The Political-Economy of the South Asian Economic Union

biggest reason pak should not trade with india is because of poor standards of hygiene in india. btw this also explains why so many indians live in chowk`s naali. cause they are born into one:

http://thestatesman.org/page.arcview.php?clid=23&id=126183&usrsess=1

No concern for hygiene

...The hospital that is supposed to cater to five lakh people from four Assembly constituencies is under scanner due to its never ending problems.

...Mr Sanjoy Chatterjee, who is from Bhadrapur in Nalhati, said: “Is this a hospital? Here urine from the toilets enter into the maternity ward. I have come to know that this is the normal condition of this hospital.” Not only Mr Chatterjee, many others have accused the hospital authorities for this miserable state.

,,,Used medical items can be seen spread here and there and patients of the maternity ward have to close their nose with clothes to avoid stinking smell.

Looks like Pakistan doesn`t want trade because it can`t compete...no wonder Pakistan hasn`t produced any company, like Infosys or reliance or tatas or wipro, that can hold it`s own in the world..

Inoperative Safta victim of sour ties

By Sabihuddin Ghausi

Apart from the strong lobby of super patriots from among the bureaucrats in Islamabad and Lahore, the stiff resistance to improvement in Pakistan-India trade and economic relationship mainly comes from merely half a dozen auto assemblers and the rich pharmaceutical industry.

Auto assemblers thrive on import of semi knocked down kit of two wheelers and four wheelers and are making for last many years billions in profit simply on premium money and fear import of better quality at low priced Indian automobiles will deprive them of easy money. Indian pharmaceutical industry is mostly based on local raw material is said to be substantially cheaper than that Pakistan’s which is more a packaging industry as it depends to a great extent on imports.

Excluding these two powerful segments of business, a large number of traders and industrialists in Pakistan look forward for a pick up in two way trade in days to come.

#53 by faisaluno on January 3, 2006 8:56am PT


pak has a free trade arrangement with the grand daddy of em all


Daddy wasn`t there...to change my underwear.. - Austin Powers

Trade liberalisation with China costs Pakistan dearly

BY JAVED MAHMOOD
LAHORE - Pakistan had sustained a record deficit of $1.488 billion in bilateral trade with China in last financial year, The Nation learnt on Monday.
In 2004-05, Pakistan’s exports to China amounted to $354 million while imports from the said friendly country expanded to 1.842 billion dollars, the highest-ever in a year since the beginning of bilateral trade between two nations.

ally #52

`` This cannot happen for a very long time, there isn`t enough trust and trade between the countries, many of them received independence from each other and are still not too keen on each other.

Also many of these countries are still trying to keep themselves together, let alone join another union!!! ``

Sri Lanka is a badly divided state. Nepal is in a civil war. Bangladesh has a tenous civil society.

India has unrest in Kashmir, North East.

Pakistan has a constant problem with military-civil relations.

It looks like there is more to clean internally.

jang #42

`` #39 as is indicated by the attitude in #41 ( throwing the spanner ), its clear that pakistan has a lot to offer. while pakistan may not be a huge benefit as a economic partner, it can definately be a huge spanner-thrower. so, i disagree that pakistan has nothing to offer to india. it is important that two larger states set an agenda of peaceful trade.

e.g. the benefits of NAFTA for US have been huge from the point of overall stability in the south. a poorer and unstable mexico is an impossible nightmare for US prosperity. overall, pakistan is relatively stable, and can be influencial in in ensuring stability in our neighborhood. in the minimum, its very important that it not fuel instability. ``

NAFTA has not solved the underlying problem of preventing Mexican illegal immigration to the USA. It might have been better than the alternative - no NAFTA. Mexicans have troubles competing against China in the US market.

pakistan`s exports are doing very well thank you very much. as for the future, pak has a free trade arrangement with the grand daddy of em all. pak businessmen now will have to prove their mettle if they want to survive.

http://www.thebusinessonline.com/DJStory.aspx?DJStoryID=20051215DN002118

Pakistan Nov Exports Up 23.25% On Year At $1.12 Billion-2

In the first five months of the current fiscal year that began July 1, exports totaled $6.626 billion, up 22.90% from $5.391 billion in the same period last year.

http://en.chinabroadcast.cn/855/2006/01/02/262@40377.htm

KARACHI- Bilateral trade between Pakistan and China has surged 44 per cent year-on-year to hit US$3.4 billion in the first 10 months of 2005.
According to a press statement issued here on December 29, Pakistan and China are set to launch free trade regime under the Early Harvest Programme (EHP) from January 1, 2006

This cannot happen for a very long time, there isn`t enough trust and trade between the countries, many of them received independence from each other and are still not too keen on each other.

