REGIONALISM AND MULTILATERALISM IN SOUTH ASIA

REGIONALISM AND MULTILATERALISM IN SOUTH ASIA

Author: Aditi Srivastava, student at Gd Goenka University

ABSTRACT 

The structure and content of regional categories are not standardized. The region's independence movements significantly hampered the development of a regionalism in South Asia. 1948 saw the independence of Sri Lanka, although When British India was divided in 1947, the procedures leading to the independence of India and Pakistan were incredibly traumatic. This made a lasting impression that had an impact on both their bilateral relationships and South Asian regionalism. Mention of Sri Lanka also highlights the fact that intra-state disputes are still a problem in the region. The long-running insurgency of the Tamil Eelam movement against the government in Colombo, which has thus far resisted all outside efforts at conclusive mediation and has claimed a total of at least 60 000 lives, has been fueled in part by factors of ethnic identity, language, aspirations for local autonomy, and competition over resources. For all of this, South Asia has had a formal framework for interregional cooperation for a while. As a platform for political and economic cooperation, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was founded in 1985. It currently includes Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka as members, as well as China and Japan as observers (and has in principle agreed to admit South Korea, the USA, and the EU as observers). The secretariat is situated in Kathmandu, Nepal, and the annual summits are attended by 11 Member States. Foreign ministers are required to meet at least twice a year. The general objectives of SAARC are encouraging understanding and peaceful coexistence.

KEY WORDS : Discrimination ,policy ,regionalism , Ethnicity

INTRODUCTION 

Political ideologies that prefer a particular region over a larger area are referred to as regionalist. Political divides, geographic limits based on religion, cultural distinctions, linguistic clusters, and management divisions are the usual causes. The focus of regionalism is on strengthening the local government and influencing the local populace, if any. Regionalists contend that establishing local governments and civil authorities in place of a national government will greatly boost local populations by enhancing local economies through resource allocation and the implementation of local policies and plans.

REGIONALISM IN INIDA 

The diversity of languages, cultures, ethnic communities, faiths, and other identifiers that make up India is at the heart of regionalism. This diversity is also supported by the concentration of these identification markers at the regional level, which is fueled by a sense of regional plight. India continued to be a country with many different nations, regions, cultures, and traditions for many centuries.

For instance, the Dravidian cultures of southern India, which is itself a region of many areas, are clearly distinct from those of the north, west, central, and north-east of the country. Even the east of India differs from the north-east of India, which is home to the highest concentration of tribal people and currently consists of seven component states of the Indian federation. Since India's independence (1947), if not before, regionalism has continued to be one of the most powerful forces in Indian politics. From the late 1960s, it has continued to serve as the basic foundation for numerous regional political parties that have ruled numerous states. In the post-independence phases of accommodating regional identity through statehood, three distinct patterns may be seen.

REGIONAL MOVEMENTS IN INDIA

The foundations of national awareness in India can be traced back to the colonial era, when the British treated princely kingdoms and the presidencies differently and encouraged regionalist inclinations within them. Economic inequities and regional imbalances were caused by the exploitative economic policies of the British government.

Movements in Southern India: The Non-Brahmin movement, which had its start in what is now Tamil Nadu in the 1940s, or the Dravida Movement, can be credited with establishing the history of regional movements in India.The movement later gave rise to the call for an independent Tamil state.This led to the Andhra region calling for the creation of a separate state.India experienced a massive (and violent) mobilization for statehood claims in the 1950s and 1960s.In 1954, Potti Sri Ramulu led the uprising for Andhra to become a separate state. His eventual passing precipitated India's political regionalism tsunami.

Tribal insurgencies in India's northeastern region seeking statehood and secession grew during the 1970s and 1980s, and the Union government passed the North-eastern States Reorganisation Act, 1971, in response.The UTs of Manipur and Tripura, as well as the Sub-State of Meghalaya, were proclaimed to be states.After becoming tribal districts, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh were elevated to the status of states in 1986.Significant Shifts in the 21st Century: Due to a growing feeling of regional plight, the 2000s saw active efforts for the formation of distinct states.As a result, three new states were created: Uttarakhand from Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand from Bihar, and Chhattisgarh from Madhya Pradesh.

Why does regional inequality still exist?

