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Manmohan visit not a failure but a disappointment

Ashfaqur Rahman
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It is said that the best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up. We need to just do this now.
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SO the jamboree is over. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh left Dhaka yesterday after an eventful two-day stay. His footprints have left a mark on the future of Bangladesh-India bilateral relations.
Earlier, there were lots of expec-
tations in Bangladesh. But when the Indian prime minister opened his gift hamper on the first day of his visit, there was a big surprise. Only one agreement and nine deals were to be signed, instead of several agreements.
First, where was the trumpeted temporary agreement on sharing the water of the Teesta and Feni rivers? Then, where was the MOU on liberalisation of trade
under the Bilateral Trade Agreement? And also, where was the agreement on joint investment in electricity generation in Bagerhat? Did we hear wrong or we were just led up the garden path?
On the second day of his stay here, the Indian prime minister addressed the students, faculty and distinguished guests of the Dhaka University on the prospects of future relations between India and Bangladesh as well as among countries in South Asia.
Then he left to meet the leader of the main opposition of Bangladesh. In between and later, there were visits to the National Martyrs Memorial, to the house of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as well as a courtesy call on the Bangladesh president.
The prime minister was accompanied by four chief ministers of the neighbouring Indian states of Assam, Tripura, Mizoram and Meghalaya. The Paschimbanga chief minister was missing. Affectionately known as Didi (sister) by the people of her state, Mamata Banerjee decided at the last minute not to accompany the prime minister to Dhaka. She was reportedly registering her protest with her union government at Delhi that the temporary agreement to be signed for sharing the waters of the Teesta river was inequitable and therefore was politically unacceptable.
This was quite in keeping with Mamta's nature and did not come as surprise to many. She is a political animal and she could not behave otherwise. More so,
Manmohan knows how powerful she is within his political coalition. But it was definitely disappointing for us. The deal, even if it prima facie looked inequitable to her, was not as fraught with as much political and personal risk as the Bangladesh prime minister took last year to ensure the security of Indians against insurgents in North East Indian states. Didi, you could have done better!
Thus, there was initially euphoria here. It was thought that this visit was another turning point in our upward swing of relations with India. But it was a disappointment on several counts.
Water is a matter of
major concern to Bangladesh. It is a natural resource that we have to unfortunately share with India. We thought that if we conceded willingly to deny any sanctuary to the Indian insurgents from North East India, she would indeed look to our needs here. But it seems petty political points, including the one on not being consulted on the final draft of the share, were being scored by Mamata Banerjee by denying Bangladesh her rightful share of the Teesta. So no agreement could be inked. We wonder how we will negotiate with India the sharing of the waters of all the 54 common rivers?
The signing of documents to reverse adverse possessions of land by either side, the exchange of enclaves as well as demarcation of the remaining boundary meant implementing what generally was agreed between the two countries under the Indira-Mujib Agreement, way back in 1974. However, signing of these papers during the visit would now mean return to normal life for thousands residing along this fault-line of distrust. However, the taste of the pudding will be in the speedy implementation of what has been agreed to.
The Comprehensive Framework Agreement on Cooperation is something new that has been introduced in our bilateral relations. This was the only Agreement signed. We need to study it closely. If, like the previous 25-year Friendship Treaty, it brings together elements that would try to subsume national interest under a broad rubric of co-operation, then we are to be tardy. We are told that Bangladesh has initiated this document. Is it our government's intention to call forth this umbrella agreement whenever contentious matters like transit etc are requested by our neighbour? Quite ingenious though, keeping an eye out for elections here in 2014.
But now that the Mamata drama has allowed us to withdraw from exchanging letters which would have allowed India the use the Chittagong and Mongla ports, we need to contemplate how we should use the transit card to our benefit in future. Perhaps our government has at last realised that access
to these two ports was a major bargaining chip which can after all be used in the diplomatic game with India. The civil society and others had insisted on their use for a long time now.
The remaining understandings which we can euphemistically call deals were on protection of the Sundarb an forest, exchange of government TV channel programmes, cooperation between two premier universities — Dhaka University and Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi.
Three other deals, the one on the biodiversity of Sundarbans, cooperation on renewable energy and cooperation in fisheries between the two countries should not have occasioned the visit of Indian prime minister. They could have been done at the level of joint secretaries of both the countries.
However, it is to the credit of our government that it had tried its level best to improve relations between the two countries and to see that the interest of Bangladesh is protected as much as it could be.
But, with people in our government hierarchy having little experience of dealing with India, it is no wonder that our leaders were not forewarned of the silly reason why the most important Teesta agreement of the visit was scuttled. Why did our High Commission in Delhi fail to keep our government informed of the last minute developments? And how is it that the prime minister's advisors dealing with the matter did not get a sense of what is likely to happen and inform her? It was she who handled the matter admirably till the end.
The fact that the opposition parties in Bangladesh, the media and the civil society played a seminal role in debating the issues and disseminating them to the public before the visit was important. It kept the government in cinch in the absence of any debate within our Parliament.
Now the tasks before both the governments are many.
The temporary loss of face of the Indian government due to the antics of Mamata has to redeemed. India must seriously work with Bangladesh to settle the issue of Teesta and Feni waters as soon as possible. It must start negotiations for joint river management of the remaining rivers.
We must look into building adequate physical and other infrastructure for ensuring connectivity, not only to India but to our other neighbours like Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and even China. We must revisit transit to ensure that Bangladesh becomes the sub-regional hub of connectivity.
Let India now do its homework to liberalise its trade with Bangladesh. Giving 45 more items duty free entry, as announced during this visit, is not going to remarkably boost our exports to India. We need to eliminate all the non-tariff barriers at the earliest to make this happen. India should be seen to be proactive here.
Prime Minister Manmohan is welcome again to Bangladesh. But our leaders may also venture to India soon, to realise the hopes our people lost this time. It is now time for India to start acting like a regional power which they are wont to be, and not stand on the Mamata syndrome. It should be able to give and give generously to her smaller neighbours. In return, India may get what she bargains for. The world, including the USA, is keenly watching India and to see whether she has the qualities to become a leader in Asia. China is also watching.
It is said that the best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up. We need to just do this now.
The report card, however, is: The Manmohan visit was definitely not a failure but a disappointment.
The writer Is a former Ambassador and Chairman, Centre for Foreign Affairs Studies. E-mail: ashfaq303@hotmail.com