture of an
unthinking and materialistic world is linked with the
destructive nature of Western consumerism and he recommends
India and China to maintain their ancient heritage and
cultural identities. There is merit in this – not
only to maintain a degree of independence based on vast
human and material resources, but also to delink from
a system that is volatile and interdependent on the mismanagement
and vagaries of links in the globalised chain. The author has a deep concern for ecology and his passionate
commitments to turning around the ecological degradation
of the Himalaya are well and truly stated. His suggestion
to demilitarise the zone however is impractical because
of the vested interests of the countries that border the
region.
The overall focus of the author underlines
the urgent need for a global, universal and planetary
order that
works. Desirable no doubt, but unrealistic because that
is not the way nations think and act. A thought-provoking
book that is well ahead of its times.(Reviewed
in World
Affairs Oct-Dec 2001 VOL 5 NO 4)
WHAT DISTINGUISHED PEOPLE IN THE WORLD HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THE BOOK:
“The book is a mosaic that covers national and
international security, political philosophy and games
nations play, blueprints for better forms of governance,
models for economic reform, restructuring of India’s
armed forces, and concern for the threats to the world’s
social, ecological and demographic systems. The catholicity
of the author’s wide-ranging interests is amazing
and his knowledge commendable.” (WORLD AFFAIRS OCT-DEC
2001 VOL 5 NO 4)
“
China’s quest for global power status, and its impact
on India and the world, and what needs to be done in this
regard has been well covered.” (WORLD AFFAIRS OCT-DEC
2001 VOL 5 NO 4)
“
The analysis of threats to India, militarily, economically,
demographically and ecologically are masterful and well
stated. His warnings are timely and need to be examined.
His recommendations for restructuring the armed forces
of India have merit and one cannot but be impressed with
the candour with which he outlines the reasons that lead
to the tentativeness with which India addresses sensitive
issues concerning the USA, China and the Arab world.” (WORLD
AFFAIRS OCT-DEC 2001 VOL 5 NO 4) “
The author has a deep concern for ecology and his passionate
commitments to turning around the ecological degradation
of the Himalaya are well and truly stated.” (THE
INTELLIGENCE JOURNAL 2002)
“
A thought provoking book that is well ahead of its times.” (THE
INTELLIGENCE JOURNAL 2002)
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