Shamsuddin Ahmed
Nepal is set to host the 18th summit of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) which has been limping for three decades under the shadow of distrust and disputes among the member countries. To many, SAARC is merely a talking shop, providing nothing more than a lip service to various issues of regional problems. From the outset, the biggest partner India was sceptical about SAARC.
Policy makers in Delhi feared that the proposal for association of regional cooperation made by President Ziaur Rahman of Bangladesh might provide an opportunity for the small neighbours to regionalize all bilateral issues and to join with each other to gang up against India. To alley Indian concern, all references to bilateral issues and security matters had finally been dropped from the proposal leaving cooperation only in non-political, non-controversial areas as provided in the SAARC charter.
A nothing doing front?
Located at the centre of SAARC, India has common land and maritime borders with all member countries, except Maldives and Afghanistan which was inducted later in the 7-member association. Border disputes of India with the neighbours have given rise in other problems of human sufferings in enclaves and sensitive political issues belying the objective of SAARC for cooperation in the field of economy, trade and in other areas.
Indo-Bangladesh dispute over sharing of waters of the common rivers and non-implementation of 1974 land boundary agreement adversely affected the very relationship of the two countries. Suspicion and mistrust of the people was growing. Most crucial UN resolution for plebiscite in Kashmir was ignored. Kashmir dispute led to two wars between India and Pakistan, and indeed gave birth of terrorism. Palestine problem is another reason for proliferation of terrorism.
It is feared that Indo-Pakistan conflict will sharpen with NATO combat troops leaving Afghanistan before the end of this year (2014). Both Delhi and Islamabad want a stronghold in Afghanistan. Delhi is accused of fanning up sectarian disturbances in Pakistan in a bid to further weaken Pakistan and thus fulfill its objective in Afghanistan. Danger of sharpening Indo-Pakistan conflict and proxy war in troubled Afghanistan was hinted by former President General Parvez Musharraf in Karachi last Tuesday.
Some believe there is an opportunity for transformation of SAARC by reforms in its charter, especially the provisions that bar discussion of bilateral and contentious issues and the requirement that all decisions be made on the basis of consensus. This is something that holds back regional cooperation. At 30, SAARC should come of age and take up such issues and make bold decisions to remove the obstacles for cooperation among the countries and development of the region. There is a need to break barriersphysical, connectivity and mindseet barriersto make SAARC more effective.
SAARC: Least integrated & connected
The neighbouring Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has made significant strides in regional economic integration and promotion of collective regional identity. ASEAN discusses contentious security issues like South China Sea, bilateral issues such as border dispute between Cambodia and Thailand and internal politics of member states like Myanmar. Such discussions also make the forum lively. SAARC can learn much from the failures and successes of ASEAN and other regional associations.
Today regional cooperation is not a matter of luxury or choice. One will be left out if he does not cooperate. The cost of non-cooperation is already too high for the people of South Asia. The region is among the world’s least economically integrated and physically connected. The share of intraregional trade is still a paltry, barely five percent. Non-tariff and para-tariff barriers abound, despite the region’s resolve to implement free trade area through the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA).
According to an exporter, Indian tax men impose high income tax to the outlets found selling Bangladeshi goods. They preferred not to sell Bangladeshi items demanded by the consumers to avoid high tax. Surface transport networks between the countries remain truncated and fragmented. Often, one still needs to fly one member country to another in the absence of road communication.
Let observers play role
SAARC has eleven members including China, Japan, EU, US and neighbouring Myanbmar with observer status. They don’t have any role or engagement. They need to be given some space, role and upgraded to dialogue partner status, rather than allowing them to simply observe from the sidelines. There is also a need to engage other countries and regional groups keen to cooperate with the SAARC. It has so far failed to take up any project that has meaningful impact in the lives of over 1.6 billion people living in the SAAR countries. They are denied opportunity and a chance to benefit from collective partnership and cooperation.
Keeping in view of development in other countries through cooperation and conflict heightening tension it is expected that that the SAARC summit in Kathmandu on November 26-27 will consider necessary reforms in the charter removing impediments to make the organization meaningful to the people. They would also require removing non-tariff barriers in trade.
Source: Weekly Holiday
