Colombo, August 02: In a significant move, the SAARC countries today decided to put in place a regional legal framework to tackle terrorism amid a call by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for a collective and "determined" fight against the menace.

The 15th SAARC Summit, which began here in the backdrop of the audacious suicide attack on Indian Embassy in Kabul, was witness to the leaders of the eight member countries, including Pakistan, citing the incident to press for urgent action to contain the problem.

The Convention for Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters will provide a broad framework for the SAARC member countries to mutually cooperate and assist in the investigation and prosecution of crime, including terrorism, and tracing, restraining and forfeiture of the proceeds and instruments of crime.

Under the proposed convention, the member countries will have to grant to each other the widest possible measure of mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

India has been pressing for such a legal framework, particularly in the wake of Kabul Embassy blast which is being blamed on Pakistan's spy agency, the ISI.

The Embassy attack has cast a shadow on the two-day regional summit.

"Terrorism continues to rear its ugly head in our region.

It remains the single biggest threat to our stability," Singh said addressing the inaugural session of the meet.

"We cannot afford to lose the battle against the ideologies of hatred, fanaticism and against all those who seek to destroy our social fabric," the Prime Minister told the leaders of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives.

Underlining that terrorists and extremists know no borders, Singh cited the attack on the Indian Embassy and serial blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad as "gruesome reminders of barbarity that still finds a place" in South Asia.

"We must act jointly and with determination to fight this scourge," Singh said, adding "we must defend the values of pluralism, peaceful co-existence and the rule of law".

His views were echoed by other leaders including Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse, Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed.

Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani also condemned the Kabul Embassy attack and said his country itself has been a victim of terrorism as it lost its great leader Benazir Bhutto to it.

Karzai, who has blamed ISI for the Kabul Embassy attack, bluntly said that Pakistan was becoming a hub of terrorism.

"In Pakistan, terrorism and its sanctuaries are gaining a deeper grip as demonstrated by the tragic assassination of Benazir Bhutto," he said addressing the Summit.

"While existing on the absolute fringes of our tolerant and peace-loving societies, terrorists in our region receive institutional nurturing and support.

It is this embedded nature of terrorists that make it a much more sinister threat," the Afghan President said.

Referring to the July 7 attack in Kabul that killed nearly 60 people including four Indians, Karzai said no outrage or condemnation will cool down the anger over the mindless violence.

Without repeating his earlier allegation that Pakistan's ISI was behind the attack, the Afghan President said "It is time we all realise that the pursuit of narrow geo-political interest and the use of militant radicalism as instrument of policy cannot succeed or serve any long-term purpose".

He called for an urgent and more collective action against terrorism to secure the lives of the future generations.

Never before has there been a greater need for collective action against terrorism as today, Karzai said.

Gilani, who spoke after Karzai, said Pakistan condemns the attack on the Indian Embassy.

The Pakistan Prime Minister said his country itself was a victim of terrorism, having "suffered the most" and "lost the great leader" Benazir Bhutto.

"It is our joint responsibility to rid our region of this scourge.

We need to fight terrorism individually as well as collectively," he said, welcoming the finalisation of the text of the SAARC Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters.

Rajapaksa, whose country assumed the Chair of the SAARC today from India, noted that the Summit was taking place in the midst of the "curse of terrorism" in most of the countries of the region which threatens the peace and stability.

"We need to redouble our efforts for collective action to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations," the Sri Lankan President said.

"We must ensure strengthening regional legal mechanisms and intensifying intelligence sharing, in order to secure the region's collective prosperity, peace and stability...

Terrorism anywhere is terrorism and there are no good terrorists or bad terrorists," he said.

Bangladesh's Chief Advisor Fakhruddin Ahmed, while condemning the "heinous" terrorist attacks in India, Afghanistan and Pakistan in recent times, said security dimension in the region and beyond had taken the "centre-stage" in the deliberations of the Summit.

"...Bangladesh is against terrorism in all forms and manifestations...We must combat the menace of terrorism across the broadest possible spectrum." he said.

Comment