Poor rate of economic growth: Since gaining independence, India's economy has experienced cyclical fluctuations. Yet, due to the high rate of population expansion, economic growth has not kept up with the rate of development. The economy grew steadily over the past ten years, but it is currently in shambles due to the global financial crisis and other domestic impediments.

States' socioeconomic and political structure: States have failed to implement significant land reforms, and the feudal attitude still prevails. After independence, the Bhoodan and Gramdaan movements did not receive much support, and even the distribution of land through land banks was ineffective. The only political activity in the underdeveloped states was vote-bank politics and fraud.

Failures in politics and administration are a source of conflict and the impetus behind sub-regional aspirations for independent states. Only these failures have led to Jarkhand, Chattisgarh, Uttrakhand, and most recently Telangana. Such requests are being made for Vidarbha, Saurashtra, Darjeeling, and Bodoland, among other places. These failures also undermine private actors' confidence and deter foreign investment in the United States. 

MULTILATERALISM IN INDIA 

During the 1980s, pragmatism has served as the foundation for India's global initiatives. It has made an effort to advance and defend its basic interests through multilateral involvement, to oppose or disobey international regulations where necessary, and to be open and ready to design and ratify such rules where national and international interests coincide. India has taken principled stances on a number of issues, including international commerce, climate change, the UN Security Council, and the prevention of nuclear weapons proliferation. India's participation in international institutions and its actions have changed as a result of shifting priorities. For instance, in the early years following independence, India concentrated more on decolonization and the need for independence in foreign policy and development. But, over time, perspectives that are influenced by reason have replaced these ideas. As India's involvement in the global economy grew, economic interests came into play and became more prominent. India has urged the GATT/WTO to liberalize tariffs in sectors like agriculture and services where Indian businesses had a competitive edge. Given the devastating impacts of tobacco usage at home, India supported a strict set of regulations at the World Health Organization to reduce the global tobacco epidemic. India pursues both regional and global agreements as part of its economic strategy. India has taken a proactive role in both the regional trade accords and the WTO. For instance, India turned to regional trade agreements to support the expansion of its economy in the wake of the Doha Round's failure in 2008. India has made a strong commitment to regional frameworks evident by signing the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) and free trade agreements with the Association of Southeast Asian States (ASEAN). Hence, adopting a multi-track strategy that supports both regionalism and multilateralism is a key aspect of India's trade policy.

REGIONALISM IN PAKISTAN 

Although regionalism is one of the major problems the globe is currently facing, it has emerged as the most significant concern in south Asia. The societies in the south Asian nations are multireligious, ethnically diverse, and multilingual. Since its founding in 1947, Pakistan has been dealing with this issue, which has seriously compromised its integrity and unity. Pakistan is essentially a multilingual and multiethnic country. The majority of the population is made up of Mohajirs who speak Punjabi, Sindhi, Pushtoon, Balochi, and Urdu. The distribution of these ethnic groups reflects where they have historically settled in the area. Separatist sentiment has always existed among these nationalities. In Pakistan, regionalism has been a recurring subject. The challenge Pakistan has faced since its founding in 1947 has been to forge a strong national identity out of a variety of regional and linguistic allegiances. Interestingly, throughout the past 70 yearsPakistan has unable to find a solution to this issue. The greatest significant threat to Pakistan's integrity after its creation came from separatist forces that operated along ethnic, cultural, and geographical lines. Examining Pakistan's recent history is crucial to comprehend the issue of regionalism. After Pakistan was established, regionalism that had lain dormant throughout the British Raj started to revive. Quaid-i-Azam warned the country about the dangers of regionalism after recognizing the consequences of the issue (Jinnah: Speeches)  “Now I ask you to get rid of this provincialism because as long as you allow this poison to remain in the body politic of Pakistan, believe me you will never be a strong nation and you will never be able to achieve what I wish we could achieve… So make up your mind and from to day, put an end to this sectionalism”.

Pakistan's regionalism causes

Pakistan Muslim League lost strength after its founding, and numerous other political parties broke away from it. In this environment, Pakistan lacked a strong political party with nationwide roots. On a regional basis, there were numerous political parties. The NAP was created by the union of numerous local political parties. It simply made regional demands in terms of politics rather than national ones. Election results from 1970 demonstrated the absence of a national political party. In East Pakistan, where the Awami League was more popular, PPP was more popular in Punjab and Sind. Baluchistan and the NWFP both had regional political parties that took part in the elections.

