SAARC has come and SAARC has gone. A few rabid dogs got the injection. A few posters got removed. A hell of a lot of people got inconvenienced. But will SAARC bring any benefits to South Asia in general and Sri Lanka in particular? For the past 23 years the summit has just been a case of round talks and a hearty meal afterwards. There haven’t been any significant impacts made by SAARC in relevance to improving a billion lives. SAFTA has been a total no-show and has become the laughing stock of progressive regional blocs such as the EU.
2.8 billion bucks were spent to hold the summit in Sri Lanka and most of that was channeled towards security. In my opinion I thought that the LTTE wouldn’t dare attack any of the delegates as they had too much to lose specially in the eyes of the international community. India most certainly would not tolerate another of it’s premiers beeing attacked or killed in Sri Lanka. Pakistan would’ve invaded the north if something had happened to Gilani.
So the question remains……..did SAARC XV usher in a new ‘partnership for the people’? Or was it just another slice of government propaganda?
