Dominated by media attention on bilateral politics between India and Pakistan which “technically” was a sideline issue, the 16th summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) concluded in Thimphu last week, managing somehow to emerge with only one potentially important policy focus for the region – a document on environment.
Grappling with the big fear of climate change that is making member states such as the Maldives most vulnerable, Foreign Ministers of the region signed a paper titled Convention on Cooperation on Environment. The Maldives is scheduled to host next year’s conference.
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| Sri Lankan President greets the Indian Prime Minister at the recently held SAARC summit |
According to officials in Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry, discussions were held towards balancing economic development with concerns for the environment. Food and energy security – topics that make great seminar sound bites – were also touched upon by delegates in the Bhutanese capital. Consultations were held to help underdeveloped landlocked countries such as Nepal figure out models of better utilizing existing energy resources. A separate agreement on trade in services was also signed so as to enhance cooperation on the regional economy.
Analysts however say that SAARC is defunct as it is neither an economic bloc nor a grouping for geopolitics. Sri Lankan Minister of External Affairs G L Peiris does not seem to share this perception though. “SAARC is an exceedingly useful forum for exchange of ideas, views among leaders of member states,” Peiris told the Sunday Times on Friday after he arrived in Colombo from Thimphu.
According to Peiris, the opportunity for heads of governments to meet one another in a relaxed environment should not be underestimated. During a bilateral session, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa is reported to have told Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the modalities he was working on in finding a political solution for this country’s Tamil community.
During his opening remarks at the conference in Thimphu on April 28, President Rajapaksa told delegates: “We should hold on to our sovereign right to decide on what is best for them. We must strive to avoid externally induced rigid solutions. We must rather rally behind home-grown and intra-regionally evolved measures. Towards this end, we should now endeavour to strengthen the mechanisms to speak with one voice on issues of common concern for our region in the international fora, in particular at the United Nations.”
President Rajapaksa told the conference that SAARC ought to be made people-centric, suggesting that a conclave for young Parliamentarians from the SAARC countries also be held. His son and Sri Lanka’s youngest MP from Hambantota, Namal Rajapaksa had accompanied President Rajapaksa to the Thimphu summit. According to Peiris, this suggestion was well received by member states. “The younger MPs could learn from the more experienced ones,” he added.
The issue of terrorism came up for discussion in a separate bilateral meeting between President Rajapaksa and Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai. During their exclusive meeting, Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Y R Gilani – who were staying in neighbouring cottages in the SAARC village – appeared to have only managed to break the silence over bilateral dialogue, stalled since July 2009 when the two had met in Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt.
Even as the multilateral forum of SAARC still exists with member nations said to be cooperating on a range of areas related to agriculture, economy, poverty alleviation, science and technology, there seems to be a lack of cohesiveness which becomes obvious with every passing conference. “Changes cannot come overnight. There should not be unrealistic expectations from SAARC. A more pragmatic approach must be taken in understanding what it could do,” Peiris said.
But there are other groups in the region that have been cited by experts as more effective alternatives to SAARC. The Bay of Bengal Imitative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), originally known by the acronym BIST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand -Economic Cooperation), is often seen as a viable link between South Asia and South-East Asia.
BIST-EC was formed in 1997, 12 years after SAARC was established. Bhutan and Mayanmar joined in subsequent years making the forum almost a buffer zone between the more effective economic group Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and SAARC itself.
Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) have more recently consolidated themselves in a group of four to enhance their economies and more importantly to play larger roles in geopolitics. With more than a quarter of Earth’s land area in their domain and 40 per cent of the world population and with a combined economic strength of $15.435 trillion, BRIC is looking to become an alternative to G-8 some day.
SAARC has become a symbolic forum with little regional relevance. This realization becomes stronger with every passing summit. |
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