Pakistan’s President urges SAARC parliamentarians to play active role for better ties
Posted On November 6, 2012
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 President Asif Ali Zardari has urged the parliamentarians from the SAARC countries to play their proactive role in forging better bilateral relations and addressing inter-state issues to ensure peace, progress and prosperity in the region. Addressing the inaugural ceremony of three-day sixth conference of the Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians here at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Sunday, the President said that the region should adopt a collective approach to face the common challenges and explore the opportunities for the benefit of the people.
He said that the SAARC parliaments should plan and lead efforts for solving complex issues by protecting political liberties, human freedoms and the rule of law to promote regional peace and security.
The President said that Pakistan was committed to the SAARC Charter and believed that durable peace in the region was in the interest of all. He urged the regional countries to join hands to fight the menace of extremism and terrorism. No country had suffered so much from it as Pakistan. “We have lost more than 40,000 innocent lives in addition to Rs.80 billion in economic terms.” He said that there was a need to address the issue of illegal drug trafficking, which was serving as a financial source for militancy. Emphasizing upon greater people-to-people contacts between the regional countries, the President said that dialogue among the SAARC parliamentarians would have a long lasting and positive impact on the situation in the region and help achieve the ideals of peace and stability. He pointed out that the SAARC had a population of 1.6 billion and the SAARC parliaments should come up with a strategy to ensure food security for the region.
Referring to democratic transition in South Asia, the President said that democracy was a prerequisite for economic development and political stability. Strong parliaments play a crucial role in ushering in reforms and ensuring efficiency andtransparency of the governing structures, he added. He said that the government in Pakistan had taken bold decisions to empower the Parliament. A democratically elected government was nearing the completion of its term and soon Pakistan would achieve a peaceful democratic transition. “We are well on our way to realizing democracy’s dividends,” he added. The President said that some people might feel that the Parliament was still under assault from some quarters, but these were the teething troubles of a genuine democratic transition. These are the dying kicks of an old order, he added. He said that the South Asia of today had undergone a democratic transformation. The Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians is a vital instrument for promoting contacts between the peoples of the region, he added. He said that the Association of SAARC Parliaments had a great potential. By building consensus the SAARC parliamentarians could lay the basis for solid cooperation among the member states. He said that the changing political and economic landscape had enhanced the role of the SAARC parliaments. He said that the SAARC parliaments were now well placed to plan and lead efforts for solving complex issues besetting the region. The President said that the SAARC parliaments could help sensitise public opinion for the achievement of the common goals. He said that heroine was developed by the international community as a war weapon against the rival ideology in the region. The weapon of war had still not been dismantled. “Together we must dismantle this war weapon. Pakistan seeks support of SAARC countries against illegal drugs and in the fight against terrorism and militancy.” President Zardari said that the SAARC parliaments had to come up with a well thought-out strategy to ensure food security for the region. There are serious challenges in the way but there are also great opportunities and together “we need to face the common challenges”, he added. He said that there was a need to adopt a collective approach through positive actions by the parliaments to achieve the targets. He said that the cultural affinity among the peoples was a huge asset and shared geography and history were real assets. The President, while quoting from a speech of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, said that she also emphasized for better cooperation among the members of the SAARC. Benazir Bhutto while addressing a conference in India a few months before her assassination five years ago, said, “Time stands still for no one. The moving finger of history writes and having written, moves on. We have a choice. The choice is ours to write a success story of free markets, liberty, human rights, gender equality, common values of tolerance and understanding”, he added.
He said that it was the responsibility of the parliamentarians of the region to realize the choice as mentioned by Benazir Bhutto.President Zardari said that by protecting political liberties, human freedoms and the rule of law the parliaments could promote regional peace and security. He said that Pakistan strongly believed in the promise of multilateralism. States can achieve more together than they can individually, he added. The President said,”More we cooperate the more the space for unilateral action is reduced” and added that cooperation did not mean uniformity or conformity. He said that the cooperation among the SAARC member states signified harmony, tolerance and respect for diversity. “We have tried it in our domestic politics and found it holding great promise. We believe it also holds great promise in inter-state relations,” said the President. Earlier, Speaker of the National Assembly and Chairperson of 6th Conference of the Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians Dr. Fehmida Mirza, in her welcome address, said that parliaments, which were voices of the people, were most important forum to exchange views and discuss the regional issues. She said that Pakistan had a strong democratic system and appreciated the decision of President Asif Ali Zardari for surrendering his powers voluntarily to the Parliament. She said that the SAARC, which represented 20 percent population of the world, had great potential to further enhance and promote relations among the member states, Dr. Fehmida Mirza said unity and close cooperation among the SAARC members would further make the voice of the region stronger at the international forum. Referring to many challenges like poverty, hunger and education, being faced by the SAARC member countries, the NA Speaker said that with better cooperation and interaction, the region could easily over power these challenges. She said that the parliaments, being the sole representatives of the people of the region, could provide guidelines to face the challenges and promote progress and prosperity in the region. The Speaker appreciated the efforts of the members of the SAARC parliaments to convene first ever meeting of the women parliamentarians here at Islamabad on Sunday, which she hoped, would further improve the contacts between the SAARC members. Indian Lok Sabha Speaker Ms Meira Kumar, addressing on the occasion, said that being representatives of the people, the parliamentarians should play their proactive role to meet expectations of the people. She said increased interaction among the SAARC member countries would help learn from each others’ experiences and find solutions of daunting challenges. She said, “We need to protect and uphold the democratic institutions” and hoped that the conference would come up with concrete suggestions for the protection of parliamentary democracy in the region. Ms Meira Kumar appreciated the steps taken by President Asif Ali Zardari for the promotion of democracy in the country. Bangladesh Speaker Abdul Wahid, in his remarks, said that democracy was a prerequisite for peace and development in the region. The current session of the association will go a long way in further strengthening democracy in the region, she added. Speaker of Bhutan Lyonpo Jigme Tshultim said that the three-day deliberations would provide an excellent opportunity to the member countries to share their success stories and knowledge about the parliamentary democracy. Speaker of Maldives Abdullah Shahid said that democracy needed to be strengthened to address problems of the people. Cooperation among the SAARC member countries is imperative to address the economic as well as other challenges, he added. Deputy Speaker of Sri Lanka Chandima Weerakkody emphasized the need for empowerment of youth and women to achieve the true dividends of democracy. Earlier, Speakers of the SAARC countries held a meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari and discussed ways and means to further enhance people-to-people contacts among the regional countries. The inaugural ceremony of 6th Conference of Speakers and Parliamentarians of SAARC was also attended by the members of the parliament, federal ministers, diplomats, senior government officials and all members of the delegations of the conference. The President also hosted a reception for the participants. On this occasion he mixed up with them and exchanged views on various matters. |
