The recent elections in Britain, France and India are a reminder of the power of the people – and also of the importance of regional cooperation.
The Indian elections were the third electoral exercise in South Asia this year, after Bangladesh in January and Pakistan in February. Sri Lanka is also required to hold presidential elections before October.
The governments may choose to be isolationist, or follow the will of foreign powers, or cooperate and collaborate with neighbouring nations. Can and will South Asia’s regimes cooperate to promote regional peace, prosperity and progress as they have done in previous decades, such as during the 1950s, 1980s and 2000s?
Such collaboration is essential for the sake of the peoples of the region.
Colombo conference
The trajectory of South Asian regional cooperation began soon after World War Two. The newly independent nations in the region – Sri Lanka (then Ceylon), India and Pakistan (including then East Pakistan) – together with Indonesia and then Burma (now Myanmar) held a conference in Colombo, from April 28 to May 2, 1954. This initial attempt 70 years ago at addressing regional issues and promoting cooperation did not lead to a formal alliance, but it prepared the ground for the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) of the 1960s.
That endeavour to preserve independence and neutrality during the Cold War years led to later diplomatic engagements in the region based on common concerns and interests. The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), established in 1967, showed the importance of regional groupings.
However, it took almost 20 years for the idea to be implemented in South Asia, with the formation of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) in 1985.
Between the mid-1950s and mid-1970s, common post-colonial challenges around socio-economic issues pushed India and Pakistan, the region’s two largest countries, into aligning directly or indirectly with a Cold War superpower. Pakistan joined the US-backed Central Treaty Organization (CENTO) and the South East Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO).
India remained a member of NAM but began to show more support for the USSR. This relationship was formalised with the 1971 Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation.
In the late 1970s, Indira Gandhi declared an ‘Emergency’ in India. Pakistan and Bangladesh had military coups. However, their regional policies had promise. Pakistan joined NAM in 1979. India gradually returned to its initial stance of not allying with any superpower. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and other regional countries continued with inter-State dialogue.
Why SAARC?
For almost 40 years, SAARC, especially through its summits, has been crucial in bringing together countries of the region for policy initiatives and dialogue.
Dialogue between leaders of India and Pakistan during these summits have been crucial in fostering regional cooperation.
At the fourth SAARC summit in Islamabad between December 29 and 31, 1988, an informal meeting between the prime ministers of India and Pakistan set the tone for the conference. Both leaders recognised the importance of promoting interpersonal relationships among their peoples, and agreed to a special travel document for prominent citizens, exempting them from requiring visas. The SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme was officially launched in 1992.
Table: Sapan News.
The summit also agreed on the need to allow exchange schemes among researchers and academics. This led to an increase in people-to-people initiatives among both countries.
The bonhomie was short-lived. In May 1998, India and Pakistan tested nuclear weapons, leading to hostility.
It was at a private meeting on the sidelines of the SAARC summit that their prime ministers engaged in person for the first time since the tests, in Colombo between July 29 and 31, 1998.
However, tensions rose again the following year with the Kargil ‘war-like situation’. The 11th SAARC summit was delayed by nearly four years. When it finally took place in Kathmandu in 2002, the famous handshake between the Pakistani president and India’s prime minister helped restart dialogue between the two nations.
Despite the numerous projects and initiatives that emerged from SAARC meetings, tensions between India and Pakistan have periodically negatively impacted regional cooperation and SAARC-related activities.
For example, in 2016, India accused Pakistan of perpetrating the Uri attack, which claimed the lives of several Indian soldiers. India refused to attend the SAARC summit in Islamabad that year. Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Afghanistan also later pulled out, citing security concerns.
During the 2000s, SAARC made significant strides in regional cooperation across ideological divides. The South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) increased intra-regional trade by 22% annually from 2003 to 2008. The SAARC Disaster Management Centre enhanced disaster response, notably during the 2004 tsunami. The SAARC Development Goals helped improve health, education and poverty reduction.
This November will mark a decade since the last SAARC summit was held in November 2014.