SARC, But No "SHARK": South Asian Regional Cooperation in Perspective

IN MAY 1980 the Bangladesh president, Ziaur Rahman, proposed a South Asian summit of the seven South Asian states-Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka-to organize a regional forum. They accepted such a forum-South Asian Regional Cooperation-quickly, despite the initial reservations of India and Pakistan. However, both these countries agreed to attend the meeting of the foreign secretaries in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in April 1981. Thus, countries with varying regime features, strategic perceptions, motivations and, above all, at different stages of economic development, decided to join a forum whose overall objectives and modus operandi were unexplained. The South Asian Regional Cooperation (popularly known as SARC) scheme was formally launched in August 1983 by the first joint meeting of the foreign ministers of the seven South Asian states. Preparations for it had been made by five meetings of their foreign secretaries, who identified certain areas of cooperation, taking pains to handle regional intricacies carefully. Indeed, South Asia is truly a paradox: trends of cooperation and conflict are identifiable at the same time. Knowing that the main South Asian states, India and Pakistan, are locked in conventional as well as emergent strategic conflicts, the foreign secretaries (particularly of the smaller states) were careful to select Colombo and Kathmandu as the venues for their first two meetings. Nine areas of cooperation were selected at these meetings, including two added in Kathmandu-agriculture, rural development, health and population, transport, scientific and technical cooperation, telecommunication and meteorology, postal services, sports, and arts and culture.' In addition, study groups were created in each country to examine in