A borderless SAARC

For the first time a new topic had been brought into the SAARC agenda namely Passenger Transport. It is hoped that this would be a harbinger for the breaking down of all remaining barriers that restrict people-to-people interaction among the SAARC family.

Today while all travel barriers have been removed among European Union countries it is a matter for regret that SAARC which even predates the EU in a cultural sense is yet to resolve this issue to a satisfactory level.

It goes without saying that unity and brotherhood can best be promoted only through personal contact and increased interaction. This can only be a reality if the means for such interaction is provided without hindrance.

Today even the easy access routes such as ferry services between SAARC countries have been shut down and air travel subjected to more cumbersome procedures.

The 15th SAARC Summit should dwell on this issue deeply and come out with satisfactory solutions to ensure unhindered access for peoples of the region. If not all the talk about SAARC unity and solidarity would be confined only to just that.

True, the increased threat posed by terrorism may have led to these restrictions. But a way should be found to unite our people rather than place them apart, if the SAARC Charter is to be given due meaning.

The call made by Transport Minister Dallus Alahapperuma for emphasis to be laid on the pubic transport sector within SAARC countries at the upcoming Summit deserves merit.

Addressing the first SAARC Seminar on Public Road Passenger Transport in Colombo the Minister noted that promoting public transport among the SAARC countries would not only result in a major saving on fuel but also help reduce urban congestion.

He also explained how rural economies could be developed by affording easy access to markets through efficient public transport affordable to the public.

The topic of transport which will surface for the first time at a SAARC forum would also be an ideal opportunity to take up the matter of interconnectivity between SAARC countries through transport. India has already mooted the idea for a rail link connecting 27 countries encompassing SAARC that also affords access to Europe.

This project if it sees the light of day would facilitate more interaction among peoples of SAARC nations that would reinforce the ideals of SAARC while paving the way for healthy bilateral ties between States and their leaders.

Particularly it is bound to have a positive impact on Indo-Lanka relations which are already reinforced by common cultural ties and customs.

A rail link such as the one proposed could enhance opportunities for cementing these ties through assimilation and adoption paving the way for a common identity which is a key element in the SAARC Charter.

Such a rail link would also facilitate social and cultural interaction while opening avenues for enhanced trade and commerce between the States. This sharing of resources among member countries is the ultimate goal of SAARC.

The delegates should also mull on the positive fall out in promoting unrestricted access among the peoples of the region which could lead to a spirit of brotherhood transcending different cultures and customs.

The recent inflow of football fans from Maldives to witness a soccer final against India demonstrated a typical picture of transnational solidarity which is the type of link that is envisaged in the SAARC Charter.

This could only be promoted and advanced by dismantling all prevailing barriers that hamper such unity and togetherness. Today despite all the talk of mutual bonds and healthy ties between SAARC countries there are still restrictions that hamper bringing together of the SAARC family as a cohesive unit.

Although past summits have touched on the need for removing travel restrictions and doing away with visas there has not been satisfactory progress in this connection.

The inconvenience and hardship that locals have to endure for obtaining visas at some of our SAARC countries’ embassies only mirrors this dichotomy between the needs for cohesion as expounded by SAARC and the ground reality.

It is a negation of all that SAARC stands for to bring together the peoples of the region in unity and brotherhood under one umbrella.

It is hoped that at least at the Colombo Summit it will be resolved to whittle away at these barriers that prevent communion among peoples so that the vast SAARC community could be welded as a formidable bloc.