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Asean Leaders 'face challenge to re (r)
- Subject: Asean Leaders 'face challenge to re (r)
- From: ausgeo@xxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 09 Jun 1997 20:44:00
Subject: Asean Leaders 'face challenge to retain creed'
South China Morning Post
Monday June 9 1997
Asean Leaders 'face challenge to retain creed'
REUTER in Kuala Lumpur
A newly enlarged Asean will find it challenging to keep to its fundamental
creed of not interfering in the internal affairs of member states, speakers at
an Asia-Pacific conference at the weekend said.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations - despite pressure from the West to
deny Burma membership because of its human rights record - will admit Burma,
Laos and Cambodia at the grouping's annual meeting in Kuala Lumpur next month.
Asean - currently grouping Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines,
Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam - has insisted its policy of "constructive
engagement" will nudge Burma's military rulers along the path of reform.
Yusuf Wanandi, chairman of the Supervisory Board of Indonesia's Centre for
Strategic and International Studies, called for Asean to give Rangoon "a
roadmap" for political and economic reforms.
"Despite the principle of non-intervention in each other's domestic affairs,
there is always an exception to be made, and on Myanmar [Burma] it is right to
do so," Mr Wanandi said at a seminar on Asean at the Asia-Pacific Roundtable
on Saturday.
Asean can also give some advice to the feuding factions in Cambodia to avoid
violent confrontation there, Mr Wanandi said.
Relations between Cambodia's co-premiers, Prince Norodom Ranariddh and Hun
Sen, have been strained to near breaking point in the run-up to next year's
general elections, paralysing the legislature.
Mr Wanandi noted that Asean played a key role in paving the way to ending
Cambodia's long civil war.
Brunei delegate Timothy Ong questioned whether all Asean members were prepared
to see the group abandon its cherished principle of non-interference.
"Strict adherence to that principle made it possible for Brunei to join in
1984.
"And strict adherence allowed Asean to withstand the excesses of the Marcos
regime in the Philippines."
Mr Wanandi said in response that the media and non-governmental organisations
in Asean countries had broken the taboo of criticism over issues like
Indonesia's human rights record in East Timor and Burma.
"Are we going to recognise this and come to some terms of reference on how to
intervene? It is a real problem we have to face and think seriously about from
now on."
Mr Wanandi called for a regional assembly that could air potentially
contentious issues, saying that Asean was overly defined by its leaders and
senior officials.
Jose Almonte, Presidential Security Adviser and Director-General of the
National Security Council in the Philippines, said the 10-member Asean would
help to safeguard the region from outside intervention and increase its
attraction for foreign investors.
The new Asean would "prevent Southeast Asia from becoming an arena of their
strategic competition, as it was for much of the past 50 years".
South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd.