The South Asia Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) was set up on 8th December 1985 as a regional
bloc for seven countries (Afghanistan joined later) “for the promotion of
economic and social progress, cultural development within the South Asia region
and also for friendship and cooperation with other developing countries”. The
objectives of SAARC, as defined in its charter, are as follows:
i.
Promote the welfare of the peoples of South Asia and
improve their quality of life;
ii.
Accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural
development in the region by providing all individuals the opportunity to live
in dignity and realise their full potential;
iii.
Promote and strengthen collective self-reliance among the
countries of South Asia;
iv.
Contribute to mutual trust, understanding and
appreciation of one another’s problems;
v.
Promote active collaboration and mutual assistance in the
economic, social, cultural, technical and scientific fields;
vi.
Strengthen co-operation with other developing countries;
vii.
Strengthen co-operation among themselves in international
forms on matters of common interest; and
viii.
Cooperate with international and regional organisation
with similar aims and purposes.
It is worth reading each of eight points given
above in the context of the current strained relations between the member
nations. Have we seen all the member nations moving in one direction for any of
the objectives envisaged by the founding fathers? The answer to this would be
resounding no if one looks at the role played by Pakistan where it has done
everything in its power to undermine several of the other member nations.
On the other hand, the ASEAN Declaration states
that the aims and purposes of the Association are:
(1)
To
accelerate the economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the
region through joint endeavors in the spirit of equality and partnership in order
to strengthen the foundation for a prosperous and peaceful community of
Southeast Asian nations, and
(2)
To
promote regional peace and stability through abiding respect for justice and
the rule of law in the relationship among countries in the region and adherence
to the principles of the United Nations Charter.
In 1995, the ASEAN Heads of State and
Government re-affirmed that “Cooperative peace and shared prosperity shall be
the fundamental goals of ASEAN.
Over the last three decades the World has changed
dramatically. Political and economic groupings were a matter of convenience to
come together so that, jointly, the smaller nations could get a share of voice
in the World. In the process, these nations would also be able to talk about
preferred trading terms with one another which has not really been successful.
The question we need to ask is whether the
objectives of SAARC are still valid, given the significant change in the
economic performance of its member countries coupled with the political changes
in the member states. Pakistan, a large nation from the perspective of its
population, has serious political differences with its two immediate neighbours
Afghanistan and India.
From the very minimalistic trade data available
on http://www.saarcstat.org (which itself shows
how irrelevant SAARC is in the mind of its member states) Pakistan’s last data
seems to have been sent in 2012 while India is updated till 2014 and Sri Lanka
has sent its data for 6 months of 2016. The trade data, available clearly shows
how irrelevant intra SAARC trade is to most of its member nations. Most of the
SAARC nations have become enamoured with big brother China and have therefore
started opening up their doors to trade, investment and the right of passage
for Chinese goods (as is evidenced from the Karakoram highway).
Pakistan has always preferred to identify
itself with the Middle Eastern nations while retaining a position in SAARC. Economically,
it does very little and politically, it is increasingly becoming a pariah
nation and is possibly pulling back the other nations. The cancellation of the
2016 SAARC summit to be held in Pakistan is another indication of the growing
irrelevance of the organisation amongst its member nations.
The unfortunate fact is that the situation in
Pakistan is not likely to change – it is more likely to deteriorate further
till the citizens go through a catharsis and demand a paradigm change in the
manner in which their political and military masters have managed their nation
and provided for them.
At the same time, the countries around the Bay
of Bengal and the edge of the Indian Ocean near East and South of India include
Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia are
proving to be a major market for products from the region. Politically and
economically, all SAARC nations are wooing nations from ASEAN and therefore
embracing new and more vibrant members with lesser political agendas will
benefit SAARC nations.
The time has now come to examine the relevance
of SAARC for India and to study whether we need invite more nations into SAARC or
if it is believed that we do need a platform, why we should think of new
economic groupings that would increase trade and commerce.
*******************
The author is the founder Chairman of Guardian Pharmacies
and the author of the best-selling books, Reboot. Reinvent. Rewire: Managing
Retirement in the 21st Century; The Corner Office; An Eye for an Eye and The
Buck Stops Here - Learnings of a #Startup Entrepreneur.
Twitter: @gargashutosh
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Blog: ashutoshgargin.wordpress.com |
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