Also many of these countries are still trying to keep themselves together, let alone join another union!!!

faisaluno #41

`` saarc in its present form is a non-starter and pak sarkar wisely has thrown a spanner in the works by inviting china to be a member. off course india is opposed to participation by china and will block its entry thereby insuring a stalemate in saarc - an outcome that would have made jinnah perfectly happy.

also pak has made good economic progress over the last few years and futher domestic reform and free trade with china will will make saarc irrelevant for pak in a few years. ``

India is large enough to be on its own. Pakistan needs a larger trading bloc to survive.
What do you think Pakistanis are going to sell to the rest of the world - textiles or software or labor ? You have serious rivals in all these sectors.

HP #20


`` The writer of the Article has done lots of research and put in some hard work in writing and presenting his ideas together and the chowk staff should at least respect article contributors and honor them for offering their articles for publishing at chowk by monitoring the interactions for relevancy and the substance. This article is not about politics. It is about some policy issues that were part of the SAARC declaration and all SAARC members have signed on it. The writer has made a serious effort to discuss some aspects of the SAARC declaration and the article deserves a serious look by all readers. ``

I meant no disrespect to the author.

`` The first and foremost factor that worked in favor of the EU was the similarity of culture in pretty much all Western Europe. The culture just does not mean the language or the dress code but the meeting of minds, the uniformity of goals and work ethics form a common culture. It was relatively easy for the Western European countries to work on Economic unity on a faster pace, still, they first relied on opening the borders for travel and assimilation of ideas thru a free movement of people to increase dependency on each other, then followed that up with economic integration that is not by any means complete and still a work in progress. ``

Same situation exists in South Asia.

`` We must also bear in mind that most of the EU countries were almost economic equals before they were able to go full steam in to the EU idea. ``

India is too big versus its neighbors. Also most of the neighbors have no land boundaries with each other. Look at the ASEAN. Indonesia is 40% of ASEAN by population. It has the largest area. But other ASEAN states have a geographic continuity that allows them to form an economic alliance should Indonesia refuse to join one. Such a siutation is absent in South Asia.

`` The first step is gradually reducing the travel restrictions. Let people meet and see for themselves whether the countries in SAARC actually share the culture, work ethics, and goals before forcing them into some economic union that is not able to allay fears between the people and the governments. ``

You have my vote on this.

Urstruly #21

`` There are three countries in SAARC or SAFTA that could form a true economic confederation surpassing US-Canada`s NAFTA or that of EU; these three countries are India, Bangladesh, and Nepal. ``

There is no reason why Pakistan could not form an economic confederation with India or at least expand economic ties with India.

`` Lets take India and Bangladesh first. The relationship between these two countries is one of unique ones in the world. Bangladesh won its freedom because of India. Indians saved them from an on-going genocide, which by Indias` own account had cost Bagladeshis over 30 million lives. India also gave refuge to 100s of millions of Bengalis who fled their country during their war of independence. Bangladeshis established their own rule with the help of Indians. But today the most hated nation on the globe is India. ``

Bangladesh does not owe India anything for their independence. Indians would appreciate if they were a good neighbor.

Can you provide any statistics for India being the most hated country in the world ? It is not like Indians are complaining about being hated.

`` Similarly, there is Nepal, a landlocked country, wholly dependent on India for its trade and economy. It is the only Hindu sttate in the world, so ideologically there is no difference. Culture, religion, heritage and even languages are shared. But despite a communist insurgency, which is supposedly supported by China, the most hated nation in Nepal today is India. ``

Let us assume your facts are true. Why should I care about Nepalis given the level of incompetence shown by them in running their own country.

`` Probably, it is Hindu mentality formed by their religion that do not let them co-exist peacefully with any one. The above mentioned two examples is the empirical evidence of that. ``

Nice work of logic !!!

#46 Ras:
My vision for a NEW SOUTH ASIA includes the following:
- Clamping down on terrorism by Pak
- Pakis realising that the Kashmir issue is already `settled` and move on to more important things like roti/kapda/makan.

If not, this year will be more of the same as last year.

#42 jang:
Yes, Pakistan has the capability to play spoiler (spanner-thrower) and that is what it is doing in SAARC by repeatedly raising bilateral issues (when such issues are clearly not in SAARC charter) or insisting on including China as an observer. India is also a poor country and there is a limit to unilateral concessions that it can make. This is why India should look for non-Pak arrangements in its neighbourhood. India has been doing some of this, through BIMSTEC (which excludes Pak) and individual FTA with Sri Lanka.

While India may not need the Pakistani or the neighbourhood market to grow, it is low-hanging fruit, where we have major competitive advantages in terms of price, quality and proximity (lower transport costs, for example). Finally, it is up to each nation to decide what it is that they really want - more trade that will lead to goods at lower prices and more jobs for everyone, or wait till political issues get resolved to their satisfaction - which may not happen at all. Nations that are democracies have a better chance of making the `right` decision that is in the interests of the people, while military/monarchy rule will put its own interests first.

The biggest advantage, in my opinion, that countries such as India, Pakistan, BD etc have is the large population of under 15 people. We are young nations, growing younger by the day. Compare this will European nations, Japan and even China which have declining and aging populations. If we develop our people, make them employable through education and vocational training, and improve our infrastructure, we will be in business for a long time to come. If we do not do so, we will have a unemployable, restless, envious populace that will easily turn to violence based on religion, language, caste or other factors and drag us all down.

My vision of a NEW SOUTH ASIA (not a NAYA HINDUSTAN) is one which does not

need any reversal of history. The NEW SOUTH ASIA will be one where any ordinary

Indian or Pakistani will drive or ride to the border and with identification visit

the other side for upto 30 days with minimal hassle (as between the U.S.

and Canada befor 9/11). A quick visitor permit will need to be issued. The same

can be implemented between all other SAARC countries if they wish.

The only thing that is currently holding this back is a small group of fanatics

on both sides of this Hindu-Muslim divide and the Kashmir issue.

I have high hopes for a resolution of Kashmir before 2007 so this may indeed be

a HAPPY NEW YEAR for all of South Asia.

The most important aspect of this vision will be the free flow of trade and cultural activity

between India and Pakistan. The foundation of this future trade opening is already

being laid by the Iran-Pakistan-India Gas Pipline.

This vision includes a special place for the Sikhs who will be able to visit and stay at

their religious places in Pakistan whenever they wish and the Ahmadis who would like

to visit Qadian. (And other Pakistanis will be able to visit Sufi Shrines in India).

The NEW SOUTH ASIA will lead to economic and cultural cooperation where

integration or a reversal of Partition is not necessary.

All we need now is a little luck and a great deal of wisdom.

A part of that wisdom can start with us not attacking each others

icons (Gandhi or Jinnah)


Peace & Happy New Year

Ras

Lookie here...India`s hegemonic attitude and Jinnah`s dream doesn`t stop Pakistan from using a backbome running through India...

Submarine Internet cable inaugurated: Pakistan to be linked with India through Wagah: PM

* Country to have five international links by June 2006

KARACHI: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said on Monday that Pakistan will be linked to India with a cable laid through the Wagah border as part of an international cable system.

“All work in this regard has been completed at our end. We are waiting for the Indian government to grant permission to its telecom carriers, which we hope will be soon,” Aziz said at the inaugural ceremony of the South-East Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 4 (SEA-ME-WE 4) cable at a local hotel.

For jinnah`s dream to be truly realized, shouldn`t Pakistan refuse to run the secondary backbone through India? Don`t we need two internets, one for muslims and one for non-muslims?

In the fourth quarter of 2005, the
government sold Karachi Electric Supply Corp. and Pakistan
Telecommunication Co. Ltd. to Gulf State investors.


Yeah..how`s that PTCL deal going anyways? Has the pakistani government bend over completely backwards yet?