SAARC: From declaration to implementation

Rasika SOMARATHNA

The 15th SAARC Summit held in Colombo from August 23, 2008 renewed its pledge to take SAARC from a declaratory to the implementory stage. Four agreements were signed at the Summit on mutual assistance to address criminal activities, trade, combating terrorism and climate change.

External Affairs Minister Prof G L Peiris at the SAARC Council of Ministers in Thimphu yesterday. AFP

The theme of the 41-point Colombo Declaration announced at the end of the Summit was Partnership for Growth for Our People.

Though the Summit emphasized a people-centric approach to the region’s problems, so far and after 25 years of existence SAARC has failed to touch the lives of the people in South Asia in general.

The newly sworn in External Affairs Minister Professor G L Peiris during his first interaction with the media, on the eve of his departure to take part in the 16th SAARC Summit and the Council of Ministers, that started in Bhutan yesterday said, the focus at this Summit would be to make SAARC more people centered so that it is seen by the people of the region as an instrument directly relevant for their well-being.

Defining priorities

According to the Minister after 25 years it is an opportune time for SAARC to take stock of what has been achieved and defining what should be the SAARC priorities.

His view is SAARC should move from formulation to implementation, to serve the region with a more practical and collective approach. From Sri Lanka’s point of view the 16th summit comes at a time when the country looks forward to a unique opportunity for economic development, after eradicating the three decade-old scourge of terrorism.

According to Prof Peiris it also comes at a time when Sri Lanka looks forward to constant dialogue, engagement and reaching out towards further strengthening its relations with the outside world.

While using the opportunity to propagate its external relations and help for economic development, Sri Lanka during the Summit expects to share its experience in counter terrorism for the benefit of other member countries.

According to the Minister, despite many prophets of doom predicting that the LTTE could not be defeated militarily Sri Lanka has shown that it was possible with a combination of strong political leadership, correct policies and coordinated use of resources.

Sri Lankan experience

Sri Lanka’s successful defeat of terrorism and the resounding mandate the people have given President Rajapaksa both at the Presidential and the General elections, would be of interest to the leaders of other SAARC countries, Prof. Peiris said.

Another area Sri Lanka expects to bring to focus at the Summit is ways of ensuring rural prosperity. In this regard Sri Lanka expects to make other nations aware on its recent efforts to alleviate discrepancies between urban and rural populations and derive knowledge from similar experiences by other nations. Prof. Peiris is also of the view that if the member countries were to pool their resources they would be able to achieve the SAARC objectives as outlined at the Colombo Summit held in 2008, namely, countering terrorism, food security and energy security.

In addition, issues related to climate change, environment and sustainable development and how regional cooperation could help relevant countries in this regard, would also be main topics of focus at the 16th Summit.

Over the years SAARC has provided a forum for South Asian leaders to meet and that should be important if regional co-operation needs to be effective.