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| Wednesday, 8 December 2004 |
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Sri Lanka welcomes the progress SAARC has achieved through the decision to create a Free Trade Area in South Asia, states President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga in a message to mark SAARC Charter Day today. The message: "It gives me great pleasure to forward this message on the commemoration of the occasion of the SAARC Charter Day, which falls on December 8, 2004. Nineteen years ago, the Heads of State of the seven South Asian countries signed a Charter to establish the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). SAARC is an Association based on the consciousness that in an increasingly inter-dependent world, the objectives of peace, economic prosperity and social justice are best achieved in South Asia by fostering mutual understanding, good neighbourly relations and meaningful cooperation among Member States, bound by the ties of history, common values and deep-rooted cultural bonds. The 12th SAARC Summit in January 2004 recorded a number of important achievements among which was the conclusion of a Framework Agreement on the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA), and Additional Protocol to the SAARC Regional Convention on Suppression on Terrorism, a SAARC Social Charter, the Report of the Independent South Asian Commission for Poverty Alleviation (ISACPA) and a Ministerial Plan of Action for Poverty Alleviation. Sri Lanka welcomes the progress SAARC has achieved through the decision to create a Free Trade area in South Asia. SAFTA lays the foundation for achieving one of the core objectives of SAARC - overall progress and social development in the region arising from the benefits of greater economic activity through enhanced cooperation in trade. SAARC should also draw upon the experiences of other regional groupings to make the free trade area a success. Sri Lanka welcomes the efforts taken by SAARC member states to address the issue of poverty, which has been rightly identified as one of the overarching goals of SAARC. South Asia is heir to vast asymmetries within countries. The poverty alleviation programs being pursued in each of the individual South Asian countries can be strengthened through regional initiatives, as well as by linking up with multilateral objectives such as the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Moving ahead with the SAARC poverty agenda will require vertically bringing together the current national, regional and global programs. Regional initiatives in the social development sector spearheaded by SAARC address issues that are of significant domestic relevance. As spelt out in Sri Lanka's economic policy framework, eradication of poverty, is recognised as an important challenge before us at the national level. Similarly I welcome the conclusion of the SAARC Social Charter which seeks to promote the welfare of the people of South Asia, to improve their quality of life, accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development; as well as to provide all individuals the opportunity to live in dignity and realize their full potential. We intend to operationalise the provisions of the Charter at the national level in the very near future. SAARC has attached high priority to the promotion of people to people contacts in the region to strengthen goodwill and foster better understanding. In this context, we are pleased to have taken a leadership role in the exemption of visas for SAARC nationals to visit Sri Lanka for purposes of business and tourism. Over the years, a number of SAARC professional bodies have forged regional networks of active cooperation. As a result of their constructive activities, these professional associations have strengthened intra-SAARC interaction through non-official channels. The observance of the SAARC Charter Day will further consolidate our unity of purpose and our broader South Asian identity. The 13th SAARC Summit will take place in Dhaka in January 2005. The Summit marks 20 years of the existence of the Association, and we now need to look ahead towards a Vision for the next Decade." |
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