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South Asian Parliamentarians' Initiative For Regional Cooperation And Peace

Panna Lal Chowdhury - 6/6/2005

Parliamentarians representing all the major political parties in South Asia met in a conference in the Pakistan capital of Islamabad. The conference had eight sessions from May 16 to 20 on various topics, including economic cooperation, water issues and energy grid, a South Asian human rights code, and right to know and independence of media. There was also suggestion to initiate steps for regional parliamentary union for South Asia.

The conference was attended by the Members of Parliament (MPs) from about 30 ruling and opposition parties from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

A delegation of former MPs from four parties of the strife- torn Nepal refused to travel to Pakistan in protest after one of their colleagues was reportedly arrested before he could board a plane for Pakistan at Kathmandu airport. One parliamentarian from Indian administered Kashmir, Abdul Rashid Shaheen of the Kashmir National Conference was in the Indian delegation of more than 30 MPs.

Pakistan National Assembly speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain was the chief guest at the inaugural meeting. The National Assembly speaker said the idea of forming a South Asian parliament was good but "premature at this stage". He stressed the need for solid foundations to build a durable and lasting edifice. Mr. Hussain informed the conference that, he would host the next meeting of SAARC (South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation) parliamentary speakers in Islamabad.

The Indian Congress party's Lok Sabha member Nikhil Kumar called for more people-to-people contacts in the region. Indian Bharatiya Janata Party's Rajya Sabha member Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, speaking in Urdu, congratulated both President Pervez Musharraf and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for sticking to the "difficult" peace process

Opposition leader in the Pakistan National Assembly Maulana Fazlur Rehman said though a South Asian parliament did not appear to be near, yet owing to "many difficulties", the Saarc countries should identify their common interests and ways to achieve them.

The Parliamentarians from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka also expressed similar views in respect of South Asian regional cooperation and commonality of interest of the countries of the region.

South Asian parliamentarians attending the conference voiced general agreement over the view that their region could become a leading economic power if correct paths were followed by the countries forming one-third of the world's population.

The discussion on the first working session of a six-day conference was hosted by an organization of South Asian journalists. The session was centered on a paper presented by Pakistani economist Dr Akmal Hussain, who said that South Asian countries could form the world's second-largest economic power after China in about two decades-if they developed an integrated economy.

A senior Indian parliamentarian, Nilotpal Basu of the Communist Party of India-Marxist, presided over the sessions devoted to the topic of "South Asian Vision"

Dr Akmal said if the present gross domestic product (GDP) growth trends in China, the United States and India continued for the next two decades, China could become the world's largest economy in the world with the United States relegated to the second position and India being the third largest.

"However, if South Asian countries develop an integrated economy, then South Asia can become the second largest economy in the world after China," he said. "Given the geographic proximity and economic complementarities between South Asia on the one hand and China on the other, this region could become the greatest economic powerhouse in human history," the economist said.

But he pointed out that if South Asia were to play a leadership role in the new world taking shape, "then it must take specific initiatives within a new policy paradigm for pursuing peace, overcoming poverty and protecting the life support systems of the planet".

This, he said, would require the region's governments to "move out of a mindset that regards an adversarial relationship with a neighboring country as the emblem of patriotism, affluence of the few at the expense of the many as the hallmark of development, individual greed as the basis of public action, and mutual deionization as the basis of inter-state relations".

On Friday May 20, 2005 the Parliamentarians issued a declaration encapsulating the agreed vision for bringing a new era of South Asian partnership.

The Declaration known as "Bhurban Declaration", issued at the end of a five-day meeting organized by the South Asia Free Media Association (Safma) on "South Asian Parliament: Evolving South Asian Fraternity," chartered a futuristic course of action for regional cooperation on ten different issues encompassing all facets of human development and security in the context of peaceful co-existence.

Following are the salient abridged features of the Bhurban Declaration:

*The military muscle of a state or region will not be an emblem of status but its contribution to meeting the challenge of peace, overcoming global poverty, protecting the planet from environmental disaster and contributing to humanizing the world and advancement of its people.

*Three broad areas for deepening economic cooperation can be identified for the purposes of specific policy action, including energy cooperation and water management and conservation within South Asia; increased investment for economic growth, especially in physical and social infrastructures; restructuring growth for faster poverty eradication and human resource development.

*State and security centered approaches inconsistent with the interests of the South Asian people will have to give way to holistic approach for collective good of the region.

*The intrastate conflicts and interstate disputes must move from management of resolution in a result-oriented process. The lines of conflict must change into bridges of friendship and the fenced borders must gradually soften before the urge of South Asians to become a fraternal and indivisible community of people with nation states, while keeping their sovereign equality but submitting before the will of their real sovereigns - The People.

