South Asian unity

The 15th SAARC Summit is now in session with the preliminary rounds of Ministerial meetings being conducted as a lead up to the Summit proper that is to take place at the beginning of next month.

The days leading up to the SAARC conference saw a hive of activity in the City with special security arrangements put in place for the protection of the delegates. There are also travel restrictions in areas where the main venues are and also sporadic blockades of roads to facilitate the passage of delegates.

True, this may be causing some inconvenience and hardship to the public but the fact that such a regional event is hosted by Sri Lanka is an achievement considering the bleak picture painted of the country to the outside world vis-a-vis its security and other not so subtle attempts wishing for its cancellation.

It is also a testament to the fact that the country is safe for visitors and also that the presence of all Heads of State of SAARC has helped negate the gloomy picture painted by interested parties to deny the country this honour.

Presently the nitty gritty of the agenda is being worked out by all the actors leading up to the final SAARC declaration.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa will take over the leadership of the regional grouping and it would be interesting to see what his address will be centred on considering that combating terrorism is high on the agenda of the SAARC deliberations this time around.

No doubt the President would repeat his appeal for a strong regional initiative to defeat terrorism that has today transcended all borders. This call would also no doubt carry resonance with SAARC neighbours particularly in the aftermath of Sunday’s serial bombings across India which claimed many lives.

It is no secret today that SAARC countries too are affected by cross border terrorism with links between the LTTE and the Al-Qaeda established. Therefore any joint initiatives to promote and foster economic ties between the SAARC neighbours has to have as its aim the defeat of terrorism.

Economic development and the resultant poverty alleviation are essential for a stable region devoid of armed conflict. It is hoped that the deliberation of the SAARC leaders would primarily focus on this aspect and take joint measures to stamp out terrorism from the region.

According to SAARC Media spokesman Prasad Kariyawasam a series of measures are to be adopted during the 15th SAARC summit for a joint approach to combating terrorism and other areas such as maximising energy and water resources, food security, poverty alleviation in addition to several other key issues affecting the region.

The SAARC which constitutes one fourth of the world’s population has in the past been described as a talk shop by sceptics and not without some justification. The endless deliberation other than producing tons of paper have brought little tangible benefit to the region as a whole they argue.

There will be reams of sessional papers that will be presented and discussed at this Summit as well and agreements reached in all honesty on a wide range of topics affecting the region.

It is hoped that at least the regional body would get a firm move on under the able leadership of President Rajapaksa. SAARC too has often been described as a poor man’s club even though it has India as a towering presence.

It is hoped that this appellation attached to SAARC would be dispelled with the 15th summit and the body would play a more dynamic and vibrant role in addressing the vital issues such as redressing the vast economic disparity between its peoples, burgeoning poverty, malnutrition, lack of water, AIDS etc.

It should also be prevailed on the SAARC members that they should not drift away from the grouping’s main objectives as per its Charter designed by its founding fathers. There are also the geopolitical issues that tend to surface obfuscating SAARC ideals and defeating the aim of regional cooperation.

Although trade agreements are reached in the name of bilateral cooperation most often than not advantages are gradually wrested off poor member countries. There is therefore a need to iron out these rough edges and differences at the Colombo summit so that SAARC could charter a smooth course in tranquil waters and be cited as a shining example of regional cooperation by the rest of the world.