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SAARC leaders agree to unitedly fight terror

2005-11-12 Dhaka: Coming together in a delayed Summit, leaders of SAARC countries today agreed on a united effort to combat terrorism with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asserting that there should be "zero tolerance" for cross-border terror.

He also sought bold steps for promotion of regional economic cooperation, poverty alleviation and energy security. Addressing the 13th SAARC Summit being held under unprecedented security, Singh outlined a new vision with far-reaching proposals for stepping up economic cooperation, enhanced air connectivity and establishing a regional mechanism for disaster relief and management.

"There should be zero tolerance for cross-border terrorism and for harbouring of hostile insurgent groups and criminal elements," he told leaders from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Bengum Khaleda Zia, who took over as the new Chairperson of SAARC, said countries in South Asia were all united on combating terrorism.

She noted that four countries including Bangladesh have ratified the Additional Protocol to the SAARC Regional Convention on Counter-terrorism to deal effectively with the financing of terrorism and hoped the remaining three countries would expedite their ratification so that it could enter into force by the end of this year.

Significantly, Pakistan did not rake up the Kashmir issue the way it used to do in any international fora but instead gave a positive perception of the current Indo-Pak thaw.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, said the Summit was taking place under "propitious circumstances as we are witnessing a new hope across our ancient sub-continent". He said since the Islamabad Summit last year, the "political atmosphere" between India and Pakistan had "improved" and that both countries were engaged in a peace process to resolve all issues including that of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Success of the process augurs well for the region and SAARC", he said. Stressing that Pakistan was a strong advocate of energy cooperation in South Asia, he said the prospective Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline would be an outstanding example of regional cooperation.

Observing that terrorism has emerged as a serious threat to international peace, security, stability and democracy, Nepal's King Gyanendra warned that the scourge affecting the Kingdom was certain to affect the whole of South Asia.

The King, who is confronted with the serious problem of Maoist insurgency, said "the agents of terror are bent on overthrowing a constitutional order and replacing it with a rejected ideology of a one-party communist dictatorship".

He said the global war on terrorism had failed to reach every nook and corner of the world, especially in weak and vulnerable countries, as if they do not deserve justice and protection from the scourge. "It is this double standard and selective approach that is assuming a dangerous character rather than terrorism itself," he contended.

Reminding the leaders of the unspeakable misery wrought by natural disasters like tsunami and earthquakes, Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga, pressed for enhanced regional cooperation in terms of awareness, early warning, emergency relief and long-term rehabilitation to complement the national efforts.