*Sequential steps should be taken in realistic stages towards South Asian Free trade Area, South Asian Union (Tourism/Environment/Water/Energy/Communication/Information/Economic), South Asian Tariffs and Custom Union, South Asian Monetary Union, South Asian Bank and Development Fund, South Asian Collective Security and South Asian Parliament.

*India and Pakistan should put in place a comprehensive regime of Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) that will ensure a nuclear tension free subcontinent.

*Appeal to all countries in the region to put in place comprehensive sustainable dialogue mechanism for resolving all bilateral disputes.

The Saarc parliamentarians identified 11 broad goals and agenda items to collectively face the challenges posed by globalization and to meet the demands of the WTO regime through measures, including South Asian Free Trade Area; South Asian Customs, Tariffs Union and Monetary Union; Water Sharing and Management; South Asian Energy Grid; South Asian Development Bank; Addressing LDC's concerns; South Asian Cooperative Security; South Asian Human Security; South Asian Parliament; South Asian Human Rights Code; People to people contacts; South Asian Information Society; Culture and Tourism.

Following are the broad dimensions of the agenda and goals:

South Asian Free Trade Area: If South Asia's economies are to be integrated, it presupposes development of trans-national communication networks and physical infrastructure and monetary cooperation involving greater coordination among the governments and the central banks. Trade and investment will not move ahead unless tariffs are lowered, the negative-list kept to most minimum, non-tariff barriers removed and standards harmonized. Streamlining border transactions through trade facilitation at sub-regional junctions, special attention needs to be focused on promoting border trade.

South Asian Customs, Tariffs Union and Monetary Union: Realization of a South Asian Customs and Tariffs Union which may lead to a common exchange rate policy that will, eventually, necessitate the creation of a South Asian Monetary Union underwritten by macro-economic management and harmonization of trade, fiscal and monetary policies at the regional level. For promotion of trade, the countries will have to facilitate cross-border movement of people and goods with emphasis on simplification of visa and customs facilities.

Water Sharing and Management: The distribution and management of water resources need to be undertaken amicably without depriving the lower and upper riparian regions of their due to avoid a conflict over water issues which must not be politicized.

South Asian Energy Grid: The energy cooperation should evolve into a South Asian Energy Grid with integrated electricity and gas systems. As India and Pakistan now agree, the gas and oil pipelines can run from Central Asia, Gulf, Iran and Myanmar through Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh to whole of South Asia and beyond.

South Asian Development Bank: Shares of both national and regional companies would be quoted on our stock exchanges as capital moves without hindrance across national boundaries to underwrite investment in joint ventures and projects in any part of our region through a South Asian Development Bank.

Addressing LDC's concerns: The concerns of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) should be genuinely addressed; minimize the negative list; substantial reduction in tariffs and lifting of non-tariff and para tariff barriers and gradual opening of economies with strict adherence to timeframe envisaged in Safta agreement.

South Asian Cooperative Society: Overcome obsession with over-demanding militaristic security paradigms and look beyond the traditional notions of security and focus on an integrated South Asian Cooperative Society that recognizes interdependence and mutuality of interests.

South Asian Human Security: Beyond cooperative security, South Asian nations must ultimately move towards South Asian Human Security by placing people and their wellbeing and rights to peaceful life and development at the centre of security concerns rather than intensifying the arms race.

South Asian Parliament: Initiate a process of moving towards the creation of an interactive mechanism for parliamentarians of South Asia, keeping in mind the concept of a South Asian Parliament (SAP). To begin with, SAP may initially be set up as a deliberative and consultative body, so as to create regional opinion and build regional pressures on issues pending implementation at the Saarc level.

South Asia Human Rights Code: It is imperative for the South Asian countries to agree to and set up institutions under the Paris Principles and purposefully set about creating the required mechanisms to implement all internationally recognized fundamental human, civil and democratic rights.

People to people contacts: All-country visas may be granted at separate South Asian counters on arrival at the airports and on all border crossings.

South Asian Information Society: It is essential that all restrictions on access to and free flow of information are removed forthwith and media persons and products allowed free movement across frontiers. Given the rising numbers of South Asian Cyber citizenry, there is an urgent need to upgrade, integrate and facilitate cyber connectivity and accessibility.

Culture and Tourism: At the level of Saarc, measures should be taken to promote cultural exchanges, tourism, health and education services and research in all fields.

Nepal: The conference expressed its serious concern over the arrest of a former Nepalese member of parliament, while he was about to board a plane to Pakistan to attend the conference. Protesting his arrest, other parliamentarians from Nepal also decided to stay back.

It was indeed a friendly and creative environment for all the parliamentarians joining the conference in Islamabad. The MPs from the neighboring countries visiting the Murree Hills would remember very much the Pakistani friendship and hospitality enjoyed by them. Let us expect success for the unique initiative of the South Asian parliamentarians. With a new vision of South Asian Fraternity, the environment of peace, friendship and regional cooperation in South Asia will continue to boost during the coming days.