news details |
|
|
| Sinha for wiping out political bitterness, calls for regional cooperation | | | Early Times Reporter
Jammu | May 28
Governor Lt. General (Retd) S K Sinha today stressed the need for regional cooperation mainly between India and Pakistan, saying this can help to wipe out political bitterness of the past.
Delivering his presidential address at the 3-day International seminar on Regional Economic Integration among South East Asian Countries in the convocation complex of Kashmir University here this morning, the Governor referred to the avowed objective of SAARC and said 'we must strive for an economic union in South Asia on the pattern of European Union'.
The General said that the concept of nation states emerged in Europe but now the boundaries of nation states are melting under pressure of supra-national economic requirements. He referred to the European Union and asked if France and Germany could become its close allies after fighting wars for hundreds of years why India and Pakistan cannot join hands and fight the common enemies of ignorance, poverty and disease. "There lies the salvation for the region as a whole and for our State of Jammu and Kashmir in particular', he added.
The Governor said that on the pattern of European Union, economic groupings have taken place in North America and ASEAN. Similarly, in South Asia there is SAARC and SAFTA for removing trade barriers', he said adding, however, that there are special features that have to be taken into account in formation of South Asian Economic Union.
Sinha said that in the past six decades, India and Pakistan have fought several wars and militancy is rampant in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. In Kashmir people say that boundaries in 1947 were unfairly drawn by the British in Gurdaspur area for political reasons and similarly in the North East it is said that the British drew the boundary unfairly by excluding Chakmas of Chittagong Hill District from North East India and denying that region the port of Chittagong. "Today the need of the hour is to make these boundaries irrelevant", he stressed.
Underlying the importance of economic cooperation, the Governor said that it has always played an important role in the life of man. Its political significance can be gauged from the fact that it was economics that propelled the establishment of the biggest empire known to history, he said and referred to East India Company, which demonstrated the flag following trade. He said with industrial revolution, the world entered an age of mass production and mass consumption. Concurrently feudal era gave way to modern era with democratic states emerging all over the world. Against this historical background and with current scientific and technical explosions, management of economic relations between countries and management of economy with a country have become very important. He said the diplomats around the world are presently engaged more in managing economic relations than political relations. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
