BRICS to Build Development Bank
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A Publication of the Embassy of India, Washington, D.C. April 1, 2013 I India RevieI w Vol. 9 Issue 4 www.indianembassy.org Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh with the President of China Xi Jinping, President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff, President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of South Africa Jacob Zuma at the Fifth BRICS Summit, at Durban, South Africa, on March 27. BRICS to build development bank n Ambassador Rao n FAQs on Overseas n NASA, ISRO to deepen Addresses Maryland Citizenship of cooperation in Moon, General Assembly India cards Mars missions Ambassador’s PAGE Mahatma Gandhi ’s ‘light ’guided Martin Luther King Jr. Both these prophets of peace still have much to teach a world plagued by war, terrorism, discrimination and divisiveness aving won our independ - developed the doctrine of Satyagraha his wife, Coretta Scott King, toured the ence in a nonviolent strug - — nonviolent resistance to evil. This country, meeting with leaders, scholars gle, Indians join watchword has been translated as and everyday citizens and discussing HAmericans in celebrating “truth force,” “love force” — and, in issues of poverty, economic policy, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s lead - a phrase made famous by the U.S. race relations and world peace. In a ership of the civil rights movement in civil rights movement, “soul force.” broadcast on All India Radio, King the United States. On August 28, we From the Salt March in 1930 to said: “If this age is to survive, it must will commemorate the 50 th anniver - hunger strikes and prison terms, our follow the way of love and nonviolence sary of the March on Washington nonviolent struggle won our inde - that [Gandhi] so nobly illustrated in his where King delivered his “I Have a pendence in 1947. life.” King later wrote in Ebony maga - Dream” speech, and, on April 4, we Gandhi also reached out to African- zine that many Indians were better will mourn the 45 th anniversary of his Americans, spreading seeds of nonvio - informed about the bus boycott than assassination. lent protest that King would ultimately many Americans. His visit to India was On March 10, we will mark anoth - harvest. In 1929, he authored a short a revelation in many ways, as if “the er milestone moment in King’s public article in the NAACP magazine, The spear of frustration” had been trans - ministry and personal journey. On Crisis, and in 1935 he met with a formed “into a shaft of light.” that day, 54 years ago, he returned group of African-American leaders vis - After his trip, King wrote: “I have from a month long journey to India iting India, including Benjamin Mays, returned to America with a greater where he rededicated himself to the who later became president of determination to achieve freedom for nonviolent struggle for justice to Morehouse College in Atlanta, which my people through nonviolent means.” which the leader of our nation’s inde - King attended. His commitment to peaceful protest pendence movement, Mahatma As a mentor to King, Mays encour - informed his later efforts, including his Gandhi, gave his life. aged him to read Gandhi’s writings, campaign in Birmingham, Alabama, King carried forward Gandhi’s which informed King’s leadership of and the March on Washington, both of commitments — and Indians enthu - the bus boycott in Montgomery, Ala., which took place a half-century ago. siastically embraced King’s cam - in 1955. King later wrote that Fifty years after King’s visit to India, paigns — because both shared com - Gandhi’s teachings were “the guiding the U.S. House of Representatives mon values, common strategies and light of our technique of nonviolent unanimously passed a resolution intro - common struggles. While each social change.” duced by Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) leader’s life was cut short by violence, Meanwhile, leading stalwarts of the recognizing Gandhi’s influence on both these prophets of peace still have nonviolent movement in India King. During February 2009, King’s much to teach a world plagued by watched King with interest. After vis - son, Martin Luther King III, Lewis and war, terrorism, discrimination and iting the U.S. in 1956, India’s Prime other Americans visited India, retrac - divisiveness. Minister Jawaharlal Nehru said he ing the martyred civil rights leader’s 2 Through most of the past century, wished he had met King. In January pilgrimage 50 years earlier. Indians and African-Americans sup - 1959, Harishwar Dayal of the Indian In today’s world, Gandhi and King ported each other’s struggles because Embassy passed along a letter from continue to inspire the leaders of non - we identify with each other’s predica - the Gandhi National Memorial Fund violent freedom struggles, from