Saarc has its shortcomings

by Joseph Marques

(August 07, Quatar, Sri Lanka Guardian) The summits of the South East Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) were hitherto known as a two-day sojourn for leaders of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Maldives and Afghanistan. In the past, Saarc resolutions were mostly confined to trade and cultural exchanges and were rarely implemented due to bilateral rivalries among the member states. As such, it comes as a surprise that all eight members of the organisation closed their ranks at the 15th Saarc summit in Colombo to adopt a noteworthy resolution - a regional legal framework to counter terrorism.

Talks on combating the menace of terrorism are nothing new to this forum. A declaration was made in 1987 at the Kathmandu summit due to the increase in sectarian violence in Sri Lanka and the rise of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir. Over the years, the Kathmandu resolution remained just that and failed to transform into an accord that would have given Saarc countries the legal and political framework to mutually cooperate and assist in investigation and prosecution of crime, including terrorism and the instruments of such heinous acts.

Moreover, the bitter relations between India and Pakistan annulled whatever little was achieved since then. In the subsequent summits, Islamabad stymied any issue related to terrorism as it feared that it could be used against Kashmiri militants. Pakistan maintains that it provides only "moral and diplomatic support" for groups that are fighting for the right of self-determination of Kashmiri people. That is not true, says India and it blames its arch-rival's intelligence agency, Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), of not only fomenting trouble in the country, but for a series of bomb blasts that have killed hundreds of Indians over the years.

Pressure on Pakistan to rein in the ISI has mounted after the bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul and renewed Taliban attacks on Nato and Afghan forces. Afghanistan and the US have joined in the efforts to put a bridle on ISI. As Pakistan is an ally in President George W. Bush's "war on terror", Islamabad was forced to prove its credentials. Thus, it appears that Pakistan succumbed to outside pressure and voted for the Convention for Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, the regional legal framework to counter terrorism.

Rare unity

There is no denying the fact that the Colombo summit, held from August 2-3, forged a rare unity among the south-east Asian nations, a statutory requirement which is needed to pass any resolution. No doubt, it is a small victory for the region that is prone to insurgencies and acts of terror, but the battle for unanimity in the organisation, however, is not won. As they say, a single swallow does not make a summer; nor a single act of consensus can make the theme of this year's summit "growth through partnership" a reality. That is because there are blocs within the bloc with the smaller member countries aligned with either India or Pakistan.

The two antipodal blocs have their own agenda and work against each other. Due to these opposing forces, Saarc has failed to achieve its objectives of integrating the region as an economic, social, cultural and scientific entity. This is highly evident when it comes to the free movement of peoples across the region. There are visa restrictions, mostly for visitors travelling from Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh to India. Although, India has a Favourable Trade Agreement with Sri Lanka, New Delhi refuses to grant visas on arrival to Sri Lankans on a reciprocity basis as the same are given by Colombo to Indians visiting the island nation.

Uniform rate of tariffs is another issue that needs to be solved to invigorate trade and to explore the untapped economic potential of the region that is home to more than 1.5 billion people. Most importantly is the need to tackle the issue of global warming and climate change. Low-lying Maldives and Bangladesh are at risk due to rising water level. That does not mean that other Saarc countries nestled by the Himalayas are safe. If the melting of glaciers will cause flooding in Pakistan, Nepal, India and Bhutan, the drying of water bodies in these countries will cause severe droughts.

The myriad problems of Saarc countries cannot be solved through a one-off resolution on terrorism. Security, prosperity and economic integration can only be achieved by the strength of equality, unity, fraternity and soft borders.

(The Writer is a Chief Sub Editor of the Gulf News)
- Sri Lanka Guardian