Political instability was a worry for Pakistan from the beginning. A military-bureaucratic combination prevented any political government from operating effectively throughout the first democratic era (1947–1958). The military seized power in 1958. It slowed down the political procedure.because the army disliked politicians and political parties (Rizvi, 1997). Hence, one individual had control over all of the powers. This created a suitable environment for the growth of regionalism in various regions of Pakistan.

The government's original response to this issue in dealing with regionalism was to simply adopt the Islamic motto. They believed that "Islam" brought all Indian Muslims together under one banner during the Pakistan campaign. even Quaid-i-Azam Liaquat Ali, his successor, attempted to combat regionalism in this way. The Islamic link to overcome any separation was cited by the ordinary man as the main cause of Pakistan's establishment. The regional communities were instructed by Quaid-i-Azam to conceive of themselves as Pakistanis and Muslims first, rather than Bengalis, Punjabis, or Pakhtoons (Jinnah, Speech March 21, 948). In order to strengthen the nation, the government therefore established an Islamic outreach policy.

MULTILATERALISM IN PAKISTAN 

Pakistan is by no means a tiny power in the military sense. Pakistan was placed 10th out of 140 nations in the 2021 Military Strength Ranking by Global Firepower, which offers a PowerIndex score based on "nearly 50 different indicators." In pursuing policies like counterterrorism and humanitarian aid, Pakistan's military may thus be regarded as a significant power in respect to various multilateral alliances, including the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and NATO.The SCO is made up of lesser militaries from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan as well as large military forces like Russia, China, and India. Making collaborative efforts to maintain and ensure peace, security, and stability in the region is one of the SCO's guiding principles, and this is largely accomplished through military drills. The US has regarded Pakistan as a major non-NATO ally (MNNA) since 2004, when US Secretary of State Colin Powell sought to deepen ties with Pakistan because of their dedication to the "War on Terror." Pakistan is not a member of NATO. Since then, Pakistan has continued to be dedicated to combating terrorism, as evidenced by the multilateral Aman naval exercises, which have facilitated cooperation in maritime security issues and have complemented the larger NATO multilateral counterterrorism operations, such as Operation Active Endeavour.

REGIONALISM IN SRILANKA

As was the case for a while recently, Sri Lanka's current immediate strategic problems (using the term in its strictest sense) are linked to the domestic security challenge it is dealing with as it fights a separatist conflict. There is still no peace to the ethnic war. A February 2002 cease-fire agreement between The current shaky ceasefire is not conducive to any proactive steps, and a political settlement between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) movement needs to be developed. Since the LTTE separatist group receives its military supplies from outside Sri Lanka, the conflict has also had an impact on Sri Lanka's ties with other countries, particularly India. Tamil militant groups had tight ties with India during the 1980s, where they received instruction, military backing, and other support. To put it mildly, India's motivations for its conduct were convoluted. This A series of events led to the signing of the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord in July 19874, which established a number of ground rules for Sri Lanka's future foreign policy while also allowing India to assist Sri Lanka in addressing the separatist threat.Following the killing of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi by the LTTE in May 1991, India's interest in the Tamil problem began to decline. These criteria alone demonstrate Sri Lanka's interest in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and any other organization that can control and influence ties between South Asian neighbors. The next paragraphs concentrate on the history and growth of SAARC during the Cold War era and its future possibilities in light of emerging trends in the area. The specific topic of energy supply pipelines and a consideration of various broader, or alternative, frameworks for collaboration among South Asian states are covered in turn in two sections.

CONCLUSION 

We have seen how regionalism can benefit or harm a country or a group of countries. Every citizen of India has a fundamental freedom to peacefully move about and establish a home anywhere under Article 19 of the Indian Constitution. And everyone in India should respect this basic right of every person, preventing conflicts like those the Shiv Sena causes in Maharashtra.It is urgently necessary to improve each region of India by giving local governments more authority and encouraging people to participate in decision-making.

Several approaches have been tried by political elites to address this serious issue. But, they made little attempt to look into the actual reasons for Pakistan's regionalism. On the demands of regionalists, they did not respond wisely. A lesson should be drawn from the past. More regional sovereignty should be given; all local cultures, languages, and forms of talent connected to various communities must be recognized and supported. This is a truly excellent step toward Pakistan's integration.