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Saarc Charter requires revisions

Conference told

Diplomatic Correspondent
An international conference yesterday opined that the Saarc Charter, which was formulated 26 years ago in a different climate, should be revised to address the present aspirations of the member states.
The two-day international conference on “Challenges and Opportunities of Twenty First Century Saarc”, which concluded yesterday with a set of recommendations, said Saarc should function as a facilitator in resolving the bilateral issues in the region.
But the Saarc Charter leaves no
scope to take any bilateral issue to the forum.
Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BUSS) organised the conference.
Foreign Minister Dipu Moni said that 26 years ago Saarc had bee slow at times but it had now made steady progress. “We need to cooperate with each other more than ever before as the cost of noncooperation is too high”.
The foreign minister also listed some achievements like shortening of negative list of export items by the member states, formation of Saarc Development Fund, and establish-
ment of South Asian University and South Asia Forum.
The conference in one of its recommendations says a legal mechanism like the European Court of Justice could be a desirable institution in Saarc to resolve the problems of the member states.
It further said necessary efforts should be taken to build social and economic capital which would ensure the security of the peoples in the region, and it called for formulating the South Asian Economic Union.
According to Foreign Minister Dipu Moni, ultimate objective of Saarc was to have South Asia
Economic Union, but there were miles to go.
The conference says regional cooperation could be instrumental in improving through water management, disaster management, climate and environmental resource management, and energy security.
Presided over by BUSS Director General Maj Gen Imrul Quayes, the concluding session was addressed, among others, by Dr Shanthie Mariet Dsouza of National University of Singapore, Director General at Myanmar Foreign Ministry Yin Yin Myin, and BUSS Research Director Col AKM Nazrul Islam.