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Journalism of Courage
If India and Pakistan are now talking in terms of a peace process that will make their borders irrelevant, they have a worthwhile model of regional cooperation in the European Union. The irony is that just when we are showing signs of drawing lessons from it, the EU suffered a setback in its march towards adopting a common constitution for its 25 member countries. France8217;s rejection this week of further integration means that the EU will have to negotiate a fresh constitution. This does not, however, detract from the existing draft, which remains relevant to South Asia despite all the differences between the two regions.
The heart of the proposed constitution is its charter of fundamental rights, which confers a kind of dual citizenship. Every citizen of a member country is automatically a citizen of the EU. The constitution spells out an array of legally enforceable rights flowing from citizenship of the Union: the right to move freely across national borders without a visa, the right to reside and work anywhere among member countries this is said to have raised fears in France of being swamped by workers from poorer East European countries, the right to vote and to stand as candidates in elections to the European Parliament, the right to petition the European Parliament and the right to complain to a transnational ombudsman. Many of these rights have already been in force on the strength of treaties signed over the decades. The constitution is meant to consolidate them within 8220;a single institutional framework8221; and to provide 8220;better guara 8211; ntees of democracy, transparency and effectiveness.8221;
What is perhaps equally instructive to India is that the EU has evolved to a stage where it has taken over 8220;establishment of competition rules necessary for the functioning of the internal market.8221; This means that the EU will decide whether certain companies are distorting the market by forming a cartel or whether a certain company is engaged in predatory pricing to drive competition out of business. Such concerns for a level playing field may as yet seem too sophisticated to be enforced in India, let alone doing so throughout South Asia. For all its economic reforms, India has not been able to get rid of covert dealings which give an unfair edge to those who 8216;8216;work the system8217;8217;. Regulators set up in the wake of reforms have often acquiesced in the scams that are being perpetrated in the name of reforms.
Among the shared competences listed in the EU Constitution is the 8220;area of freedom, security and justice.8221; The idea is that the EU and the constituent countries will share the challenge of ensuring that free movement of people across borders does not compromise the fight against terrorism and other serious crimes. The constitution contains innovative provisions mandating greater police and judicial cooperation on criminal matters and common sanctions against cross-border offences. It even provides for the creation of an European prosecutor8217;s department to prosecute those guilty of cross-border crime. All this should be of interest to India which, in the absence of an extradition treaty with Pakistan, has been able to do little to nab the likes of Dawood Ibrahim and Masood Azhar.
It is, of course, naive to imagine that greater regional cooperation can translate into a genuine collaboration between India and Pakistan to combat Kashmir-related terrorism. Equally, the problem of illegal migration from Bangladesh may escalate if the border with our eastern neighbour is made irrelevant. And Tamil Nadu may again become a haven for two-legged Tigers if South Asia were to adopt the EU model of free movement of people. The EU, even without the back-up of the proposed constitution, seems to be an impossible ideal. But it is well worth the trouble of going as close as possible.