Nelson ments and principles. While born and inviting King to visit India. Mandela in South Africa to Aung San raised in India, Gandhi first struggled Accepting the invitation, King Suu Kyi in Myanmar. Their lives and for social justice in South Africa arrived in India on February 10, 1959, legacies — and King’s journey to India where he protested peacefully against declaring: “To other countries, I may — still offer new paths to global peace discrimination against Asians as well go as a tourist but to India I come as a and human progress. as Africans. pilgrim.” Having dinner with Nehru on (Published in Politico on March 7, Returning to India in 1914, he their second night in India, King and 2013) April 2013 India Review Cover STORY 3 Leaders of BRICS nations at the plenary session on March 27. BRICS agree to build development bank The modalities like the capital of the proposed bank, its domicile and the governance structure are to be worked out by the time BRICS leaders meet in Brazil next March he leaders of Brazil, Russia, document when the leaders meet India, China and South Key outcomes of again in Brazil next March,” he Africa on March 27 gave added. Ttheir go-ahead to a BRICS the BRICS Summit As regards the contingency reserve bank to address the development arrangement, Finance Minister challenges of poor and emerging as stated in the Chidambaram said the bulk of the economies. money, that is $41 billion, will be The leaders, who met for the 5 th BRICS declaration pledged by China, $18 billion each BRICS Summit in Durban, South n Nod for a BRICS Development Bank on will come from India, Brazil and Africa — where the Indian delegation the lines of the World Bank to address Russia, while South Africa has agreed was led by Prime Minister Dr. the development needs of emerging to $5 billion. Manmohan Singh — also endorsed a and poor economies The proposal for the BRICS bank $100-billion contingency reserve n A contingent reserve arrangement with and a contingency reserve arrange - arrangement that would be deployed a $100 billion commitment from Brazil, ment was mooted when India hosted when any of the five member-nations Russia, India, China and South Africa the previous BRICS Summit in New faces a crisis. for deployment when any of these Delhi. “We (the finance ministers of the nations are in distress “It gives me great satisfaction to five countries) gave a big idea and n The setting up of the BRICS Business note that one of the ideas that we first that idea has now become a reality — Council discussed at New Delhi, that of insti - that is the BRICS development n The setting up of a mechanism for a tuting a mechanism to recycle surplus bank,” Indian Finance Minister BRICS consortium of think tanks savings in infrastructure investments P. Chidambaram told journalists in in developing countries, has been Durban, soon after the conclusion of given concrete shape during the the plenary session on the second day The proposal for the Durban Summit,” Prime Minister Dr. of the two-day summit. Manmohan Singh told the plenary. He said the finance ministers and BRICS bank and a “We have agreed to establish the officials of the five countries have contingency reserve New Development Bank. The initial been given a 12-month time-frame to arrangement was mooted contribution to the Bank should be work out modalities like the capital of substantial and sufficient for the the proposed bank, its domicile and at the previous BRICS Bank to be effective in financing the governance structure. Summit in New Delhi infrastructure,” the leaders said in a “We should have a nearly complete joint statement, officially called the April 2013 India Review Cover STORY Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh with the Presidents of China, Brazil, Russia and South Africa during the Fifth BRICS Summit, at Durban, South Africa, on March 27. eThekwini Declaration after the Besides the bank and the reserve on the agenda by host South Africa. African name for Durban. arrangement, the BRICS Summit “These are good beginnings,” The five-member BRICS bloc also established a business council Finance Minister Chidambaram said, collectively accounts for 40 percent with five members each from the five adding that the collective size of the of the world’s population, 30 percent countries, a consortium of think five member-states of BRICS — in of the world’s land mass, 20 percent tanks and an enabling agreement terms of population, output and of the gross domestic product in real among the development banks of the reserves — makes it an important terms and 26 percent of purchasing five countries to enhance financing bloc. “We should be able to influence power. They also together have for projects in Africa. discussion and decisions in G20, the foreign exchange reserves of $4.3 With this, the Summit has IMF and other multilateral institu - trillion.