Asian Currency Unit
Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Vietnam, the Philippines + China, Japan and South Korea

Good idea or not? I actually have no idea how Europeans accepted Euro in 2000. I would appreciate insights and your opinion regarding this issue. :)

The theoretical unit would provide a benchmark for Asian countries allowing them to see how much their currency deviated from it.

ADB welcomes plans by ASEAN+3 to look at single currency
Posted: 6:41 PM | May 05, 2006

HYDERABAD, India--The Asian Development Bank welcomed Friday an announcement by ASEAN members along with China, Japan and South Korea that they would consider a single Asian currency similar to the euro.

"We highly welcome a study by ASEAN+3 governments (Japan, China and South Korea) on a regional monetary unit," said Masahiro Kawai, head of the bank's unit of Regional Economic Cooperation and Integration.

"We will support ASEAN+3 governments in this area in any way possible," he said in the southern high-tech Indian city of Hyderabad where the ADB was holding its annual general meeting.

The ADB has been spearheading a proposal for the creation of an Asian currency unit or ACU as part of a bid to bolster monetary stability, spur regional economic growth and even out disparities.

"We have asked our deputies to conduct a study on the future of the regional currency unit," South Korean Finance Minister Han Duck-Soo said Thursday ahead of the formal start of the ADB talks here.

"We are conducting the study at the level of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) along with China, Japan and Korea," he said.

ASEAN is made up of Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Vietnam and the Philippines.

ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda told a seminar on Asian economic integration the region's options included "European-style comprehensive and deep integration with a common trade and monetary policy" or the North American path of a free trade area.

"The European style of integration seems to have the greatest potential for realizing the dynamic benefits of a common trade area and monetary policy," he said Thursday.

As in the case of the euro, the first step toward a common currency unit would be coordination of foreign exchange policies.

The ADB said last year it planned to create a theoretical currency unit made up of a basket of Asian currencies that would be similar to Europe's Ecu which eventually became the euro.

The theoretical unit would provide a benchmark for Asian countries allowing them to see how much their currency deviated from it.

i think it's inevitable...if ASEAN plans to become a superpower like the EU and the US someday...

it would be easier for pinoy international shoppers to compare prices on goods especially in China and Singapore. hehe

This has already been discussed since last year pa. Former Malaysia Prime Minister Mahathir was a staunch advocate to this proposal. I think a timetable has been put already. ASEAN is envisioning a single currency by 2020.

^^Too soon. ASEAN + 3 is much bigger and much more diverse than EC when they starteed talking about this. Monetary Policy will be taken out of governments hands, I can't imagine some countries (i.e. china) giving up such important controls anytime soon with the current political system they have. The bigger ASEANies like us, IND, THai, Mal , sing and Bru , maybe possible. We're not to far from one another in economic size and integration, but just thinking of how to integreate Japan for example which is several times bigger than ASEAN in economic/financial terms looks tough. Am not saying it's a good idea but it's much easier said than done.

I think we als0 need this since it w0uld stabilize the currency since p0litical uncertainties in 0ne c0untry will n0t gravely affect 0thers.

^^ - i'm for this too.. but also think 2010 is a bit too soon. :)

just wondering, whose faces will be in the bills? Hehehe... we'll see new faces on our bills and coins. :)

I want the Peso to remain as the Philippines' currency unit, PERIOD.

i think they should..

do it do it do it! i heard a long time ago, Marcos wanted to do something similar to this...

it would be nice to have a single currency for the asia pacific region...

Yeah, it seems like a good idea as of the moment. But I have to admit that I need to read up more on their plans. :)

hmmm yeah I think we need to think or study more of this...

having a common monetary unit will remove our local currency right?... hmmm... I think I like to have our Peso as is.....but if it will have a good effect to our economy I hope well.. maybe.. :D

anyways... the prophesy from the revelations seems to be coming into reality.... hehehe.. the one-monetary system....

hmmm yeah I think we need to think or study more of this...

having a common monetary unit will remove our local currency right?... hmmm... I think I like to have our Peso as is.....but if it will have a good effect to our economy I hope well.. maybe.. :D

anyways... the prophesy from the revelations seems to be coming into reality.... hehehe.. the one-monetary system....
Well, I think not in the short term , It is because of the different economic activities within the ASEAN region and East Timor !

This is good for the region.

what about 3 + ASEAN instead? China, Japan and South Korea should come up with a single unit first then ASEAN joining the three should be smoother. i think.. :?

I dont like the idea. Our currency is Peso and so is Argentina's, Bolivia's and Mexico's along with other Latin American Nations. It's not about the economy, it's just that I think it would be a betrayal on our part to come up joining with nations that are simply put, odd from us. Some would say that this is Spanish choo-choo again but I am keen on trying to be firm on yours, my and our Hispanic heritage, PERIOD!

And to observe at what our lovely neighbors did to us in the past times (the CvsC discrimination of Philippine cities in SSC, the "cheating" allegation of Thaksin in SEA GAMES, the Malaysian Strait Times' Larry Feign-drawn Nanny comics and so much more!), I guess having something that would forcibly unite us together with them is a worthless undertaking.

WHy would you sacrifice the PESO unity with our brothers and sisters in exchange for a single Asian currency with our "ehem" neighbors?

http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200604200104.html

POINT OF VIEW/ Asian Currency Unit likely to face a rocky road
04/20/2006

Manabu Hara


In a few months, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is expected to make an announcement about the advent of an Asian Currency Unit (ACU), a development that has drawn keen interest from financial markets.

The ADB's move reflects what has been evident for some time: the rapid expansion of economic interdependence in Asia.

This deepening interdependency, coupled with concern about a recurrence of the Asian financial crisis that hit in the late 1990s, prompted the ASEAN-Plus Three nations--Japan, China and South Korea--to develop sound financial strategies. One result of this was the so-called Chiang Mai initiative to prevent a financial crisis. Another concerned moves to develop an Asian bond market.

The possible creation of an ACU has drawn considerable international attention, partly because of the potential for the development of an Asian version of the European Currency Unit (ECU), which started out as an accounting unit and today is the currency we know as the euro. Promising candidates

Until now, the ADB has emphasized that the ACU would be just an indicator of relative currency values and quite different from the ECU.

ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda made this point clear in a recent speech, stating, "The ADB is developing a useful indicator for monitoring regional currency movements--the Asian Currency Unit."

Masahiro Kawai, a senior ADB official, calls it a basket of Asian currencies. More specifically, it is a weighted average of Asian exchange rates. Kawai said the weight would be determined by the size of gross domestic product, trade and capital account openness.

The ADB has not revealed specific components of the basket, but the currencies of the ASEAN-Plus Three nations are promising candidates.

It has also been suggested that more than one indicator with a different combination of currencies might be created.

Kawai emphasizes that the ACU is totally different from the ECU, which began as an official unit of account and comprised part of Europe's official foreign exchange reserves. On the other hand, the ACU is expected to have no such official status.

There are a number of reasons for the ACU not being able to become the Asian version of the ECU in the short term.

First, the political will for this to happen is not strong among Asian nations. Second, even if they do want to create a common currency, differences in their economic conditions are huge. Third, unlike the dollar, the euro and the yen, most of their monetary units are not hard currencies that can be easily traded on foreign exchange markets. Fourth, continuing political rifts among Asian nations make it difficult to cooperate closely.

This is borne out by the state of shaky ties between Tokyo and Beijing, as well as China's campaign to rein in Taiwan.

In the same vein, financial experts are interested in the possibility of including the Hong Kong and Taiwan dollars in the ACU. The reason for this is that their economies are much bigger than those of most Asian nations. Thus, the usefulness of the currency unit could be called into question if their currencies were not included.

"The ACU would allow us to monitor both the collective movement of Asian currencies against major currencies, such as the U.S. dollar and the euro, as well as the individual movement of each Asian currency against the regional average presented by ACU," said Kuroda. "Thus, it could be quite a useful indicator for monetary authorities in their exchange rate policy formulation."

However, Fumio Hoshi, senior executive director of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, wonders whether the ACU would actually prove useful in exchange rate policy. "The ACU would be a useful indicator for monetary authorities in their exchange rate policy formulation if Asian countries concerned are going to establish their community like the European Union. Otherwise, one can hardly imagine that monetary authorities will use it as reference for their policymaking," he said.

Sixteen nations--the ASEAN-Plus Three, India, New Zealand and Australia--gathered in Kuala Lumpur last year to discuss the idea of the East Asian Community. However, the talks did not result in substantial progress. Long-range vision

Nevertheless, the creation of an ACU would prove helpful in developing Asian financial cooperation.

Hoshi said including all currencies of the ASEAN-Plus Three nations would be quite unrealistic because of big differences in their currency value. But, if the ACU consists of hard and semi-hard currencies in Asia, an ACU-based bond could help nurture an Asian bond market.

The capital market development plan has generated considerable interest among the Asian nations concerned. The plan basically aims at preventing the huge amount of savings held in Asia from draining into the U.S. market. This is for the sake of stability of local currencies.

Still, it would take time for the market to use the ACU, according to Satoshi Shimizu, senior economist at Japan Research Institute Ltd.

Many experts speculate that the advent of the ACU would initially have an impact on financial markets only in the sense that the concept was moving beyond the realm of planning and to possible future implementation.

Hoshi also says it would be difficult to attract strong private sector interest unless Asian currencies are to be integrated into one unit like the euro. He said the market would be interested in the idea of ACU bonds if they were based on a basket of hard and semi-hard currencies.

Yoshihisa Onishi, executive director of the Center for Financial Industry Information Systems (Japan), envisages four joint steps that Asian nations would need to take in creating a common currency.

At the first stage, they would need to hold regular talks on exchange rate problems, just as EU countries do at monthly meetings of the Bank for International Settlements. That creates a common understanding of the problems affecting each member nation.

At the second stage, nations would need to implement concerted market intervention and policy coordination while using a basket of currencies such as the dollar, euro and yen as a reference indicator.

At the third stage, those nations would need to create an ACU which consists only of local currencies in East Asia. This would ensure the financial cooperation of monetary authorities.The final stage would be the creation of the Asian version of the euro.

However, Onishi said he doubts the fourth stage will happen anytime soon. Nor does he believe the creation of an Asian common currency is a sure thing in the distant future.

But, he said the "process of creating a common (Asian) currency has its own meaning" because it would generate a mechanism for the "convergence of exchange rate systems and the way Asian nations structure their economies."

* * *

The author is a senior staff writer.(IHT/Asahi: April 20,2006)

I doubt China would let go of their competitive export prices due to their dollar pegged yuan ...
most probably if this single currency will push through it will be ASEAN +3 -1 ... hehehe :)

I dont like the idea. Our currency is Peso and so is Argentina's, Bolivia's and Mexico's along with other Latin American Nations. It's not about the economy, it's just that I think it would be a betrayal on our part to come up joining with nations that are simply put, odd from us. Some would say that this is Spanish choo-choo again but I am keen on trying to be firm on yours, my and our Hispanic heritage, PERIOD!

And to observe at what our lovely neighbors did to us in the past times (the CvsC discrimination of Philippine cities in SSC, the "cheating" allegation of Thaksin in SEA GAMES, the Malaysian Strait Times' Larry Feign-drawn Nanny comics and so much more!), I guess having something that would forcibly unite us together with them is a worthless undertaking.

WHy would you sacrifice the PESO unity with our brothers and sisters in exchange for a single Asian currency with our "ehem" neighbors?

I actually believe our so called commonality and heritage with the latin american countries is over rated. In my experience there is a much deeper commonality with our south east asian neighbors , malaysia and indonesia in particular. Sociology aside we have almost no relations with these countries, very few ofw's, very little trade, very little travel, in other words there is no Peso unity except in name to speak off. On the other hand despite the snafus you read about in the press, things like security, trade, migration etc have much more interaction within our ASEAN neighbors. Let's not forget where we actually came from (malaysia/indonesia) and why we actually have an easier time as people, generally, to deal with our neighbors. Of course let's not forget the most important reason for this is greater economic growth and competitiveness for our economy.

I think it's important to keep our spanish heritage, it's what makes us unique from the rest of asia! However, why stick to the Latinos who's half the world away? Integration with our southeast asian neighbours is easier. Before that can happen though, we need to streamline everything and create an ASEAN-wide directives on trade and politics.

I think it's important to keep our spanish heritage, it's what makes us unique from the rest of asia! However, why stick to the Latinos who's half the world away? Integration with our southeast asian neighbours is easier. Before that can happen though, we need to streamline everything and create an ASEAN-wide directives on trade and politics.


Smart man, embracing ones culture and heritage is a noble act but the economy is crucial. None of the spanish speaking countries are as progressive as the asian countries. Why not establish a better relationship with the neigboring asian countries? Besides there is a sense of keenship as far as culture is concerned among asian countries as much as with Spain. Why not let the neigboring asian country help the Philippines to move forward?

Are you in favoring of having a single ASEAN parliament, currency, etc. just like the European Union?

ASEAN Parliament Proposed

Cebu City -- Legislators from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have gathered here today to discuss steps that could lead to the creation of a single parliament for the region.

This is one of the issues up for discussion during the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Organization (AIPO) 27th General Assembly that will be held today until Sept.15 at the Marco Polo Plaza in this city.

Rep. Antonio Cuenco (Cebu City, south district), chair of the House foreign relations committee and head of the Organizing Committee for the 27th AIPO general assembly, said the proposal calls for the conversion of the AIPO into the ASEAN Parliamentary Council.

“We are trying to work out a system [similar to the European Parliament],” Cuenco said during a briefing Friday on the event.


MORE FROM HERE >> http://newsinfo.inq7.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view_article.php?article_id=20218

wellp.. i think we can create stronger ties with our fellow south east asian countries... but i think definitely not the currency as of yet.

I mean, EU nationals can go wherever they want within the EU without Visas(well, almost all of the EU members). THe thing is, i think we still have weak currency. The best option i guess would be to get closer and have stronger economic ties.

"IMHO" creating another econmic union similar to EU will be the start of another international block economy similar to the one that led to WW2.

"IMHO" creating another econmic union similar to EU will be the start of another international block economy similar to the one that led to WW2.

Eh? The EU was formed partially to heal the wounds of the war. Exactly how would creating a more integrated ASEAN be detrimental to world peace? Besides, international economic blocks didn't cause WW2. Where did you get that idea?


wellp.. i think we can create stronger ties with our fellow south east asian countries... but i think definitely not the currency as of yet.

I mean, EU nationals can go wherever they want within the EU without Visas(well, almost all of the EU members). THe thing is, i think we still have weak currency. The best option i guess would be to get closer and have stronger economic ties.

We can go wherever we want among ASEAN countries, too (as tourists, though) An ASEAN currency can only be achieved through tight financial coordination between member states, like in the EU. It isn't about a strong or weak currency, but rather whether or not each member state is willing to give up its financial sovereignity to a supranational body.

A more integrated ASEAN is definitely the way to go, especially since we are losing out to China. The creation of a single ASEAN market would help us stay competitive, so on the economic front, I'm all for integration.

On the political front, however, the ASEAN countries are a motley bunch. I don't think that a unified foreign or domestic policy would be the best thing.

Japan in the 1930s was ruled by a militarist clique devoted to becoming a world power. Japan invaded China to bolster its meager stock of natural resources. THE UNITED STATES AND BRITIAN reacted by making loans to China, providing covert military assistance, and instituting increasingly BROAD OF EMBARGOES of raw materials against Japan. THESE EMBARGOES would have eventually FORCED JAPAN to give up its newly conquered possession in China because the Japanese WOULD NOT HAVE ENOUGH FUEL to run their war machine; Japan was faced with the choice of withdrawing from China or going to war with the United States in order to conquer the "OIL" RESOURCES" of the Dutch East Indies. It chose the latter, and went ahead with plans for the Greater East Asia War in the Pacific.

Imagine if the ARAB STATES WOULD ALSO FORM A BLOCK ECONOMY AND EVENTUALLY EMBARGO OIL ON THE WEST?? IMAGINE IF MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA JOINS THEM?? THEN JOINING WITH THE CHINESE AND RUSSIAN BLOCK??

u see the big picture now... it's gonna be world war III.

Forming too many EU type kind of groups is not a good idea... EU is already enough add two or three of them block economies it is not good for stability.

if this happen other regions will also be encouraged to form their own block econmies...

>the middle east coalition block

>the chinese and russians and central asian block

>southeast asian block

>EU block

>south american block

>north american block

what else??? hmmmm :eek2:

hmm not exactly sure this would happen...

not forming a union with our neighbors would not prevent others from forming their own unions and thinking of their own interest

in any case I believe it's an idea whose time has come but reality is that it will take a long time to come, if ever matagal pa to. In the relative short run I think an economic bloc with common tariffs , duties, commercial regulations in the next 5 to 10 years would be a very good start. This would foster a common market making the region more attractive as an investment destination.

Political things like a common parliament and currency, well the advantages are there but I think it would be very difficult politically. Politicians like GMA can't pull the shit she's been pulling if she does not have control over local fiscal and monetary decisions. Perhaps a common currency in 20 years is possible. Quite fast by social standards.

Unfortunately if we don't move fast as a region we're going to get left out.

Japan in the 1930s was ruled by a militarist clique devoted to becoming a world power. Japan invaded China to bolster its meager stock of natural resources. THE UNITED STATES AND BRITIAN reacted by making loans to China, providing covert military assistance, and instituting increasingly BROAD OF EMBARGOES of raw materials against Japan. THESE EMBARGOES would have eventually FORCED JAPAN to give up its newly conquered possession in China because the Japanese WOULD NOT HAVE ENOUGH FUEL to run their war machine; Japan was faced with the choice of withdrawing from China or going to war with the United States in order to conquer the "OIL" RESOURCES" of the Dutch East Indies. It chose the latter, and went ahead with plans for the Greater East Asia War in the Pacific.

Imagine if the ARAB STATES WOULD ALSO FORM A BLOCK ECONOMY AND EVENTUALLY EMBARGO OIL ON THE WEST?? IMAGINE IF MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA JOINS THEM?? THEN JOINING WITH THE CHINESE AND RUSSIAN BLOCK??

u see the big picture now... it's gonna be world war III.

Forming too many EU type kind of groups is not a good idea... EU is already enough add two or three of them block economies it is not good for stability.

if this happen other regions will also be encouraged to form their own block econmies...

>the middle east coalition block

>the chinese and russians and central asian block

>southeast asian block

>EU block

>south american block

>north american block

what else??? hmmmm :eek2:



I don't see how wartime alliances have anything to do with the peaceful integration that is the trend today. You need to start thinking outside of realpolitik. Wartime alliances were the product of necessity, and cooperation lay simply on the military level. There was absolutely no love lost between Stalin and his Western counterparts during the war. Besides, what was Japan going to do? While we all would have loved Japan if they were more amicable, they needed to expand. They would have invaded us and the rest of Southeast Asia with or without American trade. And Britain was in no position to dictate trade terms to Japan as they were far too busy dealing with Hitler who was at their doorstep. The age of the world wars are over, and the cold war too, is over. NATO is trying to redefine itself in today's world where nations start to matter less and less with the onset of globalization.

Anyway, what the ASEAN is trying to achieve is similar to the EU's goal. The integration will not only bring economic benefits, but it is also foster socio-cultural integration.

The point is, this is a harder form of integration wherein we actually get to know our neighbors. The thing with the integration of regional blocs is that experience in gathering together a motley group of ethicities, cultures, and religions in a single region to foster cooperation is key if we are going to start encouraging better ties with countries outside the bloc.

Btw, the Arabs already formed a cartel to control oil. Its called OPEC. While on one side, they have been hardasses sometimes with their control over oil prices, on the other hand, they have been able to protect small oil-rich countries from being exploited. OPEC has been in existence for decades now, and if they wanted to do something counter-productive and deprive the United States of oil, they would've done so a loooong time ago.

And using your logic of what will happen if there's an 'EU bloc' and 'SEA bloc' among a whole world of blocs, what makes you think that isn't happening already? We have an international system, and simplifying that system into blocs isn't going to change the fact that nations have to follow their national interests, and those interests will come into conflict. The only difference now is that there is less enthusiasm for all-out war nowadays, so we settle things on the negotiating table. Look at the WTO talks that collapsed. Do you think that things would be better if the developing countries did not take a united stand in rejecting a deal that was clearly disadvantageous to them!?

Though majority of OPEC's members are Arabs, OPEC is not an Arab cartel. Nigeria, Venezuela. Iran and Indonesia are not Arabs. OAPEC is the Arab cartel though I am not sure they are that fluid as an organization.

It takes two to tango so they say. Depriving the U.S. of the petroleum to grease its industrial machineries will surely weaken the U.S. a bit. It's not in the Saudi's interest though to see an emasculated U.S. The Saudis need the U.S. economically, politically and militarily for insurance.

^^

I've seen Fahrenheit 911 and I think it was explained there as to why the Saudis would not want to deprive the US of oil. I'm not sure though. :dunno:


With regards to an ASEAN block, if ever there would be an integration "politically" would the Philippines seem to be left out? I've noticed that we really are different from our Southeast Asian neighbors in terms of culture, religion, etc.

Japan in the 1930s was ruled by a militarist clique devoted to becoming a world power. Japan invaded China to bolster its meager stock of natural resources. THE UNITED STATES AND BRITIAN reacted by making loans to China, providing covert military assistance, and instituting increasingly BROAD OF EMBARGOES of raw materials against Japan. THESE EMBARGOES would have eventually FORCED JAPAN to give up its newly conquered possession in China because the Japanese WOULD NOT HAVE ENOUGH FUEL to run their war machine; Japan was faced with the choice of withdrawing from China or going to war with the United States in order to conquer the "OIL" RESOURCES" of the Dutch East Indies. It chose the latter, and went ahead with plans for the Greater East Asia War in the Pacific.

Imagine if the ARAB STATES WOULD ALSO FORM A BLOCK ECONOMY AND EVENTUALLY EMBARGO OIL ON THE WEST?? IMAGINE IF MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA JOINS THEM?? THEN JOINING WITH THE CHINESE AND RUSSIAN BLOCK??

u see the big picture now... it's gonna be world war III.

Forming too many EU type kind of groups is not a good idea... EU is already enough add two or three of them block economies it is not good for stability.

if this happen other regions will also be encouraged to form their own block econmies...

>the middle east coalition block

>the chinese and russians and central asian block

>southeast asian block

>EU block

>south american block

>north american block

what else??? hmmmm :eek2:

This block "theory" is crazy! Where'd you get this? You need a lot of analyzation to do before you could conclude things.

Japan in the 1930s was ruled by a militarist clique devoted to becoming a world power. Japan invaded China to bolster its meager stock of natural resources. THE UNITED STATES AND BRITIAN reacted by making loans to China, providing covert military assistance, and instituting increasingly BROAD OF EMBARGOES of raw materials against Japan. THESE EMBARGOES would have eventually FORCED JAPAN to give up its newly conquered possession in China because the Japanese WOULD NOT HAVE ENOUGH FUEL to run their war machine; Japan was faced with the choice of withdrawing from China or going to war with the United States in order to conquer the "OIL" RESOURCES" of the Dutch East Indies. It chose the latter, and went ahead with plans for the Greater East Asia War in the Pacific.

Imagine if the ARAB STATES WOULD ALSO FORM A BLOCK ECONOMY AND EVENTUALLY EMBARGO OIL ON THE WEST?? IMAGINE IF MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA JOINS THEM?? THEN JOINING WITH THE CHINESE AND RUSSIAN BLOCK??

u see the big picture now... it's gonna be world war III.

Forming too many EU type kind of groups is not a good idea... EU is already enough add two or three of them block economies it is not good for stability.

if this happen other regions will also be encouraged to form their own block econmies...

>the middle east coalition block

>the chinese and russians and central asian block

>southeast asian block

>EU block

>south american block

>north american block

what else??? hmmmm :eek2:


HUH??

The so called WW2 blocks was a product of COLONISATION. Do you think China/Korea/Taiwan etc were happy that JAPAN forced them into the 'JAPAN BLOCK'??

And besides, as Solblanc mentioned, the EU was formed to heal the wounds of the Great War. They needed each others help to get out of the economic and political devastion brought about by the war. Secondly, since their economies were weaker after the war, they could better compete in the world stage as one entity rather several small countries. I know the Germany France were big economies, but compared to the US, they were meager.

A unified ASEAN will bring the same benefit to individual ASEAN members. If we pool our resources together, then we can have a stronger footing and compete more effectively. The ratification of such treaties/agreements are done after the approval of the populace of each individual countries involved through referendum!

There are already several 'blocks' in place now: EU, Mercosur, ASEAN, African Union.

Another thing, it'd be difficult to form a MiddleEast coalition. Until the Israeli-Palestinian/Lebanese conflict and the Shia/Sunni divide are resolved, we can only dream of peace in that corner of the globe.

Another another thing (hehehehe), Canada has a very big oil deposit, and the US is helping to develop that resources, so the US' dependency on Middle east for oil may be waning. According to an article, Canada's oil deposit is second only to Saudi Arabia.

One asean nation would allow us to be more competitive...

Eh? The EU was formed partially to heal the wounds of the war. Exactly how would creating a more integrated ASEAN be detrimental to world peace? Besides, international economic blocks didn't cause WW2. Where did you get that idea?




We can go wherever we want among ASEAN countries, too (as tourists, though) An ASEAN currency can only be achieved through tight financial coordination between member states, like in the EU. It isn't about a strong or weak currency, but rather whether or not each member state is willing to give up its financial sovereignity to a supranational body.

A more integrated ASEAN is definitely the way to go, especially since we are losing out to China. The creation of a single ASEAN market would help us stay competitive, so on the economic front, I'm all for integration.

On the political front, however, the ASEAN countries are a motley bunch. I don't think that a unified foreign or domestic policy would be the best thing.


true true... :D

I think the ideal ASEAN will be a single block composed of:

10 ASEAN NATIONS

+Japan
+Korea
+Australia

Monetary Union and total economic integration as far as the ASEAN is concern isnt possible as of this decade...

to better understand, lets try to see Asean in different angles

Economy wise:
only Malaysia and Singapore has a strong and stable market...
disparity especially when you consider Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos is still to broad...

Political wise:
The Asean at the Moment still has a vey big problem on Myanmar's junta government

Socio-cultural:
religion plays a big factor. the difference between the Europe and Asean is that theres this binding factor in europe and thats they do share the same religion. turkey, an islamic country, is having a problem on their membership with the EU.

for now, we only have a free trade area. its still a long way...
we still need to have a costums union and a common market before having a monetaty union. i think that it would still take so much time. also, the ASEAN once said that its really not going to pattern itself from EU plus the fact that we have lots of Intl org such as the WTO that conflicts ASEANs vision.

by the way... the reason why ASEAN was made was to:
1.protect itself from Communism(Vietnam)
2.Territorial Integrity

actually, its ASEAN + 3

japan
south Korea
CHINA

for now, it would be possible if well just have RP, Brunie, Malaysia, Indo, Thailand and Singapore... even vietnam...
Similar to EU's Coal and Steel community which is pioneered by BENELUX, Italy, West Germany and France...

Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar should atleast developed more first before theyll be admitted...

hmm... I'd say it would be nice that our region be united as a macro-economic region... but... the joining of currencies... hmmm... EU did started the one-currency forseen as the beginning of the end.... hehehehe...

If South Korea and Japan joins.. it would be nice.. it'd be easy to get in to those countries without visas.. hehehehe... :D

i think by our countries regrouping like this... the richer member countries may be able to help the poorer member countries.... but i think this is very advantageous to member countries in the mainland as it is easier for backpackers to cross borders through buses and trains and without air travel needed....

I'm Vietnamese and wondering about that too....why ASIAN lets Vietnam in?...the economy is picking up, but it's still a communist country.

ps. but when you say "protect itself from communism" you should include China and north korea too.......VN stands alone.......feels so lonely hehe

its because we want to have a collective security and greater economic relationship...
communism isnt really an issue for admission...
asean serves as a forum....

I'm Vietnamese and wondering about that too....why ASIAN lets Vietnam in?...the economy is picking up, but it's still a communist country.

ps. but when you say "protect itself from communism" you should include China and north korea too.......VN stands alone.......feels so lonely hehe

:) Socialism and Communism was just superficial and purely political same as Democracy thay are all run by the same engine "Capitalism" under the disguise of their so called pro-poor principles... :)

I'm Vietnamese and wondering about that too....why ASIAN lets Vietnam in?...the economy is picking up, but it's still a communist country.

ps. but when you say "protect itself from communism" you should include China and north korea too.......VN stands alone.......feels so lonely hehe

Laos is also communist, y'know :)

The "protection against communism" thingamajig was a product of its times. Back then, the Cold War was on, and the United States liked to exert its influence in the region (unfortunately, the Vietnamese were most adversely affected by US "influence")

Anyway, the Cold War eventually ended, and Communism just wasn't much of an issue anymore. In today's ASEAN texts, the "ASEAN way" refers to strict non-interference, and letting other nations deal with their own internal issues. There's no more mention of anti-communism.

Another factor for Vietnam's entry into ASEAN was the general fear of China at the time. The other ASEAN nations at the time felt that if Vietnam can hold its own against the United States, they can do so against China, so why not be friendlier?

The main reason why the ASEAN included Indochina and Myanmar is because the other members wanted all of the countries in SEA to be included it is one of the priorities of ASEAN. But it doesn't mean that it would be easy, esp now, to build a supranational organization such as the EU in this part of the world. That dream is still far from becoming a reality. So I'm really wondering (laughing, actually) why someone predicted that blocks would be formed instantaneously as if countries are joining a fraternity.

BTW, ASEAN has still no charter so the fear or excitement of having an "integrated" (note that in ASEAN documents integration is so meticulously used since it is very contentious) ASEAN is still a very long way to go. The hindrances to full integration are: 1. ASEAN countries are not like EU countries in the sense that they do not believe in the concept of "supranationalism." ASEAN countries are not yet ready in letting higher institutions in ASEAN (eg High Council) to beat them when they are not weel-behaved. They still resort to bilateral talks to resolve disputes. Sometimes, and very ironically, ASEAN countries (eg MAS and IND) would rather resolve their disputes in institutions that are outside ASEAN such as the ICJ. 2. Result of this is that rule of law in ASEAN is not yet practiced since the ASEAN charter is not yet established. 3. ASEAN countries have an aversion to institutions.

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Having a single currency, single parliament, whatever for ASEAN doesn't happen overnight and this is the reason why it's being worked out now. I think there's a timeline for this, maybe say, in 20 years time.

I am in favor of this. In fact, I would very much be in favor if the integration would go beyond political borders.

Then United States was the first Super-nation of the modern world. The Soviet Union tried to provide a counter weight but collapsed under its idealist/communist regime. Now the EU is nearing towards becoming a Super-nation itself by slowly legislating complete economic, political & social integration. No doubt that ASEAN is next in line...Its just a matter of time

I predict by 2100 ASEAN will not just be economically, politically and socially integrated but will become one country. Europe will also become one entity by around 2050. It is not just for because of economic competitiveness against the superpowers of the future China, USA and India but for military protection against them.

Hopefully Japan & Korea will be fully integrated with our regional cooperation soon so that by that time ASEAN will trully be a Superpower to reckon with. I also see the same integration in the Middle East+central asia and Africa. Hopefully this trend of integration into Super-nations will encourage a check-&-balance in the world.

^^

What if ASEAN integrates with China and Japan? East Asian Community I think..

By the way I'm confused as to why Russia has not joined the EU.

Japan can integrate with the ASEAN but CHINA is a future Superpower that can look out for itself with or w/o an ally. Australia can even be given a chance to be integrated but I can't see China or seeking integration with other East Asian Nations or ASEAN because they are big enough in land area & population.

I actually see different Integrations:

Asia:

ASEAN = South East Asian Nations, Japan, Korea (May integrate Oceania)
Oceania = Australia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand
Middle Asia = Islamic Middle East, Pakistan
China = Mainland China, Taiwan, Macau, HK
India = Mainland India, Sri Lanka

Europe:

EU = Present Western European Nations
Eurasia= Some Eastern European Countries, Russia, Turkey, Central Asia

Africa:

African Union = All of Africa

America:

USA = Mainland USA, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska
Latin America = South America, Central America
Canada

*I think some countries will remain unintegrated though, they will be like small NEUTRAL nations

Socio-cultural:
religion plays a big factor. the difference between the Europe and Asean is that theres this binding factor in europe and thats they do share the same religion. turkey, an islamic country, is having a problem on their membership with the EU.

Talks between the EU and the government of Turkey has been done and things are going smoothly. Actually, even before, Turkey was an "almost-there" member of the EU. Another small step is the only thing needed for Turkey to be a full member of the EU.

ps. but when you say "protect itself from communism" you should include China and north korea too.......VN stands alone.......feels so lonely hehe

China, as of this moment, isn't wholly communist. Political parties that have sprouted in mainland China are rallying for democracy.

_____

Having a supranational government for the ASEAN+3 is a very big matter for SEA. Many factors that have to be considered are mostly negative in our present status compared to that of the European Union. Not only politically- and economically-wise, but also culturally wise. Over and over again, political bickering in many parts of SEA is moving like a cycle. The Philippines' former-president Estrada has been ousted due to alledged corrupt practices, and now PGMA is also being tried of the same accusation and of politically-stereotyped killings. Thailand's PM has been moved out of seat. Myanmar's junta government is not stopping, as a forumer has said. Indonesia's former dictator that has just been unseated, but still has powers over concurrent leaders of their country.

ASEAN Sets Ambitious 2015 Date for Union
18 Sep 2006 World Politics Watch Exclusive

BANGOK, Thailand -- The shadow of China and India looming over them is propelling ten much smaller nations of Southeast Asia to fast-track their heady dream of creating a European-style union -- a single market and, perhaps, some form of political cohesiveness.

The prospects are tantalizingly attractive: a region of 530 million people stretching from the Bay of Bengal and the borders of India to the west Pacific, competing against the economic juggernauts of China and India for foreign investment and a place at the global decision-making dinner table, instead of being one of the dishes.

But a new target date for union by 2015, five years earlier than previously envisaged, promises to be a tough deadline for ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

For some observers, both inside and outside ASEAN, a European Union-like integration goal was always going to be difficult, if not impossible, even by 2020 -- a date which was agreed barely three years ago.

ASEAN brings together countries as small and as first-world developed as Singapore, and as big and as under-developed as Indonesia. In between stand basket cases Laos and Cambodia, and the tragic-comic military junta of Burma, whose leaders make state decisions on the advice of whacky astrologers.

Given such huge disparities -- never mind the fierce economic nationalism and mountains of protective tariffs -- it's hard to dismiss the derisory view in some quarters that ASEAN's leaders who dreamed up this fast-track integration idea must have fallen down the rabbit hole into Alice's Wonderland.

But progress has speeded up in recent times, after ASEAN had been little more than an irrelevant talking club for so much of its 39-year history.

There been improvements in economic, financial and security relations between the member states, and a growing number of free trade agreements are being fashioned with outside countries, not least China.

The opening up of Vietnam, the end of dictatorship in Indonesia, and the demise of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia have all played a part in making this developing region seem more serious. Until the 1997 financial crash, ASEAN was at the heart of the so-called tiger economies boom, even though much of that turned out to have been built on sand.

But while the Europeans make much of their common Christian cultural heritage and shared values in helping to form the bedrock of the European Union, ASEAN can make few if any similar claims.

Limited visa-free movement within ASEAN borders -- allowing citizens of member countries cross-border travel on demand for up to two weeks -- is revolutionary, but still in the process of being ratified by all ten countries. It's a big step for ASEAN but a very long way from an open market. In any case, at this stage in the development of the AEC (ASEAN Economic Community) Thais, for example, have about as much interest in what goes on 1,500 miles away in Manila as they do in Alaska.

Thailand is deeply Buddhist, much of the Philippines carries the Christian beliefs bestowed on them by 400 years of Spanish colonialism, while sprawling across the breadth of the ASEAN dream are more than 200 Indonesian Muslims.

Air travel is growing but still in its expensive infancy in terms of bringing the ASEAN countries physically closer. But the three member countries most likely to play the Germany-France role in pushing integration -- Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore -- have in the past two years permitted budget airlines to establish and begin to flourish.

But a European-style common market means much more than cheap airline travel. Dr. Denis Hew, one of the region's leading experts on ASEAN and a senior fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies Singapore (ISEAS), says the group -- Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, the Philippines, Singapore and tiny Brunei -- is still way off target.

"In reality, ASEAN has not even taken its first step to reach this lofty goal," he wrote after ASEAN announced its 2015 objective. "In a common market, there is complete freedom of internal trade and free mobility of capital and labor plus the harmonization of all laws, regulations and taxes. As it stands, ASEAN governments are not even prepared to establish a customs union let alone a common market. Establishing a customs union is regarded as a critical first step."

Hew says the ASEAN countries need to undertake "an awful lot of work" to integrate their economies, not least strengthening the organization that will have to take charge of coordinating integration policies -- the Jakarta-based ASEAN Secretariat, which might be loosely compared with the much more powerful engine of change in Europe, the European Commission.

The recent progress in 12 priority business sectors chosen for closer integration -- ranging from textiles to transport -- has been slow "due to a lack of commitment and poor coordination," Hew says.

Even as ASEAN's trade ministers were making lofty statements about the 2015 goal, Thailand and neighbor Malaysia were falling out over car manufacturing rivalries and import tariffs. And Indonesian businessmen and Filipino politicians separately expressed doubts about their countries' readiness.

Jørgen Ørstrøm Møller, a former Danish ambassador to Singapore turned academic and commentator, says: "There must be a hard core of member states determined to drive the integration, supported by suitable institutional machinery."

Møller, the author of a book to be published by ISEAS detailing the European experience as a guide for others to follow, adds: "The integration must justify itself in the eyes of the population by offering solutions to the problems they face in their daily life."

He says it remains unresolved within ASEAN as to which model the proposed economic union might follow: the free-booting Anglo-American one or the more socially minded Franco-German version.

In reality, the ASEAN countries are an odd mix of varying degrees of democratic but often authoritarian government, two communist-run regimes, and one military dictatorship. In most member states corruption is endemic.

ASEAN has been debating human rights for 13 years and recently held its fifth annual meeting to discuss a so-called ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism. Nothing was definitively decided, mainly because the group is saddled with an old policy of non-interference in member countries' internal affairs, no matter what goes on.

Not one ASEAN country has a clear conscience on human rights within its borders. Malaysia, for example, which hosted the latest rights gathering, uses an old British colonial law to detain people indefinitely without trial. Corruption-free, law-abiding Singapore is in effect a one-party state with a muzzled media. The government there will brook no street protests during this week's IMF-World Bank meetings and has already deported or barred noted anti-IMF activists.

And these are among the most democratic ASEAN members.

ASEAN has been more successful as a trading block in striking deals with partners outside. It is developing a free trade agreement (FTA) with China and is talking along similar lines to Australia, South Korea and, more significantly, the European Union. Preliminary talks have also been held with the United States.

A free trade deal with the European Union is seen by leading ASEAN economies, such as Thailand, as vital for drawing in foreign investors who are now choosing China and, to a lesser extent, India. Europe contributes about 35 percent of the annual foreign investment flow into ASEAN.

Burma promises to be a hindrance, however. Europe has imposed trade sanctions against the military-ruled country over its poor human rights record, and just this month expressed doubts about an FTA.

ASEAN's trade with China increased more than 23 percent last year to reach $130 billion, closing in on the U.S.-ASEAN total of $150 billion. But while Europe's trade with China, Japan and South Korea has climbed over the last ten years, it has stagnated with Southeast Asia.

The plan to bring forward economic integration to 2015, proposed by ASEAN's trade ministers, is still subject to final approval by all ten governments at a summit to be held in Cebu in the Philippines next December.

In the end, ASEAN may evolve on a two-track system. Analysts suggest that several of the ten countries, notably Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, might push forward with some form of integration in the same way that Germany, France and Belgium led the way in Europe -- with the others limping along behind.

Yes , there surely are many challenges ahead for ASEAN. But the writing is on the wall for this I believe. If one looks at the economic numbers specially for the oldest ASEAN members but the Philippines in particular. Economic intergration WITH CHINA looks inevitable. If we are not to be a vassal state or chinese satellite, we must push for a stronger regional subgrouping beginning with the countries which are strongest and closest meaning the original ASEAN5 plus Brunei maybe Vietnam (highly doubtful with their current system though). This would provide the counter balance needed to engage a rising superpower like china. Already the most succesfull regional companies here and in the region increasingly look at the whole market for South EAst Asia in the medium term plans. The future belongs to those who fully prepare for this.

Bump! :colgate:

What would this new currency be called?

Maphilindovietcambothai? haha...

Well, the entire region has Sanskrit/Hindu roots (even the Philippines, although the one with the least amount left culturally). Why not focus on that? Why not call the name of the new currency using a Sanskrit word.

Well, I'll just be glad if our version of the new currency will have pictures of our heroes and history on it and will be seen throughout the region.

Let's say we call it "ASIAN".

^^ :wtf: Be copycats to the Europeans? :doh:

^^Too soon. ASEAN + 3 is much bigger and much more diverse than EC when they starteed talking about this. Monetary Policy will be taken out of governments hands, I can't imagine some countries (i.e. china) giving up such important controls anytime soon with the current political system they have. The bigger ASEANies like us, IND, THai, Mal , sing and Bru , maybe possible. We're not to far from one another in economic size and integration, but just thinking of how to integreate Japan for example which is several times bigger than ASEAN in economic/financial terms looks tough. Am not saying it's a good idea but it's much easier said than done.


i've been reading all replies for this thread, and as i see it, you have a better understanding about Economics in general. Congrats, very well said/written!!! :applause: :applause: :applause:

pwede ba to? mas advanced kasi yung economy ng ibang ASEAN compared to others, pag nag-integrate tayo sa iisang currency, di ba maapektahan yung economy nila?

Let's say we call it "ASIAN".

Yeah. We can call it that, but since this currency is just for SE Asia and not all of Asia, there just might be a problem with calling it that.

the same EURO-dilemma, nevertheless it was called "Euro" (to pave way for future economic expansion/integration :) )

Yeah. We can call it that, but since this currency is just for SE Asia and not all of Asia, there just might be a problem with calling it that.

yes, after fulfilling the so called "Convergence Criteria (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convergence_criteria)". :)



pwede ba to? mas advanced kasi yung economy ng ibang ASEAN compared to others, pag nag-integrate tayo sa iisang currency, di ba maapektahan yung economy nila?

:wtf: there's nothing wrong with copying for as long as you're copying the right thing (that is if you mean the Euro monetary system), otherwise blurt out your wonderful original ideas !!!

^^ :wtf: Be copycats to the Europeans? :doh:

I actually believe our so called commonality and heritage with the latin american countries is over rated.

You know, on the other hand I actually think it is underrated.

:wtf: there's nothing wrong with copying for as long as you're copying the right thing (that is if you mean the Euro monetary system), otherwise blurt out your wonderful original ideas !!!

Europe have entirely different issues to deal with so why copy their model?
If Asia is to adopt a common currency similar to Europe, they have to overcome many obstacles that prevent them from achieving that level of unity. It took decades for European countries to establish a single currency considering that they have more in common with economy, politics, history and culture. What can we expect from a more disconnect Asian states? Materializing the concept of a single Asian currency is almost next to impossible.

yes, after fulfilling the so called "Convergence Criteria (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convergence_criteria)". :)

i see...so similar ba yung criteria na gagamitin natin, o dapat bang gumawa ng iba? IMO, pag ganun ang ginamit, mukhang di ata pasok ang pinas...

in my opinion, pwede pa rin... kaya lang matatali tayo sa commitments (taming of fiscal policies, inflation, deficits, etc...)... on the other hand... the likes of Soros will have a hard time "manipulating" the exchange rates :hahaha: more or less (i guess) the same criteria will be used, again copying the emu system is not bad,IMO :) .......

i see...so similar ba yung criteria na gagamitin natin, o dapat bang gumawa ng iba? IMO, pag ganun ang ginamit, mukhang di ata pasok ang pinas...

there's so much to learn from "a priori" experience... unless you want to reinvent everything....

with regards to the issue of european commonality (and that comparing to the "commonality of asian cultures".... perhaps you need to rethink your position (no offense meant pareng Askal82) ..


last but not least, a single currency is not impossible to achieve, in such a way that ASEAN (SEATO) was not impossible to form.... :)



Europe have entirely different issues to deal with so why copy their model?
If Asia is to adopt a common currency similar to Europe, they have to overcome many obstacles that prevent them from achieving that level of unity. It took decades for European countries to establish a single currency considering that they have more in common with economy, politics, history and culture. What can we expect from a more disconnect Asian states? Materializing the concept of a single Asian currency is almost next to impossible.

there's so much to learn from "a priori" experience... unless you want to reinvent everything....

with regards to the issue of european commonality (and that comparing to the "commonality of asian cultures".... perhaps you need to rethink your position (no offense meant pareng Askal82) ..


last but not least, a single currency is not impossible to achieve, in such a way that ASEAN (SEATO) was not impossible to form.... :)

The Asian countries have to learn from European experience yet they have to reinvent it at the same time to make it work for all of them. European situation is entirely different from us. All EU members have lesser income disparities and have higher standards of living to begin with in contrast with the Asian states. . I'm not saying its impossible however, it's like conquering Mount Everest.

it seems like we are on the same train of thought now ... ;)

The Asian countries have to learn from European experience yet they have to reinvent it at the same time to make it work for all of them. European situation is entirely different from us. All EU members have lesser income disparities and have higher standards of living to begin with in contrast with the Asian states. . I'm not saying its impossible however, it's like conquering Mount Everest.

Asean single currency still a long way off, says ADB chief

The Philippine Star 01/14/2007

CEBU CITY –Southeast Asia’s prospects for economic integration are good but any single currency is many years away, the president of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said yesterday.

The 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has already achieved "substantial economic integration," Haruhiko Kuroda said at the sidelines of the bloc’s annual summit being held here.

The group is looking to create a free-trade zone by 2015, five years earlier than first planned, to help cope with the growing economic challenge of regional heavyweights China and India.

Kuroda said that while ASEAN aims for that goal, the formation of a single currency unit, similar to the euro in Europe, was a long way off.

"It’s a natural development for ASEAN but it will not be easy. Such a move will be a major political challenge for ASEAN," he said.

Talk about a single currency union for ASEAN has gone on for years and gained momentum following the 1997 Asian financial crisis, but it is no longer seen as a high priority within the bloc.

He said the crisis has "now been blown away and most countries within the region are seeing substantial economic growth."

The Manila-based ADB is forecasting East Asian growth to be around 4.4 percent this year, slightly lower than the 4.9 percent for 2006.

Kuroda said that although economies were growing, ASEAN still faced many challenges – and that one of the biggest was income disparity between the rich and poor states within the bloc.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. It accounts for about one-sixth of the world’s population.

At the same time, Kuroda said he does not expect the dollar to fall this year due to healthy US economic growth of 2.5 percent or more from 2006.

"Given the strong, continued economic growth in the United States, given very stable, resilient financial markets in the US, I do not see an imminent dollar fall," he said.

"I do not expect a dollar fall this year. Of course, they have a large current account deficit and the dollar may eventually fall vis-a-vis non-dollar currencies."

Markets had expected the greenback to lose ground over the next six months but a string of surprisingly strong fourth quarter US economic reports pushed it to one-and-a-half-month highs against the euro this month.

The dollar gave up some gains on Friday as traders bet a three-day rally was overdone.

Some economists think it needs to decline by 30 to 40 percent in trade-weighted terms in order for the United States to substantially trim its current account deficit.

Last month, Masahiro Kawai, Kuroda’s special adviser, predicted that the dollar would decline further and said Asian economies should coordinate their currency movements so they could appreciate in unison.

But Kuroda said such currency cooperation was not an imminent prospect despite ASEAN accelerating its goal of an economic community to 2015.

"That currency cooperation may take more time to actually be done," said Kuroda, adding that he was optimistic Southeast Asian countries could achieve their goal of a single market by 2015.

He said he was relatively optimistic about economic growth in Thailand this year despite recent moves to limit short-term capital inflows and warned that the problem of excessive inflows was an international one.

"This is a regional, global issue, how to manage excessive, sometimes speculative capital. Capital inflows are a very delicate and difficult issue."

"I understand that nowadays many economists, probably including the IMF economists, accept the notion that in some cases, capital controls, particularly capital inflow controls, not outflow controls, may be legitimate."

He declined to comment on the impact of Bangkok’s clampdown on foreign ownership laws this week on 2007 economic growth, saying the legislation had yet to be finalized.

"The Thai economy will continue to grow at four or five percent or even more than that in a sustainable manner this year."

In September, the ADB issued a forecast of four percent growth for the Thai economy in 2007, down from a previous estimate of 5.5 percent annual growth.

Kuroda also repeated the ADB view that China would grow at around 9.5 percent in 2007 from 10.5 percent a year ago. – AFP

sana ako ang isa sa mga mukha sa pera
dont worry guys, it isnt late for me to become presidente el filipinas

it would be nice to have a single currency for the asia pacific region...

That will be very complicated if the whole asia-pacific region will be taken into consideration. ASEAN + 3 pa nga lang hirap na, pano pa kaya kung Asia-Pacific di ba?

not a good idea and should not even be an idea because its an old idea with already lukewarm results, such as the euro. its funny like how when a group or side seems to be like they are unaware that something in that idea or process has already happened and with not so favorable results and feedback. then they go on to bring up the exact idea.

^^ The "idea" being? :lol: :jk: :nocrook:

you're very funny *cough cough* :)

not a good idea and should not even be an idea because its an old idea with already lukewarm results, such as the euro. its funny like how when a group or side seems to be like they are unaware that something in that idea or process has already happened and with not so favorable results and feedback. then they go on to bring up the exact idea.

I'm kinda confused with your argument. Hehe. Can you break that three very long sentences into smaller sentences, if you don't mind?:)

Good idea. How and why?

-Will form the largest bloc of economies of scale to balance EU and North American power thru common currency.
- Will not be vulnerable to "divide and rule" or "me against you" tactics, common to western traits provided these will be written and embodied in nations' constitution, treaties, and binding agreements.
- The "cheap labor" and "cheap source" of raw materials for EU and North America will be closed to these economic powers provided EU and North America opens up similarly in reciprocity.
- A single Asian Currency will enable capital accumulation in the region back up by Myanmar's, China's, or Indonesia's, or Malaysian's, or Vietnam's abundance of oil and gas, Japan's equipment, and abundance of necessary raw, marine and mineral resources.
-- many more advantages in terms of education, military, finance, and geopolitical, etc.


Asian Currency Unit
Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Vietnam, the Philippines + China, Japan and South Korea

Good idea or not? I actually have no idea how Europeans accepted Euro in 2000. I would appreciate insights and your opinion regarding this issue. :)



ADB welcomes plans by ASEAN+3 to look at single currency
Posted: 6:41 PM | May 05, 2006

HYDERABAD, India--The Asian Development Bank welcomed Friday an announcement by ASEAN members along with China, Japan and South Korea that they would consider a single Asian currency similar to the euro.

"We highly welcome a study by ASEAN+3 governments (Japan, China and South Korea) on a regional monetary unit," said Masahiro Kawai, head of the bank's unit of Regional Economic Cooperation and Integration.

"We will support ASEAN+3 governments in this area in any way possible," he said in the southern high-tech Indian city of Hyderabad where the ADB was holding its annual general meeting.

The ADB has been spearheading a proposal for the creation of an Asian currency unit or ACU as part of a bid to bolster monetary stability, spur regional economic growth and even out disparities.

"We have asked our deputies to conduct a study on the future of the regional currency unit," South Korean Finance Minister Han Duck-Soo said Thursday ahead of the formal start of the ADB talks here.

"We are conducting the study at the level of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) along with China, Japan and Korea," he said.

ASEAN is made up of Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Vietnam and the Philippines.

ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda told a seminar on Asian economic integration the region's options included "European-style comprehensive and deep integration with a common trade and monetary policy" or the North American path of a free trade area.

"The European style of integration seems to have the greatest potential for realizing the dynamic benefits of a common trade area and monetary policy," he said Thursday.

As in the case of the euro, the first step toward a common currency unit would be coordination of foreign exchange policies.

The ADB said last year it planned to create a theoretical currency unit made up of a basket of Asian currencies that would be similar to Europe's Ecu which eventually became the euro.

The theoretical unit would provide a benchmark for Asian countries allowing them to see how much their currency deviated from it.

Dream on ASEAN

How do you pronounce the acronym for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations?

While covering the summit last weekend, the reporters and anchors of one network pronounced ASEAN as “Ah-SEE-Yan.” Those of another network preferred “ASH-Yan” and “AH-Shan.” One correspondent delivered a live report using all three variations—including one more that took me a second or two to figure out.

The rapid decline in the quality of the spoken word, whether in English or Tagalog, is in direct proportion to the phonetic and grammatical—not to mention, factual—recklessness that marks broadcast reportage in the Philippines. Is it any wonder then that despite the flood of verbiage that rushes out of radio and television, Filipinos far too often end up more confused than enlightened by self-styled broadcast journalists?

But that’s another story.

In any case, the evident lack of agreement among our broadcasters over the correct pronunciation of “ASEAN” is but one more indication of how much Filipinos value this 10-nation regional grouping. And it is not much, apparently.

Sure, Filipinos can travel to Singapore, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and other regional destinations without a visa. For most of us, however, visa-free travel is the only benefit arising out of our country’s membership in the regional grouping.

The nationals of other ASEAN members probably feel that way, too.

Who benefits from ASEAN?

The association faces a huge challenge in persuading the populations of Southeast Asia that their countries’ ASEAN membership is important to them. The problem is that discussions in its summits and other meetings have, so far, involved only government officials and businessmen.

The other voices in the region have been effectively silenced. Last weekend, for instance, no protesters were allowed to go near the summit venue. This happened in a nation that claims to be the most democratic in Southeast Asia.

In the presummit meetings, civil society was able to have its views heard only by the so-called Eminent Persons Groups. Mercifully, the EPG echoed the demand for the release of the prodemocracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma. “ Myanmar ” is a fabrication of that country’s current military leaders.

If ASEAN is to become truly meaningful to the vast majority of its 550 million people, it must open its doors wider and allow fresh views to invigorate its deliberations.

This ASEAN must learn to do if it is to graduate from its present status as the old-boy network of Southeast Asia ’s political and economic elite.

Economic integration

Despite its postponement due to a weather disturbance—wink, wink—the 12th ASEAN Summit was held with nary a complaint from the heads of state/government and their delegations that went to Cebu.

For this the organizers of the highest-level meeting in Southeast Asia as well as the dialogues ASEAN leaders held with their counterparts from East Asia, South Asia and the countries Down Under deserve commendation. So do the officials and people of Cebu who treated their foreign guests to the legendary Visayan hospitality.

The summit produced four declarations and a resolution, including one that should result in an ASEAN Charter—40 years after the organization was founded. However, what concerned the summiteers most was economic integration, the process of turning ASEAN into a unified market similar to the European Union.

Proponents of economic integration point out that Southeast Asia is home to over half a billion people, with a combined gross domestic product valued at $1 trillion. All around the region are some of the world’s most dynamic economies.

Japan has proposed turning ASEAN into the hub of a broader East Asian Free-Trade Area (EAFTA), made up of its 10 member-states along with China, South Korea and Japan. The EAFTA would have a total GDP larger than North Ame*rica and Europe.

But how could EAFTA take shape when even the ASEAN Free-Trade Area, which adopted a Common Effective Preferential Tariff regime in the 1990s, has done little to spur economic integration in the region?

Former Sen. Wigberto Tañada pointed out in a recent paper: “Despite the AFTA-CEPT and the various integration projects, the growth of intra-ASEAN trade or trading among ASEAN members is much less than the growth of extra-ASEAN trade or trade by the individual ASEAN countries with those outside the ASEAN.”

Tañada, lead convener of the Free-Trade Alliance, added: “The AFTA-CEPT projects account for less than five percent of the intra-ASEAN trade, meaning member countries did not and still do not avail [themselves] of the so-called preferential tariffs under AFTA-CEPT.”

Competition among ASEAN countries that produce basically the same set of goods and the uneven economic development of member-states are the biggest impediments to integration.

Economic integration is the stuff that the dreams of free traders are made of. In the case of ASEAN, they need to dream on some more.

I think I know what Intramuros is saying, that these leaders are not learning from mistakes. And I agree, but this has been what I've been feeling. Look at the Euro money. It only caused confusion and more damage than good. For example, even though the currency became the same for both Portugal and France, when the Euro went into effect, there became a confusion because the price of let's say, milk was much higher in Portugal and the thing is that the price had actually risen over there compared to when the price was under Portuguese Escudo. Living became more expensive with the Euro. But a big one is tourism. Before, many people could afford going to european countries because of their different and low exchange rates. For example, a tourist from country "X" could have an affordable vacation to Italy because "X" gained with their money over the Italian Lira. Now, it's reversed. "X" would have to pay more for a Euro. Industry was hurt as well because China and other cheaper countries produced similar goods of theirs, but for cheaper price. That meant loss of work and industry. Italian shoes is one that's suffering, and we know their shoe industry is an identity. There is now a movement in Italy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Euro_Movement
http://www.noeuro.it/

Also, look at the NAFTA and its "free trade." It looked historical and promising, but it went nowhere really. It was supposed to bring the gap smaller. The only ones who benefitted were the big corporations and the ones who were already wealthy. Meanwhile, the little guys, the ones who worked to produce the goods, ended up giving away more of their goods for the same or for less. And companies have been finished due to losing to other cheaper sources. Something like this, but the point is that it didn't work out.

^^ imo, there are better sources than wikipedia :cheers: btw, euro is working well :cheers:

^^ I also think that the euro is doing good. Probably, ThisFire's saying that the euro did badly when it just started. So did the French Republic when it just broke its traditional monarchy to give freedom to peasants during the 18th century. But look at the euro and France now. Great, right?

^^ ^^ yes!!!! the euro is unperturbed by the dollar's current volatility.... slovenia will be next to join the euro zone.... who said that it has failed? :cheers:

I remember we had an ASEAN thread but I can't find it. If one exists and this doubles just merge it Mods.

This is thread is for discussing issues regarding the Association of South East Asian Nations. As a framework similar to the EU. The Association's goal is to prevent wars, foster greater wealth through economic integration among it's members. Among the biggest projects currently are the writing of a constitution for all member nations which would be the basis for interaction among the states using rule of law. Another great thrust is economic integration which would build a much larger market for ASEAN countries and eventually key trading partnes, China, Korea and Japan. Eventually this would lead to Monetary unity using only one unified currency to make transactions more effecient.

The article below illustrates one of the key steps needed to be undertaken by the Republic to achieve this vision.


Vol. XX, No. 229
Tuesday, June 19, 2007 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Today’s Headlines
Tariff cuts approved
Under ASEAN free trade deal

The elimination of tariff barriers in Southeast Asia is nearer to completion following President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s approval of Philippine rate reductions under a regional free trade agreement.

The government expects Philippine exporters to gain from free trade deals.

With the issuance of Executive Order (EO) 617, import duties on over 8,000 tariff lines, or 71% of all goods traded in the region, have been removed, Tariff Commission Chairman Edgardo B. Abon said.

The region began embarking on economic integration in 1992 when the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) established a free trade area (AFTA). The Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) scheme required that duties levied on a wide range of products be brought down to no more than 5% and eventually to zero.

The free trade agreement covers all manufactured and agricultural products save for 734 tariff lines in a General Exception List which are permanently excluded for reasons of national security; protection of human, animal or plant life and health; and are of artistic, historic and archaeological value.

A framework agreement for the integration of priority sectors, signed in Vientiane in November 2004, provided that the ASEAN 6 (Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand) should eliminate by January 2007 "all CEPT rates of products (other than those in the sensitive, highly sensitive and general exception lists) covered by the individual ASEAN Sectoral Integration Protocols, except those listed in accompanying negative lists to the Protocols."

This agreement identified 11 priority sectors: agro-based products, air travel, automotive, e-ASEAN, electronics, fisheries, healthcare, rubber-based products, textiles and apparel, tourism, and wood-based products.

The ASEAN 6 has until 2010 to complete liberalization while Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam were given until 2018.

Based on Tariff Commission data, 8,136 lines out of the 11,444 total are no longer charged duties. Another 2,205, or about 19%, have a corresponding 5% tariff rate; 911 lines, or 8%, are levied 3%, and 121 lines have a 1% rate.

Less than one percent of all the products covered continue to have 20-40% rates.

"Reduction of CEPT rates on sensitive products to 0-5% for ASEAN 6 will commence in 2010," Mr. Abon said. The sensitive list includes rice.

The Philippines, meanwhile, is also ready to grant reciprocal tariff treatment to products in the sensitive track of the ASEAN-China free trade area (ACFTA) under a trade in goods agreement.

In EO 618, Mrs. Arroyo directed that this be accorded "after a notification has been received from the party/parties that the rates of duty of products in its sensitive track are at 10% and below."

Mr. Abon said the sensitive track covers 2,121 tariff lines ranging from meat and meat products to automobile parts and accessories.

"Progressive elimination of tariffs on products included in the sensitive track of the ACFTA products will be from 2012 to 2018. For those products considered as highly sensitive, tariffs will be reduced by 50% in 2015," he explained.

By 2018, tariffs of products in the sensitive list should not exceed 5%.

The ASEAN-China trading bloc is described as the world’s biggest, spanning 1.7 billion consumers and a combined gross domestic product of approximately $2 trillion.

To fast-track implementation of the agreement, an early harvest program was initiated among the ASEAN 6 and China to eliminate duties on certain products by 2006. Covered were live animals, meat and edible meat offal, fish, dairy produce, other animal products, live trees, edible vegetables, and edible fruits and nuts.

Mr. Abon said these commitments are "equally favorable" to the countries involved in terms of trade, investment and employment.

"For the Philippines, opening up our market to ASEAN and China will attract more investments and will benefit Philippine exporters in specific industry sectors," he said.

"Over time, business will grow, giving more and better jobs to people. Likewise, there will be an increase in investments as well as in research and development, thus promoting technological innovation," he added.

Mr. Abon said the progressive elimination of tariffs doubled the country’s exports to China to $4.5 billion in 2005 from $2.5 billion in 2004.

On the whole, trade arrangements have resulted in "greater economic activity" within the region and with China, Mr. Abon added. — Josefa L. Cagoco

The original thread: ASEAN + 3 Monetary Union (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=346908&highlight=ASEAN) :colgate:

Should the threads be merged?

if wer goin to place ASEAN in the world economy, it will be at 6th place.

this would require careful study,... I'd rather not see prices going up all of a sudden ...

if wer goin to place ASEAN in the world economy, it will be at 6th place.

Could be... South East Asian region is one of the richest areas in the world in terms of resources (natural and manpower)...

bakit kasama yung 3??? nakikisawsaw yata ah! I think the emergence of the ASEAN economies will be suffice without the sawsaw 3! eh may parang may org naman rin sila ah

OK lang ang Asean Monetary union basta hindi kasali ang Thailand. :bash:

Baka magka-galis ang Piso kapag mapakatabi ang Baht. Nuong panahon ni presidente el tabako, wala naman prolema ang piso pero yung baht bumagsak. Ayon, sinama pabagsak ang piso.

Eh ngayon ang daming ng problemang pulitikal ng thailand, baka isama na naman tayo sa hukay ng mga yan.

^^Hay hindi naman siguro ganyan. Kapag sa isang grupo may isang iniwan, panget yon. Imaginin mo kapag inexclude ang Pilipinas dahil sa "Äbu Sayyaf, NPA at extra judicial killings".

^^ IMO whatever happens to the major world economies, the Philippines will be affected one way or the other... its a chain reaction... especially when RP has a higher statistics for Import than Export... In the Asian Financial Crisis of the late 90's with S.E. Asia being the fastest growing region in the world, it so happened that the booming economy of Thailand was the one that triggered the crisis... it could have been Vietnam or China or Canada (then it would have been N. American financial crisis)... In the past, there was also talk about "overheating" of China's economy, and for sure, we will be affected by this.

In these modern times, where each country's economy is closely connected to the other, any movements, good or bad will have a global effect --- short or long term.

Take for example the looming embargo on Iran. If it should happen, oil prices will rise because the countries which imports oil from Iran will look to buy somewhere else and thus affect the flow of supply and demand...

Or if Brazil's economy would be in trouble, for sure some minerals (i.e. timber, steel, etc.) would become scarce, and therefore trigger another global imbalance.

Its a complicated discussion which I'm not really good at, but these are just my opinion so to speak...

The first thread with an almost similar title was closed because of unnecessary and irrelevant posts which very off the topic of the ASEAN Regional Forum.

Anyway, here's an update of the ARF.

Yesterday, the ASEAN foreign ministers were able to reach consensus on the establishment of a human rights commission for the region. Upon approval of the establishment of said commission, it will be included in the draft of the ASEAN charter. The complaints of several human rights groups in the region lead to the creation of a body that will look onto the undemocratic regimes of the ASEAN countries that lead to human rights violations. Myanmar was reluctant to the proposal, as well as Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Nevertheless, the ministers were able to resolve the issue and reach consensus.

The division on this matter was resolved and it is good that the member countries came to an agreement for everybody's benefit.

On another note, the North Korea already decided to shut off its nuclear reactors and it even allowed US inspectors to come. President Arroyo met with the North Korean foreign minister.

^^ That sounds good. I'm just wondering, I've read several articles that Myanmar is very apprehensive of the said rights body and yet, it "succumbed" to the ASEAN will. And quite surprisingly, NoKor shut down its nuclear facilities! Those news are QUITE surprising, really.

Well, let’s hope that the prospect of a stronger relationship and thriving commerce with fellow ASEAN countries has put better sense to the heads of the NoKor officials. NoKor will only be alienating its neighbor countries and the whole world with a pro-nuclear policy.

Yesterday, President Arroyo urged the ASEAN to push for full economic and social integration by 2015.

^^ And what does she mean by economic and social integration. Did she elaborate on it? I think it's kind of vague, especially with the social integration thing.

Final draft of ASEAN Charter completed ahead of Nov deadline

By S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 31 July 2007 1727 hrs

MANILA : The final draft of the ASEAN Charter will be submitted to foreign ministers two months earlier than planned.

Initially, a high level task force looking into the charter had planned to submit it in November.

It had also planned to have four more meetings.

But the milestone document is likely to be wrapped up in the first week of September.

That's when a special ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting would take place in Singapore.

This was disclosed by a senior Philippine Foreign Ministry official.

He added that the draft will contain provisions for the human rights body, which was formally announced on July 30.

Singapore takes over the ASEAN chair from the Philippines on August 2 at the close of the ongoing ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Manila. - CNA /ls

^^ ALO, what is this ASEAN charter? any idea? is this something like a prelude to the eventual creation of an ASEAN constitution? just like the EU constitution that is being worked on right now. any idea?

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view_article.php?article_id=78758

ASEAN charter: Yes to human rights, no to coups


By Jim Gomez
Associated Press
Last updated 02:35am (Mla time) 07/26/2007


A LANDMARK charter being drafted by Southeast Asian countries calls for promoting human rights and nonaggression, while discouraging coups in a region which has grappled with all three thorny issues.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations' long-overdue charter also would try to shield the region from nuclear arms, other weapons of mass destruction and external interference, according to a draft seen by The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Diplomats have been racing against time to resolve contentious issues so the draft is ready for a "legal scrubbing" by lawyers and scrutiny of foreign ministers meeting here next week.

Southeast Asian heads of state hope to sign the covenant, which would accord ASEAN a legal personality, when they gather for their annual summit in Singapore in November, marking the 40th anniversary of the 10-member bloc's 1967 founding.

Philippine Foreign Assistant Secretary Luis Cruz said the charter would codify many of the principles that ASEAN has observed, including a bedrock rule of noninterference in each other's domestic affairs.

"It'll turn ASEAN into a more rules-based organization," Cruz said.

A touchy issue has been enshrining the protection of human rights in a region where some countries' rights records have been spotty at best.

Burma (Myanmar), for example, has been condemned by Western governments and criticized even by fellow ASEAN members for ignoring calls to free political detainees, led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, and not implementing a promised roadmap to democracy.

The draft charter calls for the "respect of fundamental freedoms, the promotion and protection of human rights and the promotion of social justice."

Human rights commission
A Southeast Asian diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media, said a high-level task force drafting the charter had not yet decided whether to include a contentious provision urging the establishment of a human rights commission.

Some ASEAN members fear such a commission could allow scrutiny of rights conditions in one country, possibly violating the group's noninterference policy.

Rosario Manalo, who heads the task force writing the charter, has said a commission would allow ASEAN to deal with its human rights problems in its own way and parry Western criticism of problems in the region.

Ban on nuclear weapons
The charter calls for the continued observance of a 10-year-old treaty banning nuclear weapons in Southeast Asia and prohibits "all other weapons of mass destruction and interference by external powers."

It renounces aggression and threats of force. Members would be prohibited from backing any policy or activity that would threaten a country's sovereignty and political and economic stability.

A provision would reject unconstitutional changes of government. But some diplomats say that proposal was in danger of being stricken because some members, particularly Thailand, have heads of state who rose to power following military or public uprisings.

ASEAN was founded during the Cold War years as an anticommunist coalition, eventually evolving into a trade and political bloc. It consists of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Yesterday, President Arroyo urged the ASEAN to push for full economic and social integration by 2015.

Kung iyong Tagalog at Kapangpangan o Bisaya ay hindi magkaintidihan at laging walang tiwala sa isa at isa, paano kaya nila magagawa ito? Masarap managinip lalo na at kapanatagan at kaunlaran ng nakararami ang layunin.

ASEAN: Code to avert Spratlys conflict

Southeast Asian countries have reiterated calls for a region-wide code of conduct to avert clashes over the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, as foreign ministers at the ASEAN meetings shifted to security issues such as terrorism and nuclear weapons.

A joint communiqué by the ministerial meeting of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) said a 2002 declaration of conduct had helped build trust with China, but an obligatory Regional Code of Conduct in the South China Sea was still needed.

"We encouraged the continued exercise of self-restraint by all the parties concerned and the promotion of confidence-building measures in this area and welcomed their commitment to resolving disputes in the South China Sea by peaceful means in conformity with the spirit of the [declaration] and recognized principles of international law including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea," the ministers said.

China, Taiwan and Vietnam claim the whole of the Spratlys — a cluster of rocks and reefs in the South China Sea believed to be rich in oil, gas, minerals and fish. The Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei claim portions of the islands.

The Philippines, China, and Vietnam have agreed on a joint petroleum exploration two years ago in a deal that the Arroyo administration had said would diminish the country’s claims.

ASEAN foreign ministers also agreed to ensure the ratification of the ASEAN Convention on Counter-Terrorism, a framework for counterterrorism cooperation among law enforcement agencies signed at the ASEAN leaders’ summit in Cebu last January. The group is working on a regional extradition treaty.

Indonesia is battling with the Jemaah Islamiyah group, which has ties with the Abu Sayyaf group operating in Basilan and Sulu.

The Philippines is set to host the ASEAN Regional Forum, the only security forum in the region.

United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will not be attending the region’s only security meeting because of more pressing problems in the Middle East, but she has promised to visit the Philippines later, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto G. Romulo said.

ASEAN has reviewed its 10-year-old anti-nuclear weapons treaty and said the five nuclear powers in the United Nations Security Council — US, Russia, United Kingdom, France and China — should accede to it to free Southeast Asia of nuclear threats. It also praised North Korea’s decision to start shutting down nuclear facilities.

A total of 27 countries and groups will attend the security forum tomorrow, including Australia, Canada, China, the European Union (EU), India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and the US; two observers, Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste; as well as North Korea, Mongolia, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are set to sign the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia.

The nonaggression treaty, described as the "only indigenous regional diplomatic instrument providing a mechanism and processes for the peaceful settlement of disputes," has been signed by France, China, Pakistan and Timor Leste.

The United Kingdom and the EU have expressed a "wish" to accede while the US has yet to make a decision.

Asean mulls fund for regional development


THE Association of Southeast Asian Nations ministers are discussing a Malaysian proposal to create an infrastructure fund that could sustain infrastructure developments in the region.

“The fund intends to support infrastructure developments in the region but will not solely manage by Asean governments since this will include private investors and fund managers,” Finance Undersecretary Roberto Tan said.

To make disbursements more efficient, participating Asean members are now considering tapping the services of private third-party managers, Tan added, saying, “There are already timeline on deliverables but the ministers haven’t come up with a fixed target.”

Once the fund is in place and starts to generate income, the profit will be reverted back to the member contributions to widen the fund coverage.

Earlier, the finance department reported a similar initiative after foreign investors set up a $1.3-billion infrastructure fund that could be used to finance infrastructure development projects in the Asian region.

The initiative is part of a growing region-wide interest among investors to pour money in infrastructure developments, as Asia experiences robust growth that gives them more confidence in disposing huge capital in the region.

Finance Secretary Margarito Teves said the two investor groups have set up the funds in Japan, one amounting $300 million and the other amounting $500 million.

In the Philippines, a group of investors has pooled $500-million infrastructure fund intended for major development projects, not only in the Philippines but also in other Asian countries.

Teves said the possibility of the Philippines getting some funds would depend on the ability of the country to set up the proper investment environment and assure good rate of return for investing companies.

The government has already identified 10 major projects, which are ready for investments. These are: the Bicol power restoration project, Palawan south road, Panguil Bay Bridge, Biñan-Sucat power transfer project, Light Railway Transit (LRT) North extension project, LRT Line 6 from Baclaran to Cavite, NorthRail-SouthRail linkage project from Alabang to Calamba, Agno River integrated irrigation project, North Luzon Expressway extension project and the Quirino Highway rehabilitation.

The government said the improvement in the government’s fiscal position, low interest rate environment, the downward trend in inflation and strong peso and international reserves provide an encouraging environment for investment.

During the ASEAN Summit early this year, the heads of state of the ASEAN countries have already touched on the idea of social and economic integration in the region. Talks have been started regarding the matter and the leaders have yet to determine if integration is achievable at this point in time.

The ASEAN foreign ministers did not force Myanmar into agreeing with the establishment of a human rights commission. The decision was left to the foreign ministers. Fortunately a resolution was made when they reached consensus.

^^ This is good. We will do away with the endless clash with regard to the Spratlys Island.

The ASEAN integration is not yet clear for us. After all, even the integration of EU was never clear until it really happened. For some irreconcilable issues, they just agree to disagree, as long as it will not harm the economic integration of the EU community.

I guess that's just the same with the ASEAN integration, if ever that becomes possible. It will only be feasible if we open our minds that we need this integration.

question: what do you guys expect from ASEAN?

coz there seem to be different expectations, every country has its own agenda, and different groups have a different view about what ASEAN could be or should be...

did i miss something? 40th or 14th ARF?

@maxxclip

no you did not miss anything, its the ARF is not that old. 14th ARF is correct. ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM, the security forum of the Asia Pacific.

and 40 th AMM, asean misterial meeting.

Well, let’s hope that the prospect of a stronger relationship and thriving commerce with fellow ASEAN countries has put better sense to the heads of the NoKor officials. NoKor will only be alienating its neighbor countries and the whole world with a pro-nuclear policy.

Yesterday, President Arroyo urged the ASEAN to push for full economic and social integration by 2015.

i'm just wondering what pgma means by FULL economic and social integration by 2015. that in terms of economies the ASEAN will act as a single economic bloc? like what? like no tariffs, trade barriers or trade quotas within the ASEAN? i think if ever (and that's a big "if") this full economic integration will be realized, 2015 is too early a timeline!

and how about full social integration? i find it even more complicated! more so by 2015!

did i miss something? 40th or 14th ARF?

Sorry for that. It's the 14th ASEAN Regional Forum on the 40th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting. I cannot edit the title anymore so I left it that way.

@eonyx: GMA is not the proponent of the ASEAN integration. If I am not mistaken the issue on the integration of the ASEAN was already touched during the Summit last December to January. However, it is not clear to all of us what the leaders meant by the social and economic integration. If it's one currency for the region like the EU, one whole bloc, or whatever. Anyways, probably as the ARF ends today we may know what they really mean by social and economic integration.

economic integration means having a asean-wide free trade agreement, same time, freer flow of capital, goods and services. freer flow of skilled labor within the region. the economic integration is quite clear, and does not include a common ASEAN-currency for the foreseeable future.

since greater economic integration can not stand alone, it is accompanied by a socio-cultural and security community.

socio-cultural includes everything like having an ASEAN commemoration day, which they just agreed upon, august 8, having the media covering more ASEAN topics, students exchange, cultural and social work. etc. its a wide field.

security cooperatioin, well, the third leg of the ASEAN community, is all about sharing informations, intelligence data, police forces and defence forces of the region working together. the ASEAN declaration on the south china sea for example among others.

^^ so these freer movement of goods, capital, labor, services, and if i may add, investments possible by 2015? because, correct me if i'm wrong, for all of these free movements to be possible, ASEAN needs to create/enact/laws that would be uniform/common to all ASEAN members to regulate these so-called free movements.

so what do you think guys? can our leaders come up with a common consensus that would culminate in the FULL economic and social integration by 2015?

yes, its a must, they will have that in place by 2015. which is not really a big deal if you look at what they really mean by having a community.

the question remains, are they going to create an ASEAN union. so far, nobody did take it up during the meeting in manila.

Innocent narcissists (http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/editorial/view_article.php?article_id=80059)

It cannot be denied: Filipinos are far from thinking of themselves as ASEAN. UP Political Science professor Natalia Morales, in a commentary published in these pages last Monday, traces this lack of an ASEAN mind-set to what she calls our "innocent narcissism," a self-absorption that stems from our "ongoing search for national identity."

We can debate her premises, but we cannot argue with her conclusion: Belonging to an ASEAN community, much less to "one caring and sharing community," does not seem to figure much in the Filipino consciousness.

The ongoing high-level meetings in Manila among ASEAN officials and their counterparts in some of the world's leading powers have encouraged us yet again to put our best foot forward; but the hype and the hoopla about the meetings cannot cover up, or make up for, their lack of resonance in our daily life.

This is a pity, because this week's meetings have in fact made some remarkable headway. Given the culture of consensus that animates the 40-year-old regional organization, the carefully choreographed initiatives announced in the last several days must be considered to be genuine breakthroughs.

The most important is the decision to include the formation of a human rights commission in the proposed ASEAN Charter. The diplomatic community gathered in Manila was prepared for a rejection of the provision, or at least a postponement of any decision on it. The military rulers of Burma (Myanmar) were expected to object to the provision. (Insider reports suggest that Burmese officials did raise objections, but, regrettably, they were not the only ones.) When the ASEAN foreign ministers ended up agreeing on the basic principle, therefore, and announced that the proposed charter would include a provision on the human rights commission, the unexpected news was greeted enthusiastically.

To be sure, the victory for the democratic cause was less than complete. Crucial details of the human rights commission and the process of forming it were left for future meetings to determine. In other words, it was a typical diplomatic advance, a cautiously worded declaration unburdened by too much specificity.

But Foreign Minister George Yeo of Singapore, the chairman of the next ASEAN Ministerial Meetings, could not contain his optimism. "Myanmar had a positive attitude toward all of this. At the ministerial level, we have reached a consensus," he noted.

Another milestone is the high-profile participation of the North Korean foreign minister, who visited the Philippines for the first time to bask in the applause of regional officials, who praised the isolated nation's decision to shut down its nuclear facilities, and to forge closer links with ASEAN countries. The Philippines, for one, entered into an agreement with the Stalinist regime in North Korea to forge a "bilateral consultation mechanism," one that institutionalizes regular consultations between the two countries.

North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun called the agreement "an important phase in our bilateral relations," and added: "Our cooperation is moving from strength to strength."

The entire region should welcome this "cooperation," because agreements like it strengthen the Six-Party Talks and provide Pyongyang less reason to prefer military action over diplomacy.

But if there is an initiative that will foster greater ASEAN consciousness among Filipinos, it is the agreement on sanctuary.

Under the agreement, classified as a standard operating procedure, citizens of any ASEAN country caught in civil conflicts can seek refuge in the embassy of any other ASEAN country. The SOP provides that, in case of imminent danger, "a citizen of an ASEAN member country may directly seek assistance from the missions of other ASEAN member countries or go directly to shelters or sanctuaries provided by their missions."

This is an initiative as sweeping, and as useful, as the earlier historic agreements to do away with visas for ASEAN citizens travelling to ASEAN destinations. Sanctuary will benefit overseas workers not only from the Philippines, but from neighboring countries, too. Thousands of Filipinos undergo pre-departure orientation programs; if they learn to look at other ASEAN embassies as sanctuaries, too, Filipinos may yet learn to leave their innocent narcissism abroad.

China defends 'peaceful' military build-up
Posted: 02 August 2007 1527 hrs


Photos 1 of 1

People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers stand at attention



MANILA: China took a swipe on Thursday at efforts to counter its dramatic military rise, taking centrestage at Asia's main security forum to insist it would be a force for peace and stability.

At closed-door talks in Manila, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi criticised what he called a "Cold War mentality" aimed at gaining military superiority at the expense of mutual cooperation.

"Under the influence of the Cold War mentality, there is a trend towards building up bilateral military alliances to gain absolute military superiority," he said, according to a copy of his speech obtained by AFP.

"This undermines political mutual trust, causes uncertainty to regional security and has become a source of concern to people," Yang said.

The minister did not refer to specific countries, although China's drive for a bigger and stronger military has jangled nerves in the United States and across Asia.

A budding defence pact between the United States, Japan and Australia has been widely viewed as an attempt at counter-balancing Beijing's growing clout in the region, but Yang said China's ambitions were peaceful.

He said Beijing's role in hosting the North Korea disarmament talks and its thawing relations with Japan were signs that the Asian giant was emerging as a responsible regional negotiator.

"China ... is actively involved in promoting peace, development, cooperation and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region," he told officials from the United States, Europe and Asia at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).

"We have consistently acted in the spirit of setting aside differences to expand common ground and call for seeking peaceful and negotiated solutions to historical issues and current disputes," he said.

China has the world's largest armed forces, with 2.3 million men and women in uniform. In March, it approved a 2007 defence budget of 46 billion dollars, a 17.8 percent increase over the year before.

President Hu Jintao, in a speech on Wednesday marking the 80th anniversary of China's People's Liberation Army, promised even more funding for the military.

Yang vowed China would continue to work within bodies such as the ARF and called for deeper international cooperation to address security challenges such as terrorism and infectious diseases.

"Security has acquired new dimensions and security risks are mounting. This has broadened the scope for security cooperation," Yang said.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The ARF, Asia's main security dialogue which meets once a year, adds 17 partners including the United States, China, Russia, India, Pakistan, North and South Korea, and the European Union.

ASEAN defence chiefs agree to address common challenges
By Foo Siew Shyan, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 02 August 2007 2306 hrs


Photos 1 of 1

The ASEAN defence chiefs gather for a photograph with Second Minister for Defence Ng Eng Hen (MINDEF)



SINGAPORE: Defence chiefs from the region were in town on Thursday for the 5th ASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces Informal Meeting.

The session, represented by all ten ASEAN militaries for the first time, was chaired by Singapore's Chief of Defence Desmond Kuek.

The defence chiefs also called on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Istana on Thursday.

The one-day meeting saw the defence chiefs agreeing to work together to address common security challenges which include maritime security, counter-terrorism and infectious diseases management.

They also agreed to strengthen cooperation amongst ASEAN militaries through information sharing, intelligence cooperation and capacity-building exercises.

Singapore takes over ASEAN Chairmanship from Philippines
By S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 02 August 2007 2106 hrs


Singapore takes over ASEAN Chairmanship from Philippines


MANILA: Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will deliver an ASEAN lecture next Tuesday to kick off Singapore's tenure as the new ASEAN Chair.

This handover to Singapore was made official at the close of the 40th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Manila on Thursday.

Singapore said that as Chair, its priority will be the three Cs – Charter, Community and Challenges.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo formally handed over the Chairmanship of ASEAN to his Singapore counterpart at the closing ceremony of the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting.

Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo said: "I remember telling Bert a year ago – 'You have to cook the dishes in your kitchen, then when it comes to our turn, we will serve the dishes and no one mistakes the waiter for the chef'."

Light moments aside, the new Chair knows there is a lot of serious work to be done, which includes a possible review of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).

Mr Yeo said Singapore intends to re-look at ARF's mechanism to ensure better follow-up action.

The November ASEAN Summit in Singapore will also see the leaders endorse three important matters – the ASEAN Charter, the ASEAN's blueprint to forge an economic community by 2015, and a declaration on tackling climate change and global warming.

Mr Yeo said: "At the end of this year, there will be an important meeting of the United Nations in Bali on climate change and leading up to this, climate change will be one of the topic items on the agenda at the ASEAN Summit, the ASEAN Plus Three Summit, the East and the APEC Summit.

"So it was good that at the ARF meeting this morning, there was complete solidarity on this point to confront the problem, which is our collective problem."

Mr Yeo added that the focus of ASEAN's 40th anniversary celebrations, which will be observed in all the ten member countries, will be on young people.

He said: "They may not be quite sure who are all the members of ASEAN, but they know generally that it is something good, something which brings the region together, reduces conflict and creates cooperation.

"They might not be sure how much cooperation there is, they might not know how much it impacts their daily lives. All that we do, boils down to security, making this a safer world for each of us, and about economic development, namely investments, jobs and better lives for people."

And Singapore hopes this cooperation will allow ASEAN to meet the challenges ahead, to become One ASEAN at the heart of a dynamic Asia.

the ASEAN meet ended with the human rights question vis-a-vis myanmmar still unresolved- as expected!

Myanmar's reluctance to the human rights issue is absurd. The creation of a regional body in the ASEAN to take care of human rights issues will be beneficial for the member countries. Anyway, Myanmar would just like to see a consultative body created.

Nevertheless the ASEAN was still able to resolve the issue on the establishment of a human rights commission.

Maybe Myanmar knows iy couldn't keep up with the rules to be laid down if ever there was a Human Rights body created. As such, it would rather not agree on its creation than agree on it now and not be ready with the consequences later on.

At least, the ASEAN Forum continues on its dialogue to other member countries so as to attain a sharing community by 2015. If ever this will be realized soon, I would be very proud to be included as part of the ASEAN nation.

Myanmar's reluctance to the human rights issue is absurd. The creation of a regional body in the ASEAN to take care of human rights issues will be beneficial for the member countries. Anyway, Myanmar would just like to see a consultative body created.

Nevertheless the ASEAN was still able to resolve the issue on the establishment of a human rights commission.

I thought Myanmar already was persuaded with the human rights body? Did they take back their word?

I don't know where should I post this quite interesting story about Singapore, anyhow I will just post it here.


http://www.wildsingapore.com/news/20070708/070806-1.htm


Straits Times 6 Aug 07

What is our national identity?

National Day is on Thursday and young Singaporeans give their take on how they sum up Singapore's national identity

Nation of hard workers, untiring complainers

SINGAPOREANS are best characterised as hard-working complainers. Day and night, we complain about everything under the sun.

And for some reason, whatever we complain about is ultimately the Government's fault. Whether it be the weather, salaries, taxes, or having to stand inside public buses because there are no seats during peak hours. Never mind, just blame the Government. It is as if Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong can control the rain.

But despite all the complaining, we still get the job done at the end of the day. Perhaps the grumbling helps pass the time at work.

In any case, I think our energies are far better spent on thinking up solutions. Anyone can identify a problem and complain about it.

Instead of waiting for the Government to solve all of our problems, why not stop talking and start doing something about it?

Edward Choy, 27, is a postgraduate theatre studies student at the National University of Singapore (NUS)

Everything revolves around economics

NATIONAL identities are usually defined in cultural or political terms. But in Singapore, it can be defined in economic terms.

Singaporeans are pragmatic. Straw polls before the last General Election suggest that Singaporeans are more concerned about bread-and-butter issues than politics.

Many students choose their field of study in university for its career prospects rather than out of academic interest.

Political mandate is arguably granted based on, above all, a party's ability to manage Singapore's economy.

We even owe our ethnic and cultural diversity to money - immigration in the 19th century brought people from different backgrounds to Singapore, often for purely economic reasons.

Therefore, Singapore is to me an Economic Nation before anything else.

Joel Aw, 19, has a place to read business management at the Singapore Management University

The way we speak makes us special

OUR national identity is our unique ability to mix languages in speech. It is common to hear Singaporeans say: 'I'm hungry, I want to makan now,' (makan is Malay for 'eat'), 'Toilet zai na li?' (Where is the toilet?), and so on.

Our counterparts around the world speak in their own pure languages; few of them speak in these language-dialect mixes. This distinguishes us.

This is perhaps a result of our bilingual education system and dialect-speaking forefathers.

Once, when I was overseas, I heard a mother chiding her son for being overly careless with his belongings. 'Keep properly, if not later kena pah chiorh ah!' (Keep your things properly or you will get robbed!) I smiled to myself as I realised that I had just met another fellow Singaporean in serendipity.

Stephanie Song, 21, is a second-year psychology student at NUS

An identity shaped by growing pains

I WILL never forget how the Dim Sum Dollies' musical comedy, The History Of Singapore, had the audience waving the Singapore flag patriotically at the finale. It achieved what the music videos of National Day songs could never do with an overly sanitised portrayal - it honestly addressed our ugly side and struck an emotional chord.

Others may see us as paternalistic but we have proven our resilience. We have survived colonialism, globalisation, ERP tolls and GST hikes. We may be too vocal about our complaints but it shows we care about how things are run in the country.

These imperfect traits and growing pains shape our identity and make this experience uniquely Singaporean.

Desmond Chan, 25, is a final-year Communication Studies student at Nanyang Technological University.

A multi-coloured, unfinished quiltwork

AN IDENTITY is probably based on one's ancestry. Singapore is primarily a migrant community of mixed parentage, and as a young nation, her identity continues to evolve as she matures.

Singapore's national identity includes a multitude of often unique characteristics - she is a rare case where efficiency and success can be achieved by laws deemed ludicrous by others; her people speak fluent Singlish and her products and services are world-renowned. She boasts low crime, a clean government and a hardworking population.

Ultimately, the Singapore identity is a quiltwork of various characteristics - an unfinished, multi-coloured tapestry that continues to be woven by her people.

Adrienne de Souza, 21, is a second-year biology student at Imperial College London

Too young a nation to have coherent identity

SINGAPORE is the place I grew up in. However, I do not think we have a coherent national identity we can truly call our own. We have had only 42 years to distil a set of authentic Singaporean values from a melting pot of disparate cultures, languages and histories.

Right now, all we have are scattered values that merely make us different from other nationalities. These may include Singlish, 'kiasuism' or even a shared memory of growing up among HDB flats.

So how best should I spend National Day in New York this year? Meet up with other Singaporeans there and reminiscence about life in Singapore - it is the best way for me to 'feel' Singaporean.
Eisen Teo, 22, is a third-year history student at the NUS

News articles are reproduced for non-profit educational purposes.
website©ria tan 2003 www.wildsingapore.com

ASEAN Charter being revised to include foreign ministers' views

SINGAPORE: There has been progress in finalising the ASEAN Charter since the recently concluded foreign ministers' meeting in Manila, said ASEAN's Secretary-General Ong Keng Yong.

Speaking at an ASEAN Think Tank Forum in Singapore on Monday, Mr Ong said the first draft is being revised to take into account the ministers' inputs and he expects the final draft to be ready for legal and language scrubbing at the end of September.

The forum, organised by the Singapore Institute of International Affairs, was an opportunity for the ASEAN chief to update regional analysts and members of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) on what was achieved at the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting last week.

Mr Ong said there has been a very good first draft of the milestone ASEAN Charter and the foreign ministers have decided that controversial issues affecting the group's standing and credibility would be sent to the leaders for a decision.

He said: "We removed the original draft where leaders should also make (a) decision based on consensus. We just (put it as) ASEAN Summit will be asked to make a decision and that's it. If you have a good chairman, he or she can go around the table and say 'Do you agree? Why do you not agree? Can we find a way to address your concern?' That is the kind of approach we are advocating and that is what I call statesmanship."

Debbie Stothard, Founder of Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma, posed these questions at the forum: "What about Myanmar or Burma being the millstone at ASEAN's milestone? How do you address a country like Burma? How do you deal with something like that when you are watering down the ASEAN Charter, which basically means you are a member of a club where members can blatantly break the rules without any fear of pressure?"

Mr Ong revealed there were members more vocal than Myanmar about the human rights provisions in the Charter.

He said: "When we talk about human rights, don't get away with the impression that the only guy who objects to whatever provisions we want in the ASEAN Charter is Myanmar.

"From my perspective as the secretary-general for the last four and a half years, Myanmar is not an issue for me with regards to human rights. You know why? Because they say, 'I have democracy, I have human rights. You can put anything in the Charter as long as you put it in a balanced way'.

"In our discussion on drafting the human rights provision, it was not Burma, as you call it, that caused all the trouble. There were four other countries that had reservations about how this paragraph was drafted and two of them were most vocal and they did not include Burma."

Participants at the forum also highlighted some of the problems within ASEAN which could hamper its integration.

One of them is the existence of visa restrictions for travel in countries like Cambodia and Myanmar.

ASEAN's secretary-general said the aim is to remove all visa restrictions for travel by 2010 so as to achieve the vision of ASEAN economic integration by 2015.

ASEAN's foreign ministers have also emphasised the need to keep firmly to the timelines drawn up and to prepare all targets for endorsement by the leaders at the 13th ASEAN Summit in Singapore in November.

RP proposal on ASEAN parliament approved (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/net/2007/08/28/rp.proposal.on.asean.parliament.approved.html)

MANILA -- The creation of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Parliament--a major Philippine proposal introduced at the 28th ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA)--was unanimously approved for inclusion in the Asean Charter.

The region's leading parliamentarians approved for adoption three other major Philippine initiatives, representing a major leap forward in turning AIPA into a relevant force in regional cooperation and eventual economic and political integration.

Other endorsements by AIPA as reported by Cebu City Representative Antonio Cuenco, chairman of the House foreign relations committee, included the multi-lateral extradition treaty jointly sponsored with Indonesia; feasibility studies for the creation of an ASEAN Monetary Fund; and a 10 billion trees program to reforest the region's bald mountains and help fight global warming.

House Speaker Jose de Venecia, who suggested the creation of ASEAN Parliament, said the move is "part of the vision of an ASEAN community" in line with the examples of Europe, Latin America and Africa, which have long created their regional parliaments.

In his report to de Venecia, Cuenco said AIPA authorized the conduct of region-wide consultations and feasibility studies on the creation of an ASEAN Monetary Fund, which de Venecia earlier proposed, and the Asian Parliamentary Assembly, (formerly the Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace) already endorsed in Islamabad, Pakistan and Tehran, Iran.

The proposal is now under consideration in feasibility studies by various central banks in the region.

De Venecia said he expanded his one billion trees program in the Philippines to cover the 10 ASEAN states and a reforestation program involving the planting of 10 billion trees over a specific period of time.

The Southeast Asia program could reduce carbon dioxide emissions and help in the fight against drought and floods, de Venecia said. The program can also have benefits that would lead to solutions to drinking water and irrigation water problems of ASEAN countries while moving to restore ecological balance and raising employment.

He said Malaysian Prime Minister Badawi supported the idea of planting trees in the coastal areas as first line of defense against a tsunami.

De Venecia said the 10 billion trees reforestation program could be funded partly by the carbon credits embodied in the Kyoto Protocol.

"It is time that Asia - cradle of the great civilizations, religions and cultures - finally take a decisive step toward creating its own regional legislature led by ASEAN," de Venecia said.

The AIPA also approved the transmittal of the watershed debt-for-equity program, which de Venecia launched two years ago to the Paris Club and the G-8 nations following its endorsement by the UN General Assembly in December last year.

The program, which could help some 100 debt-strapped countries worldwide to achieve the UN millennium development goals by 2015, is focused on debt-for- equity in reforestation, clean water, food production, irrigation, health care, and education.

"We have a bumper crop of initiatives approved by the assembly. And these initiatives are serious programs intended to address the most pressing economic and environmental concerns of countries in the region-and those in other continents," de Venecia said.

The Philippine delegation to the AIPA was composed of Representatives Roque Ablan Jr., Lorna Silverio, Abraham Mitra, Mitos Magsaysay, Vincent Garcia, Victor Ortega, and Sharee Ann Tan.

The ASEAN Charter is a proposed constitution for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The charter was drafted by the ASEAN Eminent Persons Group. For the charter to take effect, it must ratified by the governments of every member states.

ASEAN to become mini-United Nations (http://nationmultimedia.com/2008/02/20/regional/regional_30065975.php)

Singaporean Foreign Minister George Yeo Wednesday said ASEAN will become a mini-United Nations for Southeast Asia once all ten members ratify the ASEAN Charter, hopefully by the end of this year.

Speaking at a press conference marking the end of the two-day ASEAN retreat hosted by Singapore, the chair of the ASEAN Standing Committee, expressed hope that ten members will ratify the ASEAN Charter prior to the leaders' summit to be held in Bangkok by the end of this year.

He said each of the ten members will appointed an ambassador to lead their mission to Jakarta, the seat of ASEAN Secretariat currently headed by former Thai foreign minister, Surin Pitsuwan.

Each of these ambassadors to Jakarta will be the power to make decision on behalf of their respective government, Yeo said.

Yeo said Surin would be looking to hire two more deputies to assist him with the new workload. The Ten ASEAN leaders signed the charter last November at a summit in Singapore.

The aim is to make the regional grouping a more rules-based organization. Three more countries have ratified the charter, bringing the total number to four. The instrument of ratification from Burma and Laos was handed to Surin on Wednesday during a special ceremony on the sidelines of the retreat.

Singapore was the first country to ratify the charter, followed by Brunei who deposited its instrument of ratification on 15 February. One the charter is ratified, said Yeo.

"All the things we wanted to do we will be able to do," Yeo said. ASEAN will establish a term of references for a special committee tasked with looking into the idea of setting up ASEAN human rights body and a mechanism to settle dispute.

But the move towards a rule-based society will not be a smooth sailing as lawmakers in the Philippines said they will not ratify it unless Burma release pro-opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and permit her to take part in a genuine national reconciliation and democratization process.

Burma said it would not permit Suu Kyi to stand for national election on the ground that a provision in 1974 does not permits candidates running for public office be married to foreign citizen. Suu Kyi's late British husband, Michael Aris passed away in 1999 when she was in house arrest.

Rangoon has said the new charter will lead to a general election in 2010 and replaced the 1988 version that was scrapped when the junta took power.

Yeo said the provision was somewhat "odd in this day and age" but added that it was essentially a decision for the Burmese to decide. He said a number of ASEAN ministers were concerned with the integrity of he process and that international concerns should be taken into account.

RP to push for ASEAN human rights body

February 19, 2008
Updated 17:03:26 (Mla time)
Oliver Teves
Associated Press

MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippines will push for creation of a Southeast Asian human rights body when the region's foreign ministers meet in Singapore this week, Manila's foreign secretary said Tuesday.

Leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations adopted a landmark charter in November that pledged to set up a regional human rights body.

ASEAN foreign ministers will hold their annual retreat to "meaningfully discuss" how to pursue key provisions of the charter, including the creation of new bodies and structures, Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo said.

"Of particular interest to the Philippines are the creation of the ASEAN human rights body and the drafting of the blueprint of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community," he said in a statement, giving no details.

"For the Philippines and for our partners in the region, the human person is at the core of development. The protection of human rights and the creation of an environment that allows development in its fullest form are, therefore, essential," Romulo said.

In a letter to ASEAN foreign ministers ahead of their meeting Tuesday and Wednesday, London-based human rights watchdog Amnesty International urged widespread consultations with "human rights defenders" in drafting the terms of reference of the human rights body.

It said a "transparent and consultative process will give the human rights body, and the ASEAN Charter more generally, enhanced credibility and effectiveness both regionally and internationally."

Last month, representatives of national human rights agencies from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand agreed that the proposed human rights body should consist of independent experts selected with the help of civic groups, and that it should protect, promote, monitor and set standards for human rights.

Critics have expressed fears the body may have too little power to curtail blatant violations because of ASEAN's policy of not interfering in the domestic affairs of its members.

Of the 10 ASEAN members, only Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand currently have independent national human rights bodies. ASEAN's other members are Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Singapore and Vietnam.

If the Parliament is approved, then it should be just ASEAN..... Maybe +3. That's it! I don't want it to become an ASIAN.

^^ As an economic trading bloc, a united Asia (East, Southeast, South, Central, and West) is stronger competing against the EU, AU, and NAFTA.

Oil rich countries combined with the powerful economies of East Asia (nations east of iran). That's crazy.

^^ Why would it be crazy, in the first place? A trade bloc with rich countries is good. Help for smaller, developing countries will be more accessible since the countries that will be helping them is in one, integrated organization.

OT: What do you think should the Asian Common Currency be called? (If it does happen)

Been reading some articles online on this global phenomenon, of nations who are members of continental unions to strive towards a common currency.

EU: The Euro (already in existence)
AU: The Afro** (proposed)
NAFTA: The Amero (proposed)



**I think that's hilarious! :lol:

^^ It's quite apparent that the Euro has had a significant impact in the global trade blocs, even with the name of their respective common currencies!

Look:

Euro

Afro

Amero

Wala lang. Just a lame observation. :D

It's quite apparent that the Euro has had a significant impact in the global trade blocs, even with the name of their respective common currencies!

Look:

Euro

Afro

Amero

Wala lang. Just a lame observation. :D

:lol: Took your corny pills today Kevin?

Afro? :lol::lol::lol::crazy:

@Kuya Kimber: I think I actually did! :lol:

Afro, heck that was funny.:lol:

Zero tariff set on 80% of
farm, industrial goods


By Jennifer A. Ng
Reporter
The Business Mirror

THE Philippines has reduced the tariffs on 80 percent of farm and industrial goods traded under the Common Effective Preferential Tariff (CEPT) Scheme of the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta).

President Arroyo recently issued Executive Order (EO) 703 reducing the tariffs on 80 percent of farm and industrial goods traded among countries belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

Malacañang noted that Asean economic ministers agreed during their meeting in September 2002 that the CEPT rates on at least 80 percent of the products on the individual inclusion lists of the six original Asean members, including the Philippines, would be reduced to zero by 2007.

The reduction of tariffs to zero was approved by the National Economic and Development Authority board during its meeting on December 18, 2007.

Tariffs for the rest of farm and industrial goods that are in the “sensitive” and “highly sensitive” are expected to be reduced in 2010.

Products on the sensitive list are allowed a longer time frame for implementing reduced tariffs ranging from zero percent to 5 percent.

Sugar and rice are among the commodities considered by the Philippines as highly sensitive products.

Sugar producers have earlier called on the government to negotiate for the retention of existing tariffs on sugar products, ranging from 28 percent to 38 percent, beyond 2010.

Under Afta, “obstacles” to freer trade among member-states, such as high tariffs or taxes on traded goods and the scrapping of quantitative restrictions and other nontariff barriers that limit the entry of imports, will be removed.

The ultimate objective of Afya is to increase Asean’s competitive edge as a production base geared for the world market.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/0222&232008/economy01.html

question....does ASEAN have its headquarters, similar to UN Headquarters in New York? if yes, where is it located? if none, in which city should it be placed?

^^ ASEAN Headquarters is located in Jakarta, Indonesia. But they do have an office/post in the UN for they are an "observer" in UN meetings and proceedings.

4 countries have ratified Asean Charter

By Estrella Torres
Reporter
The Business Mirror

FOUR of the 10 member-countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) have ratified the Asean Charter that seeks to establish the regional bloc as a rules-based body with a human-rights council that handles rights atrocities and other forms of abuses against nationals of the member-countries.

Brunei, Malaysia and Laos have deposited their instruments of ratification, joining Singapore, the first to ratify the Asean charter in November last year.
Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, Asean secretary-general, expressed hopes that other Asean members like the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia and Burma/Myanmar would also ratify the Charter.

Surin handed over the acknowledgement for the deposit of instrument of ratification to Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Brunei Mohamed Bolkiah February 15.

Tan Sri Rastam Mohd. Isa, secretary general of the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Dr. Thongloun Sosoulith, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Laos, deposited the instrument of ratification with Dr. Surin in Singapore February 20.

George Yeo, minister for foreign affairs and chairman of the 41st Asean standing committee, led the simple ceremonies in Singapore.

“Singapore was the first to ratify and deposit its instrument of ratification. Its deposit of the instrument was done on January 7, 2008, at the Asean Secretariat in Jakarta, immediately after Dr. Surin officially assumed the post of the secretary-general of Asean,” said the Asean secretariat in a statement.

Surin said he was the “happiest man” in the ceremony as his job was dependent on the support of all Asean member-states for the Asean Charter.

He is hopeful that the momentum for the ratification of the Asean Charter will increase and the “other six Asean member-states will soon be able to ratify it.”

At the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos last month, President Arroyo had warned that the Philippine Senate will likely resist pressure to quickly ratify the Asean Charter if the regional body cannot compel member Myanmar/Burma to fulfill its promise to ease political repression by, among others, releasing prodemocracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace laureate.

The Asean Charter will enter into force on the 30th day after the date of deposit of the 10th instrument of ratification. Asean is a regional bloc of Southeast Asian economies pushing for economic, political, security and sociocultural cooperation with the international community.

The group is currently negotiating free trade agreements with East Asian economies like Japan, South Korea and China as well as the biggest regional bloc, the European Union.

Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/02272008/headlines06.html

ASEAN vows to be ‘vigilant’ in fighting inflationary pressures (http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20080407121217.html)

DANANG, Vietnam, April 6 (AFP) — ASEAN finance ministers pledged Friday to be vigilant in the fight against inflation, as soaring food and fuel prices hit households across the region and threaten to spark public unrest.

Ministers from the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations met in the Vietnamese city of Danang, looking for ways to cope with the price hikes as well as a global economic downturn.

The meeting came just days after the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank both cut the region’s growth forecast for 2008 — in part over the surging inflation that has hit two essentials, rice and oil, especially hard.

In a statement to close the annual meeting, they said they had discussed the turbulence on world markets and the potential for a much longer and sharper slowdown than expected.

"We remain vigilant against these risks and resolved to maintain sound fiscal and monetary policies, while continuing to implement policies that will sustain domestic demand as an important anchor of growth," they said.

Many experts believe the region will be able to weather the turmoil better than in times past, in particular during the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis.

World bank managing director Juan Jose Daboub told AFP there was cause for "cautious optimism" in the region despite the possibility that slowing demand in the United States will undercut a major export market for the region.

"East Asia’s strong, long run of growth has not been driven by year-to-year fluctuations in world demand, but rather by improvement in productivity, innovation, quality control, education and skills," he said.

"These underlying strengths of East Asian economies will neither be undone by the financial turmoil nor by a slowing global market."

But he stressed that nations still had a tricky task ahead, not least because of the mounting food prices that are having a strong impact on the region’s many impoverished.

The benchmark rice variety in Thailand, the world’s number one rice exporter, has gone up 52 percent in the last month alone, according to the country’s association of rice exporters.

"In virtually every East Asian country, high food prices are raising headline inflation and contributing to a significant decline in the real incomes of the poor," he said.

In part because of those soaring costs, this week the Asian Development Bank and World Bank both reduced their growth forecasts for the region, excluding Japan.

The World Bank said there could be an aggregate income loss of one percent of gross domestic product due to price increases.

"Dealing with high food and fuel prices probably constitutes a greater challenge to governments in East Asia than the financial turmoil in the United States and a slowing global economy," it said.

ASEAN’s members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

ASEAN can impose sanctions on members that violate charter, Malaysia says


Tuesday, June 3, 2008 03:34 PM


KUALA LUMPUR (AP)-Southeast Asia's main bloc can impose sanctions on members that flout its charter even though there is no formal provision for penalties, Malaysia's leader said Tuesday.

The comment by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi indicated the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is losing patience with Myanmar, one of the 10 members of the bloc, for refusing to restore democracy or improve its human rights record.

ASEAN is hoping to ratify a charter that would include the creation of a regional human rights body by the end of the year. The charter does not mention using sanctions or expulsion in cases of serious breaches by members.

It says, however, any violations would be referred to ASEAN heads of state for a final decision.

ASEAN members will be taking "a pragmatic approach" in tackling potential offenses, Abdullah said.

"The charter does not provide for specific sanctions for charter breaches or noncompliance. But this does not mean that there will be none," Abdullah said at a forum on regional security.

National leaders will decide how to deal with violations "as and when the need arises" at their annual summits, Abdullah said.

RP hosts East Asian Seas Congress (http://www.mb.com.ph/MTNN20080610126904.html)


Ellalyn B. de Vera

The Philippines will have an opportunity to gain the assistance of neighboring countries in managing its coastal areas and seas as the country hosts the East Asian Seas (EAS) Congress in Manila next year.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) recently signed a memorandum of agreement formalizing the Philippines’ hosting of the EAS Congress from Nov. 23-27, 2009, which aims to sustain efforts to protect and manage the country’s seas and coastal areas.

Philippine-based PEMSEA is a regional program of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) whose member-countries include Cambodia, China, North Korea, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, and Vietnam.

"The 2009 Congress will be a bigger event and assembly on the sustainable management of the coastal and ocean environment than before since every country is now aware that the sustainable use of coastal and marine resources in each country benefits the whole region," DENR Secretary Jose "Lito" L. Atienza Jr. said.

The DENR chief cited that this year’s program will focus on the condition of Philippine water resources to realize efforts that will ensure the sustainability of properly managing the country’s bodies of water.

"PEMSEA aims to manage all of these waters around us properly, so PEMSEA being stationed in the Philippines is a most natural development. PEMSEA is something that the department is fully committed to, and we will work doubly hard together to be effective in our objectives," Atienza said.



From Manila Bulletin
RP hosts East Asian Seas Congress (http://www.mb.com.ph/MTNN20080610126904.html)

Solidarity needed in Southeast Asia (http://upiasiaonline.com/Politics/2008/07/10/solidarity_needed_in_southeast_asia/1676/)

Regional kinship in Southeast Asia is weak or nonexistent. We perceive ourselves as Asians in general; but not residents of the Southeast Asian region. There is little interaction among people in the region. Economic cooperation is minimal. Political events in one country hardly make an impact on the politics of a neighboring country.

Filipinos are so busy being Filipinos that they have forgotten their shared heritage with the rest of the people in Southeast Asia. The same can be said of other nationalities in the region. But nationalism is not the only reason why regional affinity is practically absent in Southeast Asia.

The colonial experience of countries in the region is partly to blame for the problem. Foreign occupation interrupted the long and productive relations of small and big kingdoms in the region. Centuries of Western domination have blurred this important historical period.

There was an opportunity to promote regional solidarity through the various national struggles for independence in the last century. But this was never achieved. Intellectuals and revolutionary leaders like Jose Rizal and Ho Chi Minh were able to inspire many people in the region. But in the end, each country was left to fight for its own interests. In short, Southeast Asians could not invoke a single memorable event when people in the region fought together against a common enemy.

The formation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was significant in some ways; but ASEAN remains an impotent political body. It is a regional grouping whose constituents do not appreciate its objectives. ASEAN is merely a joint venture between governments and its programs rarely involve the participation of the people.

Disunity in Southeast Asia is also indicated by the lack of interest among its people to know more about the social conditions and cultures of their neighbors. Southeast Asians are more knowledgeable about the lives of Americans or Europeans than about the people in their own region. The effect is the inability of the people to empathize with the problems of Southeast Asian countries. Clueless to the situations of their neighbors, even governments fail to determine the right time to act in assisting countries which need help.

For example, the rising prices of rice, food and petroleum products could have had less negative impact in Southeast Asia if there was genuine regional cooperation.

Thailand is the world’s largest exporter of rice. Vietnam and Cambodia are also producing rice in large quantities. But their neighbor, the Philippines, is the biggest rice importer in the world. Singapore and Brunei are also rice importers. If from the very beginning there was a regional initiative to assure rice supplies in Southeast Asia, price speculation in the market would have been minimized. But rice producing countries have inflamed public panic by restricting rice exports even within the region.

Oil prices continue to climb higher, hurting the economies of many developing countries. Instead of sharing energy sources, Southeast Asian countries are closing the doors on their neighbors. Brunei wants to limit the number of cars from Malaysia which can pump gas from the tiny but oil-rich nation. For its part, Malaysia also wants fewer Singapore cars queuing at its gas stations.

There is no regional effort to develop new gas and oil fields. Alternative energy has a lot of potential in the region. Geothermal power can be harnessed in Indonesia and the Philippines. Thailand has numerous projects which aim to tap solar power. If ASEAN were truly about cooperation, it could start discussions on how to stabilize energy supplies in the region.

Rescue efforts spearheaded by ASEAN in the aftermath of the cyclone disaster in Myanmar in May were disorganized, negligible and very late. The slow response of governments and civic organizations was further proof of the lack of unity in the region and the failure of the people of Southeast Asia to imagine themselves as belonging to one regional community.

Perhaps the best example of the deep division in the region is the ongoing campaign of Malaysia to evict more than 300,000 illegal immigrants on the island of Borneo. Most of these workers come from the Philippines and Indonesia. The crackdown has been violent in the past. During times of economic crisis, the migrants are blamed for crimes, lack of jobs and worsening poverty in Malaysia. It is peculiar that within Southeast Asia, a racial campaign to drive out illegal migrants is taking place. This usually happens in Europe.

Rich countries like the United States have been exploiting the lack of unity in the region to further their political and economic agenda. For example the Philippines, which once hosted the biggest U.S. military bases, was used as a launching pad by the Americans to attack Vietnam and many parts of Indochina four decades ago.

Emerging superpower China taunts ASEAN by maintaining close relations with the ruling junta of Myanmar. China is almost succeeding in its bid to claim ownership of the Spratly Islands since ASEAN countries are not united on the issue.

One way to counteract the hegemony of the United States, China or any other superpower in the region is to build a unified Southeast Asia. A unified Southeast Asia could also match the economic and political clout of bigger and richer countries in Asia like China, Japan and South Korea.

ASEAN has to be overhauled. Malaysians, Filipinos, Indonesians and the rest of the people of Southeast Asia should also learn to identify themselves as Southeast Asians.

Failure to embark on this modernizing project will not only allow rich countries to retain their influence in the region, it will also give incentive to extremist groups who are already successful in ignoring national boundaries in order to recruit more members and launch terror attacks in the region.

ASEAN forum to adopt plans to make group more responsive (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryID=125901)

by DARIO AGNOTE
Kyodo News


SINGAPORE -- The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) is set to adopt a raft of measures to get member-countries to work together in dealing with common security challenges when it gathers here for its annual meeting this week.

The fresh measures are meant to put decision-making on a fast track and foster ''concrete and practical cooperation'' among the 27 members of ARF, the Asia-Pacific region's premier multilateral security organization, according to official documents.

The innovations are hoped to make ARF more relevant and responsive to new global challenges, a discussion paper circulated by Singapore, the chair of this year's meeting, says.

''ARF member countries should consider how to reinvigorate the ARF in the dynamic regional security environment in which it operates,'' says the paper, adding that the grouping has to develop a clearer vision that will guide its future direction up to the year 2020.

A concept paper issued in 1995 envisioned ARF moving gradually through three stages: confidence-building measures, preventive diplomacy and, eventually, conflict resolution.


Deeper activities

The latest paper stresses the need to advance towards preventive diplomacy ''in a phased and prudent manner'' while continuing with confidence-building measures, and for its members to engage in deeper regional cooperative activities.

''The ARF participants should consider the merits of the ARF developing institutional features like the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization so as to make it more effective,'' it says.

The ARF, whose core members include the 10 ASEAN countries and the United States, was established in 1994 after the end of the Cold War to promote dialogue and cooperation on security.

But while dialogue among member-countries has been robust and sometimes fiery, cooperation between and among its members has been variable.

Some countries with long-standing defense and security ties like the Philippines, the United States, Singapore and Japan have had no trouble working together in foiling terror plots and sharing intelligence reports. But practical cooperation is often still saddled with lingering, deep distrust.

Some ARF members have ''privately lamented'' that the ARF is slow in making decisions, making it ''not responsive to fluid developments in the real world.''

''There are no clear provisions on how the ARF could quickly respond to an urgent situation or crisis,'' the paper says, adding this problem has caused ''funding problems as some countries must synch this slow decision-making process to their fiscal cycles.''

The assessment paper has identified at least six ''problems'' saddling the regional security grouping today that need to be confronted head-on, including its ''lack of concrete and practical cooperation,'' its ''slow decision-making'' process and lack of focus.

For instance, it notes that proposals for ARF activities are often put forward as early as October or November, but are not implemented until approved by the ARF in July or August of the subsequent year.

''The ARF requires more concrete and practical cooperation projects based on the collective needs identified in the ARF process,'' says the paper, stressing the need for the ARF to focus on issues like counter-terrorism, transnational crime, disaster relief, non-proliferation and disarmament, maritime security and peacekeeping.

''Special expertise (in these areas) is necessary,'' it notes.


ARF expansion

On the expansion of the ARF, the paper stresses the need ''to develop innovative ways and means to enhance its relevance to all its participants.''

It says ARF must maintain the so-called ''flexible moratorium'' in dealing with countries who have outstanding applications like Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic and Afghanistan.

''The expansion of ARF from 18 to 27 participants over the years has led some countries to complain that the forum has become too unwieldy, and that the dynamics have been affected with discussions becoming less informal and interactive,'' the paper says.

''However, some countries suggested that we should look into the creation of observer-status for those countries interested in ARF activities, and that the ARF unit should look into this possibility,'' it says.

On the increasing number of ARF meetings, the paper has voiced concern that some smaller countries are unable to attend every single meeting.

To be relevant, the paper says ARF needs to further study these measures and implement those which are ''suitable and appropriate'' to the region.


Strengthen ASEAN and non-ASEAN

To ensure that ARF remains as the premier regional security institution, the paper stresses the need to strengthen both ASEAN and non-ASEAN participants' role in the ARF process.

''Although ASEAN has undertaken the obligation to be the 'primary driving force' of the ARF, a successful ARF required the active participation, support and cooperation of all participants. ASEAN must always be sensitive to and take into account the interests and concerns of all ARF participants,'' it says.

''In this regard, some ARF countries need the support of better-endowed ARF participants, especially funding and convening meetings where possible in ASEAN countries,'' it says.

The ARF comprises the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam -- plus Australia, Canada, the European Union, New Zealand, the United States, Russia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor, Pakistan, North Korea, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Bangladesh, Japan, China, and India.

ASEAN meets on food, fuel prices

Foreign ministers open annual meet in Singapore
Agree to hold rice summit in December

By MANNY MOGATO

SINGAPORE (Reuters) — Southeast Asian foreign ministers gathered here for their annual meeting yesterday to tackle spiraling food and fuel prices, with worsening inflation contributing to political turbulence around the region.

Diplomats said the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed to hold a food summit in December, with prices of rice, the staple food in the region, soaring this year on fears of shortages.

ASEAN groups Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, the Philippines, Brunei, Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, Vietnam, and Malaysia.

"Indonesia proposed to hold a food security summit for ASEAN this December and we agreed right away," an official from the Philippines told reporters.

The foreign ministers would discuss "the growing challenge posed by rising oil and food prices ... to our people’s welfare as well as our countries’ continued economic development," the draft joint communique says.

The high-growth economies of Southeast Asia are worried that global financial turmoil could lead to the kind of chain reactions that destabilized them in the "Asian contagion" financial crisis of 1997-98.

"There had been discussions on reforms in the financial sector to avoid problems that led to the financial crisis in 1997," the Philippines official said.

Spiraling prices contributed to unprecedented opposition gains in Malaysia’s general elections last March and are stoking political turmoil elsewhere in the region, including food riots and protests in some countries and export restrictions in others.

Indonesia’s inflation rate is forecast to hit double digits this year, while other ASEAN members are seeing their highest rates in years.

ASEAN is aiming to sign a landmark charter in December that would create a European Union (EU)-style community among its members, which have a total population of around 560 million.

The planned economic, security, and cultural community would take ASEAN well beyond the "talking shop" some of its critics deride it as being.

ASEAN’s inability to get Myanmar’s junta to reform has been a major stumbling block to its ambition to exert economic and diplomatic muscle.

But on Sunday, Singapore’s Foreign Minister George Yeo offered a rare ray of optimism about ASEAN’s problem child, saying the generals could release detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in about half a year.

The Nobel peace laureate’s confinement to her lakeside home in Yangon was extended last May.

"Under their law, the maximum period of detention for Daw Sang Suu Kyi is one year, as approved by the home ministry and five more years as approved by the prime minister as a Cabinet decision ... meaning a maximum of six years," Yeo quoted Myanmar’s Foreign Minister Nyan Win as saying.

"And he told us the sixyear limit will come up in about half a year," Yeo said after a dinner with his Southeast Asian counterparts in Singapore.

Asked whether this meant Suu Kyi could be released in six months, he said: "I am just repeating to you what (Nyan Win) told me and I think that is not an inaccurate inference."

Suu Kyi has been confined for nearly 13 of the past 19 years. The draft declaration asks Myanmar to "take bolder steps towards a peaceful transition" but avoids criticizing the generals.

The foreign ministers, representing a diverse group of countries that include a kingdom and a junta, communist states and democracies, are expected to agree on the terms of reference for a landmark human rights body.

But indicative of the difficulties in integrating countries with long-standing border disputes, rivalries, and ancient animosities, Thailand and Cambodia have been at each other’s throats in recent days over the disputed site of a 900-year-old temple on their border on the eve of this week’s ASEAN meetings.

ASEAN is urging Thailand and Cambodia to show "utmost caution and restraint and abide by international obligations" and has offered to help resolve the stand-off in which hundreds of Thai and Cambodian troops have confronted each other for the past week.



Joint disaster relief still a dream in region

SINGAPORE (AFP) — Two years after Asia’s top security forum vowed to develop guidelines for joint disaster relief, precious little has been done and hundreds of thousands more have died in calamities around the region.

The Myanmar cyclone, China quake, and Philippines ferry sinking have catapulted disaster preparedness back to the top of the agenda of the annual ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) talks in Singapore on Thursday.

Ministers from the 27-member group — including the United States, China, Russia, the European Union, and the ASEAN countries — are expected to discuss a joint civilian-military disaster relief exercise, among other measures.

Aid workers said that while the forum was essentially a confidence-building talking shop, the recent spate of disasters and the threats posed by climate change should galvanise it into action.

"I’m optimistic that there can be some small steps, and even if it’s just about disaster risk reduction and preparing countries in the region, that would be a good thing," said Ashley Clements of international aid group World Vision.

ARF foreign ministers adopted a statement on disaster management and emergency response when they met in 2006, two years after the Asian tsunami killed some 220,000 people.

Among other things, the agreement called for "operating procedures" to be drawn up on civilian and military cooperation for humanitarian operations, and an inventory of military transport assets available in emergencies.

Thursday’s meeting should show what has been done to follow up on that pact, and how the forum wants to move ahead in the aftermath of the Myanmar and China disasters, which together left more than 208,000 people dead or missing.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was criticised by aid groups for not doing enough to pressure its military-run member Myanmar to open its doors to foreign relief workers after cyclone Nargis hit in early May.

Its own assessment teams took weeks to arrive in the disaster zone, but the bloc’s work to bridge the gap between the secretive junta and the international aid community has since won over many of the critics.

The Post-Nargis Joint Assessment, a report on the humanitarian conditions in storm-hit southern Myanmar by ASEAN, the United Nations, and the Myanmar junta, is due to be released Monday at a meeting of ASEAN ministers here.

"ASEAN did play a pretty important role in Myanmar in terms of creating the humanitarian space," said World Vision Asia-Pacific spokesman James East.

ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan was the driving force behind the bloc’s Myanmar response, describing it as a "baptism" in terms of leading an aid effort.

Even so, he said in Manila earlier this month that the region had to do more to be "prepared, coordinated and equipped" to confront the next disaster.

The bloc agreed in 2004 to establish a joint humanitarian relief centre in Jakarta, but that is still not in place. A 2005 pact on disaster management also has not been fully implemented.
(Stephen Coates)

India to open major chunk of trade under FTA with ASEAN (http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200808101222.htm)


New Delhi (PTI): India will eliminate or substantially reduce duties on almost 96 per cent of the items it trades with ASEAN but protect the sensitive agriculture sector by keeping over 300 items out of the free trade agreement with the 10-nation bloc.

The other sensitive areas which New Delhi will protect from the FTA include textiles and chemicals, the two areas of strength for the ASEAN, a high level official told PTI.

The two sides have resolved their differences on the level of protection and the demand for market access for products mainly palm oil.

Though running late by two years, the formal announcement for conclusion of the talks will be made in Singapore around the month-end by trade ministers from India and other leading ASEAN members. The agreement will finally be signed at the India-ASEAN summit in December in Bangkok, to be attended by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

While India protected its sensitive industries like textiles and chemicals, the ASEAN shielded its turf on automobiles and steel.

In all, India will keep 489 items out of the tariff cut by putting them in the negative list but the tariff reduction and elimination commitment will cover 95.65 per cent of the country's 30-billion-dollar trade with the south East-Asian trading bloc.


http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200808101222.htm

Australia PM Rudd sees Pacific union in 12 years
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=129551

Singapore (dpa) - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd praised the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Tuesday while pushing his vision of an Asian Pacific Community by 2020.

In a whirlwind visit to Singapore, Rudd laid a wreath at Kranji war cemetery before dawn, met with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, and delivered a lecture to business leaders, academics and others.

Criticism of Asean for its lack of action "is a mistake," Rudd said. The 10-member organisation has had "great success in avoiding conflict among member states."

Noting Australia became Asean's first dialogue partner in 1944, Rudd said the grouping has "grown and matured."

Asean is "building a sense of regional identity" with the Asean Charter, which will turn it into a rules-based legal entity once ratified by all the members, Rudd said.

The grouping comprises Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Burma.

During the lecture organised by the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Rudd also brought up his proposal for an Asia Pacific Community by 2020.

"We must face the future or the future will shape us," he said.

Rudd and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong signed a pact on defence cooperation earlier, characterising it as a natural step in strengthening bilateral relations.

The agreement expands military exercises, development of military expertise and resource sharing.

Rudd, in his first official visit to the city-state as prime minister, was scheduled to return to Australia after seven days abroad, starting with the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games.

"It will take a lot of patience, a lot of resolve, to try and unravel this complex web controlled by a few cronies" Malaysia's Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim on a bid to remove government


China is not a new power but an old power revived --Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew on Beijing Olympics


"Teka hwag na nga lang muna" --FVR on 2010 election

I have just read the article and I've noticed that the date was wrong. It should be 1994 and not 1944. Heck, Thailand is the only sovereign state at that time.

I admire this new PM of Australia. He is a believer of a Union in Asia. I'm just wondering if ASEAN can really emerge as strong and united. Some issues are unresolved and left hanging for so long... Hey, PM Rudd speaks Mandarin.

No sign of crisis in the banking and finance sector

RP banks may call on SEA liquidity swap deals (http://businessmirror.com.ph/09252008/banking01.html)

Jun Vallecera
Reporter


IF push comes to shove, banks in the Philippines can depend not just on the repurchase window of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) but also on funds available through central banks in Southeast Asia.

In an e-mail message, BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said governors of South East Asian Central Bank, or Seacen, have recently reminded themselves in Thailand that while the region’s banks have shown resilience in the ongoing financial turmoil, they can access liquidity through a swap facility forged many years earlier.

The swap facility ensures access to the foreign-exchange reserves of countries within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, hammered out in the form of bilateral deals in the wake of the 1997 financial crisis.

The post-1997 bilateral agreements include the foreign-exchange reserves of China, Japan and South Korea—the so-called Asean +3.

“We don’t think it will come to that, but that fund is still there and available should it become necessary,” Tetangco said.

He flew to Bangkok over the weekend to confer with fellow central bank governors in the region on what had been their policy response to the tumult created by the demise or merger of some of the most powerful names in the world of investment banking and securities trading.

Seacen members concluded the series of meetings in Bangkok unanimous in the policy position that Asean banks do not need to be rescued at all.

“We concluded that most Asian banks are resilient and that’s because of their resources and the sustained good performance of Asian economies. So we are not in crisis mode here,” Tetangco said.

While the central-bank governors have taken on an approach of confidence that their lenders are not under threat in the face of the current credit crisis, each governor pledged “to closely monitor developments so we know immediately how it would affect the region as a whole,” Tetangco said.

So far there are no reports anywhere in the Philippines of banks experiencing a run of depositors that worry about the safety of their money.

“We are monitoring the banks on a daily basis and, thus far, based on reports we released earlier, nothing unusual is happening,” Tetangco said.

“Bank operations are normal; we are stable. There had been no unusual withdrawals nationwide,” he added.

The foreign-currency swap agreements the BSP signed with other central banks in the region are all negotiated on bilateral basis.

Each is renewed every year as a precaution. Since the creation of the bilateral swap deals in the wake of the 1997 financial crisis, there had been no reason for any country, the Philippines included, to make a swap call.

Central banks in Europe and the US fear that banks may refuse to extend credit until the financial fallout from the demise, sale or merger of some of the biggest institutions in global finance has cleared.

US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson Jr. and US Fed chairman Ben Bernanke are chief architects in the US effort to unfreeze that reluctance by proposing to inject American taxpayers’ money worth $700 billion into the world’s financial markets.

That sum represents the cost of repairing the damage estimated to reach between $500 billion to $1 trillion.

http://businessmirror.com.ph/09252008/images/oped-pic.jpg

Dangerous game (http://businessmirror.com.ph/09252008/opinion01.html)

THE irony is most telling: the bad news swamping the good.

As reports filtered out of fortress Burma on Tuesday that after 19 years of incarceration, journalist U Win Tin has finally been released from Burma’s notorious Insein prison, came the news also, through the Inter Press Service (IPS), that Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, in detention for 12 of the past 18 years, has grown weak for refusing food for nearly a month. This casts a shadow on the future of Burma’s democracy movement, given Suu Kyi’s iconic role as the world’s conscience in one of its most authoritarian regimes.

“Journalists across Southeast Asia—indeed, across Asia, around the world—will be cheering U Win Tin’s release. If there has to be just one man to symbolize the struggle for press freedom in Southeast Asia in the past two decades, that man will have to be U Win Tin. We are heartened by initial news that his spirit to fight for democracy remains unbroken. He will remain an important force and inspiration for carrying on the fight for free expression in this region.” That enthusiastic reaction came from Roby Alampay, a veteran Filipino journalist and executive director of the Bangkok-based Southeast Asian Press Alliance.

Yet, from the initial TV clips of journalist U Win Tin, the ravages of time and mistreatment, presumably—what Edita Burgos calls the twins of “nature and torture”—have taken quite a toll on the man in the 19 years he has been jailed. That thought—that this junta has the capacity and the brutal will to wear down its enemies—comes to mind when one ponders the future of democracy, given that such people as Mr. U Win Tin and Suu Kyi have been at it for more than it took to unseat Ferdinand Marcos. And, at 62, how long can Suu Kyi continue to inspire the struggle, especially now that her health is affected by her latest protest, though her party mates at the National League of Democracy won’t call it yet a hunger strike.

It is clear that the junta can take forever to wear down Suu Kyi and like-minded Burmese, the loud denunciations in international forums like the United Nations (UN) notwithstanding. But, perhaps, 18 years after winning by landslide the parliamentary elections only to be shunted aside by the junta, Suu Kyi is nearing the end of her patience and decided to up the stakes—especially after the junta decided to extend her five-year, latest jail sentence by another year, in clear violation of law and in mockery of international appeals.

To the wimps in the UN and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, she is, perhaps saying, enough is enough. The game in Burma has reached a dangerous stage, with Suu Kyi making what IPS writer Zin Linn described as a “brave wake-up call.” But, given its track record, there’s little hope the junta could be moved, unless more extreme incidents happen, or it becomes clear to the generals that a patriot like her dead is the last thing they need at this time.

PSE to tie up with other Southeast Asian stock markets (http://www.gmanews.tv/story/122811/PSE-to-tie-up-with-other-Southeast-Asian-stock-markets#)

Article posted September 25, 2008 - 10:56 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines and its counterparts in Southeast Asia have agreed to electronically link their stock markets and set up an Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) board.

In a disclosure, the PSE said it will enter into an agreement with five other Asean bourses to link their exchanges.

Those participating are Bursa Malaysia, Hochi Minh Stock Exchange, Indonesia Stock Exchange, Singapore Stock Exchange and the Stock Exchange of Thailand. GMANews.TV

^^ That's nice. :) We're becoming more united as a region, well the richer, larger ones anyway. ASEAN Pride! :tongue2:

di ba may proposal na maging "one region, one curreny" sa isa sa mga naging ASEAN Summit? like euro:)

Australia, Philippines sign tsunami warning deals (http://www.gmanews.tv/story/120014/Australia-Philippines-sign-tsunami-warning-deals#)

Article posted September 12, 2008 - 11:50 PM

VIENNA, Austria - Australia and the Philippines signed agreements Friday enabling them to receive real-time data on any earthquake that could cause a tsunami, information that would come from an organization overseeing a treaty banning nuclear explosions.

The Vienna-based Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization said data it collects at its monitoring facilities, which are set up to detect nuclear explosions, could give authorities two and a half minutes of additional warning. That vital time could be used to alert the public ahead of the devastating waves.

In December 2004, a massive earthquake off Indonesia's Sumatra island triggered a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people — 131,000 of them in Aceh province alone.

A tsunami off Java island last year killed nearly 5,000.

The Vienna-based organization's executive secretary, Tibor Toth, signed separate agreements with Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo and Peter Shannon, Australia's permanent representative to the United Nations in Vienna.

"It is very, very important," Romulo said in a statement.

Shannon said the deal was "part of a network that has developed since the terrible disasters that the Asia-Pacific region experienced."

The organization has been providing real-time and continuous data on a test basis to tsunami warning centers in Australia, Hawaii, Japan and Malaysia since March 2005 in collaboration with UNESCO.

In August, Japan signed a formal agreement for this kind of warning. Indonesia is expected to follow suit in November. - AP

RP set as Ultimate Fighting Championship's Southeast Asian hub (RP set as Ultimate Fighting Championship's Southeast Asian hub)

By ROY MEDINA, abs-cbnNEWS.com | 09/22/2008 7:08 PM

Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell during question time with Philippine media in Quezon City, Sept. 22, 2008.Filipino mixed martial arts fans will surely have something big to look forward to in 2009 as the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the world's premiere mixed martial arts (MMA) organization, is planning to expand to Southeast Asia by next year and plans to use the Philippines as its base of operations.

"We're expanding into Southeast Asia, and we wanna use the Philippines and Manila as a springboard to make it happen," Lorenzo Fertitta, chairman and chief executive of Zuffa, LLC, the media and entertainment company that owns UFC, told sports reporters during a media day at ABS-CBN's 9501 restaurant in Quezon City on Monday.

Fertitta, who arrived with two-time UFC lightweight champion Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell over the weekend, said that the sport has grown so big in America that at times, it has exceeded ratings of other popular sporting events in the US.

"You may or may not know it but the UFC has become one of the largest sports franchises in the United States. The ratings on our TV shows exceeded the NBA, at times exceeded the NFL, exceeded the Major League Baseball, so we've grown tremendously in the United States and Canada," he added.

The next logical step, said Fertitta, is to bring the UFC to the world.

"We're expanding into Europe, we have an office in the UK, we're planning fights in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Finland, Denmark," the UFC big boss added.

Two guys slugging it out

Fertitta explained how and why the UFC has grown so much in appeal and cult following within the last seven years since it was acquired by Zuffa in 2001.

"One of the things we've found is that the UFC translates very well. Some sports don't necessarily translate very well. People outside America don't necessarily understand football, people in America don't understand cricket," he said.

UFC chief executive and chairman Lorenzo Fertitta.Fertitta said that with this in mind, it would translate to the thinking that " if you dont understand the rules, you don't get it."

The great thing about the UFC, he said, is that it goes everywhere and people can immediately relate to it..

"Fighting is in our DNA. Everyone loves to watch when you put two guys in The Octagon using any martial art they want, and everybody gets it right away," he said.

UFC in Manila by May

Fertitta, meanwhile, has this to say when asked to elaborate on UFC's plan to establish a base in the Philippines:" We're currently working on it right now, there's a lot of planning and a lot of things that have to be put in place to bring in an event of that size and magnitude over here."

He said that the UFC, together with ABS-CBN, plans to organize something by May 2009.

"We're hoping that we can organize something for the summertime, maybe around May," he said.

However, a lot of things will come into play, he added.

Despite these factors, Fertitta assured UFC fans that, "Definitely, we're going to be here in the Philippines as soon as we possibly could."

Huge market

The UFC head honcho said they were surprised at the huge turnout at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City on Sunday when Liddell had an open workout there.

"When we went to the Mall of Asia yesterday (Sunday), we had an incredible turnout. Just walking down the street, everybody recognized Chuck Liddell," he said.

Fertitta said that following the warm welcome received on Sunday, they are now more certain of the UFC's chances in the Philippines.

"We love the Philippines, the UFC wants to come here and put on a big show, and become a part of the sports industry here," he said.

He added that the probability of the UFC to establish a Philippine base of operations is "very high."

"I think it's a very high percentage, almost 100 percent," he said, adding that the UFC is already committed to the Filipino market.

"We love the fans here, we think we can build a real business here and we'll be here for sure," he said.

MMA explained; fighter safety on top

A UFC fact sheet explains MMA as "an intense and evolving combat sport in which competitors use interdisciplinary forms of fighting."

These fighting forms include jiu-jitsu, judo, karate, boxing, kickboxing, wrestling and others.

Scoring for MMA events is based on athletic commission-approved definitions for striking (blows with the hands, feet, knees or elbows) and grappling (submission, choke holds, throws or takedowns).

"No single discipline reigns," UFC said.

Despite the intensity and the physical nature of MMA, the UFC as an organization said fighter safety is very important.

"Fighter safety is of paramount concern to UFC owenership and management: it is noteworthy that no competitor has even been seriously injured in a UFC event," it said.

as of 09/23/2008 11:39 AM

Asean bourses to set up trading linkage (http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/10062008/companies04.html)

By Honey Madrilejos-Reyes
Reporter

THE Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) will participate in a trading linkage project among bourses within the Southeast Asian region.

The move, said PSE president Francis Lim, has been approved by the bourse’s board of directors.

The Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) stock exchange linkage is primarily a technology link that will allow investors from other countries in the region to buy or sell Asean-listed securities through their local brokers.

“We anticipate with much enthusiasm to finally forge a tie-up for the Asean exchanges linkage. Not only will the project mean a more meaningful partnership with our counterparts but it will also lay the foundation for an integrated and stronger Asean stock market,” said Lim.

The PSE said the urgency of developing linkages among Asean exchanges arises mainly from global pressures that could make small exchanges irrelevant in the global financial market arena.

Over the past years, various exchanges have been consolidating through direct buyouts, exchanges taking a stake in another, or through the creation of various forms of alliances, including trading linkages.

The linkage will be implemented through a common exchange gateway, which is a decentralized entry point to be set up in each exchange for brokers and investors to trade securities listed on any of the Asean exchanges.

In another development, the PSE board also approved the proposal to require trading participants to increase the minimum amount of the surety bond posted by brokers and conditioned upon the faithful compliance with securities laws, rules and regulations.

The said plan was recommended by broker-directors of the PSE board.

The board has backed up the brokers’ initiative to raise the surety bond required under the securities law from P5 million to P10 million for brokers and P1 million to P2 million for dealers. This will be made applicable to all brokers and/or dealers who have deferred compliance with the P100 million minimum unimpaired capital requirement.

Under the existing rules, the amount of the surety bonds required to be filed pursuant to SRC Rule by broker dealers who have elected to defer compliance with the P100 million unimpaired paid up capital requirements is fixed at not les than P5 million for brokers and not less than P1 million for dealers. Such bonds shall be conditioned upon the faithful compliance with the provisions of the Code and rules and regulations adopted by the broker dealer or of any salesman or associated person while acting for him.

“We are confident that we will get the full support of the Securities and Exchange Commission for the approval of this measure because we in the PSE believe that it will safeguard investors’ rights,” Lim said.

Philippine senate just ratified few hours ago the ASEAN charter, 16 senators voting for ratification, no abstention, with only Sen. Pimentel voting "NO"....

We still have a long way to go to realize ASEAN integration.

Senate ratifies ASEAN charter (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/news/view/20081007-165120/Senate-ratifies-ASEAN-charter)

By Thea Alberto
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 17:03:00 10/07/2008

MANILA, Philippines -- (UPDATE) The Senate ratified the Association of Southeast Asian charter Tuesday by a vote of 16 for, one against and no abstentions.

The lone negative vote was cast by Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

The ASEAN Charter, which needs the ratification of all 10 member-states of the regional bloc, creates a human rights body, puts down into writing the obligations of the members to uphold the United Nations Charter and international law, and sets the process for the body to take up matters of non-compliance.

Pimentel said he cast a “No” voted because of the human rights situation in military-governed Myanmar.

The charter would give legal personality to ASEAN, which groups Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, as a single intergovernmental organization.

To date, most of the countries have signed the Charter.

Earlier, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed Administrative Order No. 229 to expedite the charter's ratification by the Senate in concurrence with Executive Order No. 459, series of 1997, "providing for the guidelines in the negotiation of international agreements and its ratification."

South West CDC wins ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable Cities Award

SINGAPORE: The South West Community Development Council (CDC) has won the inaugural regional ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable Cities (ESC) Award for Singapore.
ADVERTISEMENT

Dr Amy Khor, Mayor of South West District, received the award from Vietnam’s National Resource and Environment Minister, Mr Pham Khoi Nguyen, at a ceremony in Hanoi on Wednesday.

The award is conferred by ASEAN to 10 cities, districts, townships and other sub—urban areas in the regional grouping which have shown effort in improving the quality of their living environment and keeping their cities clean, green and liveable.

South West CDC said the award recognises its effort in striving towards sustainable development and to root the community to live, work and play in a healthier and greener environment.

The other recipients of the ASEAN ESC Award are Temburong District (Negara Brunei Darussalam), Municipality of Phnom Penh (Cambodia), Palembang City (Indonesia), Luang Prabang District (Lao PDR), North Kucing City Hall (Malaysia), Taugyi City (Myanmar), Puerto Princesa City (Philippines), Bangkok City (Thailand) and Ha Long City (Vietnam).

— CNA/yt

^^ Terima kasih Paradyto atas article itu. Is Palembang part of South or North Sumatra?

Puerto Princesa City, Palawan truly deserves this award.

^^ Terima kasih Paradyto atas article itu. Is Palembang part of South or North Sumatra?

Puerto Princesa City, Palawan truly deserves this award.

You're welcome RonnieR:) Palembang is a part of South Sumatra...

http://images.dafrianto75.multiply.com/image/4/photos/59/600x600/22/multiply.jpg?et=rjTaDBkT70MCn7Z9GcKZgw&nmid=111121589

can see here:
Palembang Part 1 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=265309)
Palembang Part 2 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=448011)
Palembang Part 3 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=502335)
Palembang Part 4 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=520501)
Palembang Part 5 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=578465)
Palembang Part 6 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=615743)

Puerto Princesa City looks clean too:)

Not of ASEAN but a larger regional block...

RP, Australia push Apec integration (http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=261:rp-australia-push-apec-integration&catid=23:topnews)
Top News
Written by Estrella Torres / Reporter
Monday, 13 October 2008 00:00



THE Philippines and Australia have agreed to accelerate the regional economic integration of members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) forum to prepare for the adverse consequences of the global financial crisis.

Mechanisms and structural reforms to the proposed free-trade agreement (FTA) take center stage in the Apec Leaders’ Summit to be held next month in Lima, Peru, to seek stronger trade and investments in the region.

Ministers of foreign affairs and trade of the Philippines and Australia had substantial discussions on how countries in the region should respond to the global financial crisis during the 2nd Philippines-Australia Ministerial Meeting (PAMM) held in Manila over the weekend.

“The secretaries and ministers discussed the global financial situation and underscored the need for greater regional cooperation on economic and financial issues, including through the East Asia Summit and Apec,” said the joint statement of the 2nd PAMM.

The two countries, however, affirmed their strong support to push the “successful conclusion of the WTO [World Trade Organization] Doha Development Negotiations, including as partners in the Cairns group.”

Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean, meanwhile, said Southeast Asian countries remain “sheltered at this stage from the financial crisis” due to the rigorous financial policy adopted as a result of the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

For instance, he said, countries in the Asian region are not exposed to subprime and still maintain a very regulated financial system.

But he said Australia and the Philippines, as well as other countries in the Asia-Pacific, will experience “slower economic growth” as part of the adverse consequence of the global financial crisis.

“There will be adverse consequences, but all the financial regulations adopted [during the Asian financial crisis] have spared to some extent the Asian economies,” said Crean in a press briefing in Manila.

Apec member-economies have agreed to adopt the Asia-Pacific FTA since last year owing to the lack of movement in the Doha negotiations in the WTO.

Trade officials of Apec economies had discussed, during the three consecutive senior officials meetings (SOMs), the measures to integrate existing policies of individual Apec economies—which include competition policy, regulatory reforms, public-sector management, customs tariff, governance issues and anticorruption measures.

The regional economic integration of the 21 Apec members is meant to mesh the existing intrade Apec trade agreements—at least 19 of them that include the separate five FTAs entered into by members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) with members of Apec.

The North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) signed in 1994 remains to be the largest existing free-trade agreement. It is composed of Apec members Canada, Mexico and the United States, with a total population of about 442 million.

Apec is considered to be the most influential and beneficial trading forum, covering over 50 percent of the global gross domestic product and 41 per cent of global trade.

The regional trade bloc groups the Philippines, Canada, Australia, Peru, United States, Hong Kong-China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand,Papua New Guinea, Russia, Singapore, Chinese-Taipei, Thailand, Vietnam, Chile, Brunei, South Korea and People’s Republic of China

Groups establish ASEAN CSR network (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20081013-166160/Groups-establish-ASEAN-CSR-network)
By Alexander Villafania
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 14:35:00 10/13/2008
MAKATI CITY – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Foundation and the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) launched Monday a project aimed at creating a network of companies involved in corporate social responsibility (CSR).

Dubbed "Promoting Mutual Assistance Among Corporate Foundations in ASEAN," the project will be a multi-phased initiative that will start with building a database of corporate foundations in the Asean region.

Asean Foundation Executive Director Filemon Uriarte Jr. said the foundation is focused on expanding the scope of CSRs from each country and sharing it to other potential beneficiaries in the region.

The project also aims to provide partner-corporate foundations the venue to learn about different practices from each country and to give them a better perspective on how to conduct CSR projects in different countries.

AIM President Francis Estrada said that for the initial phase, AIM's Ramon V. Del Rosario Sr. Center for Corporate Social Responsibility will manage all the activities under a partnership.

Estrada said the project will widen the ability of corporate foundations to provide assistance to other areas across the Asean region and eventually encourage other corporations to extend their own programs beyond their respective countries.

GMA off to China for ASEM meet (http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=20081012103)
By Paolo Romero
Monday, October 13, 2008
Press Secretary Jesus Dureza reported yesterday that President Arroyo and other heads of state will discuss the global financial crisis during a summit of world leaders in Beijing, China later this week.

Dureza said Mrs. Arroyo will attend the 7th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Beijing from Oct. 24 to 25 and would likely hold bilateral talks with other world leaders to push the country’s interests.

He said she would push for a common action to avoid the US financial crisis from recurring.

Dureza likened the crisis to a fire that has already been put out. The next stage is to find out what caused it and stop the financial bleeding and take immediate steps to bring the patient back to good health.

“This would also be a good opportunity for the President to highlight what the Philippines is doing to sustain the growth despite the global economic slowdown,” he said in an interview with radio station dzRB.

He said Mrs. Arroyo would also hold one-on-one meetings with other heads of state to push for more investments.

He could not say whether she would raise with Chinese leaders the issue of contaminated products from China, such as the melamine-tainted milk products.

Palace officials earlier said it was seeking to expand trade and economic relations with China to diversify the economy and make it less vulnerable to the global economic slowdown that was triggered by the financial crisis in the US.

ASEM is composed of Asian countries, including the Philippines and the other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the 27 members of the European Union.

The ASEM is held every two years among Asian and European heads of state. The first ASEM summit was held in London in 1998; Seoul, South Korea in 2000; Copenhagen, Denmark in 2002; Hanoi, Vietnam in 2004; and Helsinki, Finland in 2006.

India, Mongolia and Pakistan, the newest members of the Asian-European group, are attending the ASEM summit this year.

“ASEM is an informal process of dialogue and co-operation addressing political, economic and cultural issues,” according to the Asia-Europe Foundation website.

The ASEM dialogue addresses political, economic and cultural issues, with the objective of strengthening the relationship between our two regions, in a spirit of mutual respect and equal partnership, it said.

ASEAN lays groundwork for mining devt
Philippines may expect $5B in new investments (http://business.inquirer.net/money/topstories/view_article.php?article_id=166859)

By Amy R. Remo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 04:21am (Mla time) 10/17/2008
MANILA, Philippines—ASEAN ministers have adopted the Manila Declaration, a framework for strengthening the region’s mining sector that could be a driving force in establishment of an ASEAN Economic Community by 2015, a Philippine senior official said.

At the closing ceremony of the Second ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Minerals, Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Jose Atienza said the Manila Declaration had helped develop a “clear direction and roadmap to successful mining in our own countries.”

He said that in adopting the Manila Declaration, the ASEAN ministers expressed their common sentiment that development of their respective mining industries would shield the member countries from the global financial meltdown.

Members of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines were pleased with the results of the conferences, especially as the ASEAN ministers “affirmed their unified support for the mining sector and minerals development,” said chamber president Philip Romualdez.

Over the past four days, mining companies have disclosed over $5 billion in new investments in the Philippines, on top of $11 billion previously announced, Romualdez said.

He added that the Philippines could even be looking at a $15-billion investment level in just four years, compared with the government’s projection of a $12.6-billion investment inflow in the period to 2013.

“No pessimism,” Atienza said. “Our assumptions are right that the demand for minerals and mineral products will not slow down. Our very own region and local consumption will support it.”

According to conference documents, the policies detailed under the Manila Declaration will be implemented over the next two years.

One policy calls on ASEAN countries to commit to the “continuous development and utilization of the mineral resources of ASEAN member states to enhance the sustainability of the resources and maximize the benefits to the community and the national economy, providing the necessary safety net and shield from global financial and economic turmoil.”

The ministers also agreed to “accelerate cooperation to work toward the facilitation and enhancement of trade and investments in minerals through harmonization of mineral policies, incentives and taxation, standardization of mineral resource information and systematized flow and exchange of resource and trade information.”

Other policies include promoting a “platform for dialogue, in which the private sector and ASEAN dialogue partners can more effectively and efficiently collaborate in mutually beneficial minerals cooperation activities in support of [the establishment] of the ASEAN Community; and fostering concerted cooperation and joint approaches in international and regional fora on minerals.” With editing by INQUIRER.net

Puerto Princesa bags green award (http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?view=article&catid=26:nation&id=560:puerto-princesa-bags-green-award-&tmpl=component&print=1&page=&option=com_content)
Nation
Friday, 17 October 2008 01:18
Puerto Princesa City continues to reap dividends on its environmental protection, conservation and sustainable development programs as it added another feather to its cap after bagging the prestigious Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Environmentally Sustainable Cities Award in Hanoi, Vietnam.

This is the first time that Asean gave out such an award which was received by Councilor Miguel Cuaderno IV. Puerto Princesa City was nominated by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environment Management Bureau in recognition of its role as the country’s foremost champion of sustainable development.

Surin Pitsuwan, Asean secretary-general, explained that the award is an initiative of the Asean environment ministers which aims “to give recognition to cities in the region that have taken exemplary measures to keep their cities clean, green and liveable even as they continue to grow as centers of economic and industrial activity.”

Pitsuwan stressed that the award is significant because “each awardee-city tells a compelling story of how it has placed environment and nature at the core of city planning, the challenges it faced, and its resolve to ensure the city remain environmentally sustainable as it develops and modernizes. Their ability to successfully focus on the sustainability of their environment provides an experiential model that other cities can emulate.”

In response to the Asean award, Puerto Princesa City Mayor Edward Hagedorn said, “We are happy and proud and grateful to have represented the Philippines in this very prestigious Asean search for the region’s most environmentally sustainable cities. This is a very meaningful award because it recognizes and validates the correctness of our long-avowed policy of sustainable development in lieu of the destructive boom-and-bust cycles of environmental exploitation characterized by the wanton abuse and destruction of land, air and water resources—the very sources of life—as if there were infinite.”

‘Crisis makes Asean integration compelling’ (http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=579:crisis-makes-asean-integration-compelling&catid=23:topnews)
Top News
Written by Butch Fernandez / Reporter
Friday, 17 October 2008 03:32
THE integration of Asean economies remains the primary solution to improving the socioeconomic condition of millions of citizens in the region in the face of growing challenges posed by the ongoing global financial crisis, according to Sen. Mar Roxas II.

Addressing delegates attending the Asean 100 Leadership Forum at the Shangri-La Hotel in Makati City on Thursday, Roxas warned Asean member-countries against isolationism in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.

He urged the regional grouping to work together decisively in finding ways to cushion the crisis’s impact on its citizens. “Given the turbulence, all the more we need to keep together as we have done in the past. It means being counseled by solidarity rather than fear, trust rather than suspicion, calm rather than hysteria. However painstaking, we must strive to continue integrating our real economies,” he said.

In his keynote speech, Roxas stressed the need for Asean leaders to “strive more than ever to enroll the people in our vision. The imperatives of survival for the hundreds of millions in our neighborhood, living below $2 a day, will push governments to take an ‘every man for himself’ approach. We must resist this.”

The senator noted that the Asean 100 Leadership Forum, the fifth to be held, is a highly interactive meeting of minds of the most outstanding Southeast Asian next-generation leaders from government, business and civil society who will chart the future of Asean.

He urged the governments of Asean nations to get together and craft a plan of action that will shield and protect the livelihood of millions in Southeast Asia.

“This global financial and economic crisis will not be easily solved. It will take all nations and their leaders to do the job—all engaged in earnest discourse and dialogue, practicing trust and collaboration, all moving and striking in one direction,” he said. “There is real destruction of lives and dreams. Beyond the ebbs and flows of these trillions of dollars in market valuation are the savings, the hopes and dreams, the security of millions of our people. These people saved, set aside today’s gratification in order to provide for tomorrow, only to see what they built up over the years wiped out in a matter of days and weeks.”

According to Roxas, the crisis has shown that the governments in the region have a role as the “last line of defense,” instead of being “a willing participant of its own enfeeblement.”

“Until this crisis, we all believed that financial markets were there to enable the economy to serve the greater good in the most efficient and equitable way. But we have seen the gross inability of governments to regulate finance in line with that role, in a global context. The need for balance and restoration is so compelling that it has forced the wealthiest nations to band together for a consolidated plan of action, if only to save their economies,” he said.

He added that the government, clearly, is the last line of defense. “It is ironic that it has had to assume this role as lifeguard of last resort because of its absence over the last several years. The path of deregulation was such that government not only stood idly by, but it was a willing participant to its own enfeeblement,” he said.

ASEAN leaders to hold crisis meeting next week

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Southeast Asian leaders will meet in Beijing next week to discuss measures to deal with the global financial crisis, the regional bloc's top official said on Friday.

The secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Surin Pitsuwan, said the summit of the 10-nation grouping will be held on October 23 or October 24, and may also include leaders from China, Japan and South Korea.

"I like to stress this is certainly not a panic reaction. This is a precautionary step. We know that is extremely critical," Surin told reporters in the Malaysian capital.

"No matter how strong, how resilient we are, how good we are, we will be affected one way or the other," he said.

Governments around the world have already pledged to spend some $3.2 trillion to try to resolve a global credit crisis that is now threatening to push the developed nations that much of Asia relies on for exports into recession.

Surin said the ASEAN meeting would discuss ways to support the currencies of member countries by strengthening the emergency fund already in place.

"I think that (meeting in Beijing) is good. The issue is legitimate. We do believe that we are in better shape than 10 years ago," Surin said.

East Asian countries earlier this year proposed setting up an $80 billion currency swap agreement, expanding a much more modest agreement that was set up in the wake of the 1997/1998 Asian financial crisis to protect any country facing a balance of payments crisis.

"They can work around that, they can strengthen that, they can come up with provisions, rules, regulations. That sum can be implemented for possible needs, possible necessity," Surin said.

Agence France-Presse
First Posted 11:31:00 10/21/2008

SINGAPORE -- Southeast Asia's economies will suffer if a growing shortage of managers and skilled professionals is not addressed, the International Labor Organization warned Tuesday.

The shortages were no longer limited to multinational companies but were affecting an increasing number of local firms wanting to expand globally, the ILO said in the report entitled "Labor and Social Trends in ASEAN in 2008."

"If these skills shortages are not addressed, they will constrain enterprise competitiveness and ASEAN's future development," it said, citing a lack of managers and skilled staff in the information technology and finance sectors.

ASEAN is the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, whose membership ranges from wealthier states like Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand to poor countries like Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.

The other ASEAN members are the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam.

The regional bloc, with a combined population of 550 million people, aims to create a single market and manufacturing base by 2015 in order to have more clout in the international markets.

The ILO said the growing skills shortages raised questions about the quality and relevance of tertiary education in ASEAN, adding that the problem was not a lack of applicants, but their poor qualifications.

"Many countries have been suffering from a shortage of managers and technical and professional staff, indicating a mismatch between supply of workers with appropriate education and skills and the demand for those types of workers," it said.

"Skills shortages could undermine enterprise competitiveness in a variety of ways. They can lead to capacity under-utilization and productivity losses, increased labor turnover, higher wage increases and higher recruitment and training costs," it added.

"If the problems are widespread, whole industries and entire economies may suffer."

According to ILO, a well-trained ASEAN workforce will also be better equipped to adjust to changing global trends.

"In the context of the current volatility in global markets and inflationary pressure in most of the ASEAN member countries, it is even more imperative now that education and training policies support workforce development and enrich productivity growth," it said.

Skilled labor shortage is a long-term problem that is likely to persist beyond the current economic meltdown, ILO added.

"Even if economic growth in ASEAN, and in the Asian region as a whole, decelerates in the wake of a slowing global economy, the problems of skills shortages at the high end are likely to remain."

ASEAN's labor force stood at around 285 million in 2007, with 40 million more expected to be added by 2015, ILO said.

From tribuneonline.org


Laos okays five more SEA Games sports (http://www.tribuneonline.org/sports/20081022spo9.html)

By Julius Manicad
October 22,2008

Organizers of the 25th Southeast Asian Games are set to include five more disciplines in their roster, giving Filipino athletes a brighter chance of winning more gold medals in the region's most competitive athletic meet.

In a meeting among Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Jose 'Peping' Cojuangco, POC games and rules committee chairman Go Teng Kok and representatives from the Laos SEA Games organizing committee last Monday, the host country decided to include archery, cycling, dragon boat, weightlifting and basketball in the list of sports set to be played in next year's biennial meet.

These sports, however, still need the formal approval of the SEA Games Federation when it convenes next month.

"But it's almost a done deal," POC spokesperson Joey Romasanta said. "All we need is the participation of four countries so that the hosts could formally include those sports in their calendar of events. This is definitely a good news to our SEA Games campaign next year."

Southeast Asian nations back rice action plan -IRRI (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/world/10/24/08/southeast-asian-nations-back-rice-action-plan-irri)

Reuters | 10/24/2008 6:29 PM

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Southeast Asian nations on Friday supported a rice action plan for the region, including boosting yields, using new technology and policy reforms in response to the rice price crisis early this year.

The measures were presented by the Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) during a meeting in Hanoi with officials of the 10-nation Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), IRRI said in a statement.

It said ASEAN ministers unanimously endorsed the plan.

ASEAN includes the world's two largest rice exporters, Thailand and Vietnam, as well as the biggest importer, the Philippines.

Robert Zeigler, director general at IRRI, told the ministers the institute needed an additional $15 million a year over the next 10 years to support the rice action plan.

"At a time of trillion-dollar bailouts for the global financial sector, $15 million a year is barely the annual bonus of a former Wall Street executive," Zeigler said in the statement.

IRRI said it developed the action plan earlier this year when rice prices surged to all-time highs as Asian countries scrambled to secure supply of the grain, a staple for nearly half the world's population.

Benchmark Thai rice prices have come down to about $630 a ton since hitting record highs above $1,000 a ton in April as supply of the grain improved, though prices are still far above $300 a ton seen in 2007.

Measures under IRRI's seven-point action plan include reducing the gap of 1-2 tons per hectare between actual and potential yield in most ricefields in Asia, accelerating delivery of new post-harvest technologies, introduction of higher-yielding rice varieties and providing suitable policy reforms.

Other members of ASEAN include Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Laos, Myanmar and Brunei.

as of 10/24/2008 6:31 PM

East Asia discusses biofuels database (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20081025-168440/East-Asia-discusses-biofuels-database)

By Carla Gomez
Visayas Bureau
First Posted 17:21:00 10/25/2008

BACOLOD CITY, Negros Occidental -- Delegates from six countries were here Friday to discuss the progress of moves to set up a biofuels database for 16 East Asian countries.

The biofuels database would enable the sharing of information to boost clean alternative energy, said Nobuo Hashimoto, director of the New Energy Foundation (NEF).

NEF and the Department of Energy are the sponsors of the three-day workshop being attended by delegates from Japan, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Vietnam, and the Philippines who reported on the progress of database preparation in their respective countries.
The delegates visited the San Carlos Bionergy Inc. bio-ethanol project in San Carlos City Saturday.

Hashimoto, noting Negros's potential for ethanol production, said NEF was providing financial support and assisting in the setting up of a biofuels database.

The objective is to develop and establish the East Asia Biofuels Corp. website that will include basic information on energy, biofuels policies, supply potential of feedstock and utilization, investment, incentives, market and promotions, technical information, standards and quality assurance, and future outlook of feedstock.

He said the countries covered are Australia, Cambodia, India, Japan, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Brunei, China, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Vietnam.

ASEAN revs up integration plans (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view_article.php?article_id=168325)

By Ronnel Domingo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 09:37pm (Mla time) 10/24/2008

MANILA, Philippines—With all 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations having ratified the ASEAN Charter, the regional bloc is bent on accelerating economic integration which is hoped to shield it from the creeping global financial crisis.

Its secretariat also said in a statement the ASEAN leaders held a special summit on the fringes of the Asia-Europe Meeting in Beijing to "to exchange views on the current global financial crisis and explore ways to prevent its spreading to ASEAN economies."

"The leaders were confident that ASEAN’s financial sector remains solid and sound," the group said. "Close consultations and coordination among members are firmly in place and the stand-by liquidity is available to respond to any emergency need."

"Nevertheless, precautionary actions are needed to send a clear and unequivocal signal that ASEAN is resolute and better prepared than 10 years ago when the financial crisis hit the region in 1997," it added.

To address this, the ASEAN leaders agreed that the multilateral reserve pooling arrangements provided under the so-called Chiang Mai Initiative should be "intensified and expedited."

ASEAN groups the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

Developed in a series of meetings among Asian financial ministers -- including those from China, Japan and Southe Korea -- held in the wake of the financial crisis in the previous decade, the Chiang Mai Initiative which was signed in 2000 in Thailand provides for a network of bilateral swap and repurchase agreement facilities among the 13 countries.

Further, the ASEAN leaders agreed that the finance ministers and central bank governors set up a working group -- a meeting of which the Philippines offered to host in order to come up with concrete recommendations dealing with the global financial crisis and its impact on the region.

In a separate statement, ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said steps toward building a single ASEAN economic community would "shift to a higher gear with full steam forward" with the full ratification of the ASEAN Charter.

"Given the current financial turmoil around the world, a real prospect of a more integrated and solid ASEAN will be welcomed by the international community," Surin said.

"We now look forward to an early entry into force of the ASEAN Charter before the ASEAN leaders meet in Bangkok for their summit," Surin added.

Arroyo meets with Asean+3 leaders (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20081024-168296/Arroyo-meets-with-Asean3-leaders)


By Christian V. Esguerra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 16:54:00 10/24/2008


BEIJING (via PLDT)—President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has completed preliminary discussions with fellow leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and trading partners China, Japan, and South Korea -- collectively known as the Asean+3 -- over her proposed regional crisis fund.

The meeting took place at the imposing Great Hall of the People overlooking the Tiananmen Square at around 7:30 a.m. Friday, her first order of the day before joining opening ceremonies of the 7th Asia-Europe Meeting later at 4 p.m.

Part of the discussions was the idea of China, Japan, and South Korea shouldering 80 percent of the proposed credit facility with the rest of Asean funding the remainder, according to a Malacañang official.

Arroyo’s breakfast meeting with the Asean+3 was followed at 9:30 a.m. by bilateral talks with Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, partly over the scuttled peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

She later held similar bilateral discussions with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Long and Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat.

President Arroyo is set to receive officials of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China at the Shangri-la Hotel where she is also billeted.

Asean members forge 3 air-lib agreements (http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1647:asean-members-forge-3-air-lib-agreements&catid=23:topnews)
Top News
Written by Lenie Lectura / Reporter
Friday, 07 November 2008 00:50

TRANSPORT officials belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on Thursday signed three major agreements aimed at liberalizing air passenger and cargo services in the region—the multilateral agreement on air services, the multilateral agreement on the full liberalization of air-freight services and the Asean framework agreement on facilitation of interstate transport.

The multilateral agreement on air services and freight services grants unlimited third-, fourth- and fifth-freedom traffic rights within and between the Asean capital cities and the member-state’s regions, or the right to fly passengers from one country to another and back again.

The current practice among Asean members involves bilateral discussions to reach agreement for a specific number of entitlements for passengers and cargo.

The agreement on the facilitation of interstate transport aims to facilitate interstate transport of goods between and among the member-states, to support the implementation of the Asean free-trade area, and to further integrate the region’s economies, to simplify and harmonize transport, trade and customs regulations and requirements for the purpose of facilitation of interstate transport of goods; and to work in concert toward establishing an effective, efficient and integrated and harmonized regional transport system that addresses all aspects of interstate transport by 2009.

Asean comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The multilateral agreements affirm the policy of progressive implementation of full liberalization and integration of air services in Asean, as laid down in the Action Plan for Asean Air Transport Integration and Liberalization adopted at the 10th Asean Transport Ministers Meeting on November 23 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific are looking forward to the implementation of the new agreements for as long as the Philippines carriers are “given fair treatment,” they said.

The third freedom right is the right of an air carrier to carry passengers and cargo from its own country to a foreign country; the fourth freedom is the right of an air carrier to carry passengers and cargo from another country to its own (return service).

Most countries give the fourth freedom to air carriers at the same time the third freedom is given out. Every air carrier in the world usually has third and fourth freedoms for their international service.

Fifth freedom, on the other hand, is the air carriers’ right to transfer passengers, and cargo from one’s country to another country and to continue on to a third country. (With Wilfredo Rodolfo III)

From www.inquirer.net


ASEAN plans infrastructure fund

By Julie Goh, David Chance
Reuters
First Posted 18:08:00 11/10/2008

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Southeast Asian countries plan to set up an infrastructure finance mechanism, the latest move to extend regional cooperation in the face of the global financial storm, Malaysia's deputy prime minister said Monday.

Najib Razak said the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) needed to cooperate to mobilize their large pool of savings to help fund infrastructure projects at a time when capital is scarce and budgets are under pressure.

"As past experience has highlighted, the building of capacity to manage financial risks is very critical to contain the potential spill-over effects infrastructure projects may have on fiscal expenditures," said Najib, who will take over as Malaysia's prime minister in March.

The smaller export-dependent economies of Asia are expected to see growth fall in 2009 and budget deficits look set to rise as they seek to offset lower growth.

In Malaysia, growth is forecast to slide to 3.5 percent of gross domestic product in 2009, the lowest level since 2001.

The move from ASEAN, which groups Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Philippines, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar and Brunei, came after China announced a near-$600-billion boost to its economy.

The Asian Development Bank believes that regional spending needs on infrastructure could be as much as $583.1 billion from 2006-2015. Najib noted that there was $340 billion a year in gross national savings generated each year in ASEAN.

But underdeveloped capital markets meant that money was not channeled efficiently and, while intra-ASEAN trade has boomed in recent years, regional cross-border capital flows were less efficient, Najib said.


BANKABLE PROJECTS

Biswa Bhattacharya, special advisor to the dean of the Asian Development Bank Institute, said that while there were huge infrastructure needs in Asia, there were also massive reserves -- not just in China and Japan but also in smaller countries.

"The problem is not money but projects that are bankable," he told a conference in Kuala Lumpur on Monday. "We need to explore how we can mobilize these savings into infrastructure financing."

Countries such as Thailand and the Philippines have said recently they will boost their spending on infrastructure projects, although Malaysia is in the process of cutting some.

In Indonesia, the government is currently in the process of offering almost 100 infrastructure projects for 2009-2011 such as electricity, toll roads, airports, railways and housing. Total cost is estimated at around $30 billion, one-third of which would come from the government.

Despite the rise in global aversion and an increase in the cost of capital, private sector funding remained available, Mak Hoy Kit, BNP Paribas associate director of equity research for Asia, told the conference.

"A lot of it is about having bankable projects, the ability to reduce political risk and in keeping to the sanctity of contracts. That is what the private sector wants to see," he said.

UN, Asean partner to ensure food security in Southeast Asia
Tuesday, 11 November 2008 23:28

THE United Nations (UN) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) are currently looking at areas where they can work together to ensure food security in Southeast Asia.

Stephen Anderson, UN World Food Program (WFP) country director and representative, said the current meeting on food security provides an opportunity for the UN to determine how best it can assist Asean in implementing its Strategic Plan of Action on Food Security (SPA-FS).

“This meeting is somewhat a working-type session to try to work out areas where the UN can best use its resources to support Asean,” said Anderson at the sidelines of the opening ceremonies of the Asean-UN meeting in Manila.

The meeting, he said, is also preparatory to a meeting between the UN and Asean leaders in Chiang Mai, Thailand, next month.

Asean adopted a medium-term Strategic SPA-FS in the 30th meeting of Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry in Hanoi last month. It is a comprehensive approach to promoting and maintaining regional food security. The plan was drawn up in response to soaring food prices and the global financial crisis.

Meanwhile, the UN has its own Comprehensive Framework of Action (CFA) which seeks to address the global food crisis. The CFA was drafted in June and was finalized in July.

During the three-day meet, both the UN and Asean will look at their programs and where they can collaborate. One expected output from the meeting is a “comprehensive matrix” to put together the framework of the UN and Asean’s strategic plan on food security.

Agriculture Undersecretary Segfredo Serrano said that aside from the UN, other multilateral agencies and institutions like the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the International Rice Research Institute also presented their programs concerning food security.

“This is a technical meeting that is preparatory to what director general will discuss prior to the Leaders’ Meeting. So, hopefully, we can provide some input to the summit in Chang Mai,” said Serrano.

Food security has become a global concern this year after commodities like rice and wheat rose to unprecedented levels, resulting in more poor people getting hungry.

SEAG Federation Council approves 3 more sports

THE Southeast Asian Games Federation Council has officially approved the inclusion of archery, cycling and weightlifting in next year’s Southeast Asian Games in Vientiane, Laos.

“Those sports are added in the Laos SEA Games. This development gives our bid in the SEA Games a boost because we’re always a contender in those sports,” said Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) spokes**man Joey Romasanta, who got the news from SEA Games Sports and Rules Committee Representative Go Teng Kok Wednesday.

Go, POC First Vice President Monico Puentevella, Deputy Sec*retary-General Mark Joseph and Treasurer Julian Camacho are currently in Laos for the SEAG Federation Council meeting.

The inclusion of the three sports brings to 25 the total number of sports to be contested in the 25th edition of the biennial meet. These are aquatics (swimming and diving), athletics, badminton, boxing, football, golf, judo, karate, muay, sepak takraw, shooting, table tennis, tae kwon do, tennis, volleyball, wrestling, wushu, fin swimming, petanque, pencak silat, and shuttlecock.

However, Romasanta said that the Laos SEA Games Organizing Com*mittee is still undecided whether to include basketball in the list due to lack of facilities.

“The main reason is there’s no playing venue,” he said.
-- Emil C. Noguera

Thai Queen to visit Manila

THAI QUEEN Sirikit will visit Manila next year to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Thailand, Press Secretary Jesus G. Dureza said yesterday.

In a chance interview, Mr. Dureza said this was one of the topics tackled by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, who visited Malacañang Monday.

"There was a mention of the coming of queen Sirikit in November next year to the Philippines, we will be celebrating the 60th anniversary of friendship between Thailand and the Philippines and I think the culminating activity will be the visit of the queen of Thailand to the Philippines," he said.

Formal diplomatic ties were established with the signing of the Treaty of Friendship in Washington, D. C. on June 14, 1949.

Mr. Dureza said the two leaders also tackled topics on defense, regional economic cooperation, tourism, and the establishment of a unified passport for Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members.

The setting up of a common visa for ASEAN was meant to boost tourism. Issues on economic ties and the global financial crisis will be tackled in the 14th ASEAN Summit to be hosted by Thailand in December.

During the state dinner hosted for the Thai Prime Minister, Mrs. Arroyo expressed confidence that Thailand, as chairman of the ASEAN summit, will expand the Chiang Mai initiative and promote the interests of the poor who would be hit by the global economic crisis.

"We count on Thailand as chairman of ASEAN to champion the cry of the poor as we work together to solve the global financial crisis. We are very pleased... that under your leadership, we are strengthening the Chiang Mai initiative to a large and quick disbursing fund for the needy," she told Mr. Somchai.

"We all agree that we must instill confidence in our market economies. But we must also take action to provide hope to those who need it most." — Alexis Douglas B. Romero

SAYS ASEAN CHIEF
Alatas a ‘towering’ leader of Asean

By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20081211-177481/Atalas-a-towering-leader-of-Asean)
First Posted 23:56:00 12/11/2008


MANILA, Philippines—The late Indonesian foreign minister, Ali Alatas, was a "towering" leader of Asean, the regional bloc's secretary general Dr. Surin Pitsuwan said Thursday night, as he offered -- in behalf of all Asean -- his condolences to the family Alatas left behind.

Personally, Surin said he is "deeply saddened" by the passing of 76-year-old Alatas Thursday morning in a hospital in Singapore.

Alatas was admitted to an Indonesian hospital on November 20 but was moved to Singapore four days later.

“It is the end of an era. Bapak Ali was a towering figure not only in Asean but also in the Third World and Non-Aligned Countries. He was a great son and a true patriot of Indonesia,” he said.

“In the passing of Bapak Ali, we have not only lost a dear friend but a diplomatic giant. He was a great inspiration to us all. His permanent absence will be a big void in our regional diplomatic landscape,” he added.

Alatas was one of the 10 members of the Asean Eminent Persons Group (EPG) tasked to re-examine Asean and propose new ideas for the drafting of the Asean Charter, which will enter into force on December 15, 2008. Former Philippine president Fidel Ramos was also a member of the group.

“His contributions to the Southeast Asian region, in particular, through the Asean process, have been immeasurable. For me, since we served together as foreign ministers in the late 1990s, every conversation with Bapak Ali has always turned into an intellectual discourse on our collective achievements in the region and on our future aspirations for our people,” Surin said.

Asean groups together Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Alatas was born on November 4, 1932 in Jakarta, and graduated from the Academy for the Indonesian Foreign Service in 1954, and from the Faculty of Law at the University of Indonesia in 1956.

He served as foreign minister from 1988 until 1999.

He was also Indonesian ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva from 1975 to 1978 and New York from 1982 to 1988, according to Antara.

In recent years he had been a UN special envoy tasked with drafting a report on development, security and human rights, and a member of the UN High Level Group on the Alliance of Civilizations. With Agence France-Presse



Former Indonesian minister dies
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7776786.stm
page last updated at 08:15 GMT, Thursday, 11 December 2008

One of Indonesia's best known political figures, Ali Alatas, has died at the age of 76.

He served as his country's foreign minister during the violent withdrawal from East Timor in 1999.

Later he became Indonesia's ambassador to the UN, and he most recently acted as an adviser to the current President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Mr Alatas was being treated in a hospital in Singapore, but suffered a stroke last week.

His body will be flown back to Jakarta later on Thursday for burial.

E Timor legacy

A decade ago, Ali Alatas sat at the crossroads of Indonesia's political future, according to the BBC's Jakarta correspondent Lucy Williamson.

He was foreign minister from 1988 until 1999 - the year after autocratic President Suharto was swept from power and replaced by BJ Habibie, who steered Indonesia down a new path to democracy.

One of the first actions of the post-Suharto country was to offer East Timor - then one of its provinces - the chance to choose its future too.

The bloody independence vote that followed called for some sensitive diplomacy, our correspondent says - largely the job of Ali Alatas.

The violent withdrawal from East Timor was the subject of his ground-breaking book, which many Indonesians credit with spurring the debate over their military's role there.

Alatas continued to play a key role in Indonesian and regional affairs up until his death.

He is credited with bringing together feuding sides in Cambodia in the late 1990s, and he also worked as a UN special envoy to Burma, calling for the release of detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

"We have lost a son of the nation, the most excellent diplomat we ever had," Primo Alui Joelianto, a senior foreign ministry official, told the Associated Press on hearing of Mr Alatas' death.


"We have lost a son of the nation" -Primo Alui Joelianto, senior foreign ministry official

ASEAN Charter receives worldwide acclaim (http://www.saigon-gpdaily.com.vn/International/2008/12/67185/)

The charter of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has received a warm welcome from political organisations around the world, shortly after it was formalised in Jakarta, Indonesia on December 15.

The European Union (EU) on December 15 congratulated the entry into force of the charter, calling it an important day for the regional bloc on its path to create a rule-based organisation and the ASEAN Community for the benefit of all its people.

The EU's French presidency issued a statement on the same day, saying that the Charter will help to deepen economic and trade relations within ASEAN and contribute to regional peace and prosperity.

Meanwhile, the EU presidency also said that the Charter will promote relations between the EU and ASEAN, both economically and politically, adding that the EU and several member states have already announced their intention to accredit ambassadors to the ASEAN General Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Canada has also welcomed the signing of a charter as a “significant achievement”, opening a new chapter in the relations between ASEAN and Canada.

“The ASEAN charter heralds a new chapter in the already close partnership between ASEAN and Canada,” said Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon. “Its entry into force marks an important step toward establishing an ASEAN community comprising the ASEAN Security Community, the ASEAN Economic Community and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community.”

Canada has been a dialogue partner with ASEAN for more than three decades and its trade with the bloc exceeded 13 billion USD last year.

The ASEAN Charter was formalised in Jakarta on December 15, during the bloc's foreign ministers' meeting.

The charter, signed in November 2007, aims to establish rules of membership in order to transform ASEAN into a legal entity in the region by 2015.

ASEAN consists of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

China appoints special ambassador to ASEAN

BEIJING - China said Tuesday it had created the office of special ambassador to the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), reflecting its growing engagement with the region.

The first person to fill the position is Xue Hanqin, a former ambassador to the Netherlands, foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang told reporters.

"Her appointment will play an important role in promoting friendly exchange and cooperation in extensive fields," he said.

Qin said the position had been set up to "promote the development of the China-ASEAN strategic partnership, and strengthen communication and coordination between the two."

Although one of the reasons ASEAN was set up in 1967 was to roll back communism in Asia, China's exchanges with the organisation have grown rapidly in recent years.

Its trade with ASEAN totalled 199.1 billion dollars from January to October this year, an increase of 21.8 percent from the same period in 2007, according to Chinese commerce ministry figures.

This accounted for 9.1 percent of China's total trade with the outside world during the first 10 months of the year.

China has previously appointed special ambassadors to various regions, including the Middle East, a gesture seen by observers as signalling that it attaches importance to a given area.

It also has appointed a special envoy to Africa, with a particular focus on Darfur, following international criticism that it did too little to stop bloodshed in the Sudanese region.

ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Market integration will make Asean survive crisis (http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/jan/17/yehey/top_stories/20090117top3.html)

Market integration is the key to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) achieving progress amid the global economic crisis, Singapore Ambassador to the Philippines A. Selverajah said.

And for Asean ato be able to compete with China and India, whose economies are said to be booming despite the international financial meltdown, the regional bloc would need to establish a big, single Asean market. Asean groups the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

“Asean has around 500 million people, which makes it a very good market for investors. But investors get the impression that Asean involves a lot of countries and a lot of trade policies as well that might drive them away,” Selverajah said during an exclusive interview with The Manila Times on Thursday.

“But if we could integrate the Asean market, [that market] would be able to reach its full potential,” he added.

The ambassador noted that the Asean charter, which came into force on December 15 last year, would play a big role in achieving integration and, he said, Asean member-countries should be committed to making it work.

Provisions of the regional charter include establishment of a dispute settlement mechanism, stronger information dissemination and an Asean human rights body.

The purpose of the Asean charter is to streamline decision-making in Asean member-countries, Selverajah said.

He noted that Asean at present meets around 300 times a year, but only around 40 percent of its plans are carried out.

“While we (in Asean) benefit from the success of China and India since they are our neighbors, we should not be left behind,” Selverajah said.

A working Asean charter, according to the Singaporean ambassador, will reduce trade barriers and entice investors and tourists from the US, Germany, South Korea and Japan to come to the region, especially when the Asean Economic Community will have been in place by 2015.

He cited the European Union as a good paradigm for Asean, saying that EU has achieved solid economic integration over the years.

“It’s not that we should build a big bureaucracy altogether, we just have to put things in order somewhere in the middle,” Selverajah suggested.

“In the case of Singapore, we have always been a trading station and we continue to upgrade our trade mechanisms so that we won’t depend on one industry,” he said. Singapore, he added, has also become a hub for knowledge-based industries such as biotechnology, logistics, tourism and financial services.

The ambassador disclosed that the Singapore is prodding its people to come to the Philippines and see its white-sand beaches and coral reefs, among other destinations.

The Philippines, according to him, presents a very attractive market to the world because Filipinos are hospitable, maintain a positive outlook in life and speak English well.

“There have been increased (airline) flights to Singapore, but Singapore needs to promote its market more just like its Asean neighbors. The world will not wait for us, so we all must move forward,” Selverajah said.

Associated Press
First Posted 13:38:00 01/22/2009

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Malaysia has banned the hiring of foreign workers in factories, stores and restaurants to protect its citizens from mass unemployment amid the global economic downturn, a government official said Thursday.

The government has also ordered companies to lay off foreign employees first if they must slash their work force, a Human Resources Ministry official said.

The Cabinet has approved an indefinite hiring ban for the key manufacturing and services sectors, which currently employ nearly half of the 2.1 million legal foreign workers in Malaysia, the official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make public statements.

The official was confirming a decision announced late Wednesday by Human Resources Minister S. Subramaniam.

Local media reported the minister as saying Malaysia "can put a stop to hiring" foreign workers if they are not needed.

Foreigners currently working in both sectors can continue until their contracts expire or until they are laid off, but no new non-Malaysian workers will be approved, the official said.

"We want to make sure that all locals who have been [laid off] can get a new job," he said.

The official said exemptions might be given to skilled foreign workers who are needed for some of country's service industries and factories, most of which produce electronic and electrical goods, textiles and furniture.

More than 10,000 Malaysians and 3,000 foreigners lost their jobs between October and January because of a slowdown in Malaysia's export-dependent economy. The government has predicted another 45,000 Malaysians could be out of work by the end of the year.

Foreigners can still be hired in sectors such as plantations and construction, where it is tough to find Malaysians to employ because of the low salaries and arduous work, the official said.

Eka Suripto, an official at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, said Indonesia expects one-third of its 300,000 nationals working in Malaysia's manufacturing industry to lose their jobs this year.

"Certainly what they will sacrifice first are the foreign migrants," he said.

Adding to the number of legal foreign workers, there are an estimated one million illegal migrants employed mainly at plantations, construction sites and restaurants. Most come from poorer Asian nations such as Indonesia and the Philippines.

Malaysia's government has struggled to assure the public that the country won't slip into recession. Authorities have forecast that Malaysia's economy will expand by 3.5 percent in 2009, but some economists have warned that growth could fall below 2 percent.

ASEAN, Indian FTA expected to be signed at Hua Hin summit


BANGKOK, Jan 25 (TNA) – A Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and India is expected to be signed during the ASEAN summit to be held in the Thai resort of Hua Hin between February 27-March 1, a senior Thai commerce ministry official said.

Director-General Apiradi Tantraporn of the Foreign Trade Department said if the FTA is signed India will open up its markets for goods produced by the 10 member countries of ASEAN while tariffs imposed by the New Delhi government will be reduced to zero for 3,666 items by the end of 2012.

Among the ASEAN-made goods which will gain from zero tariff are refrigerators, fans, airconditioner parts, jewelry and ornamental goods, rubber products and plastic resins, Mrs. Apiradi said.

Thai exporters wishing to receive tax privileges under the ASEAN-India FTA must ask for certificates of origin for goods from the Foreign Trade Department because items to be exported to India must contain at least 35 per cent raw materials manufactured from ASEAN and India, she said.

Currently, only 82 items fall under the Thai-Indian FTA.

The ASEAN-India FTA, if signed during the summit, will help boost investment in India and also trade among the Southeast Asian bloc member countries because of using raw materials manufactured by ASEAN members on goods to be exported there, Mrs. Apiradi added. (TNA)

DAAD tells ASEAN members Thai govt illegitimate to hold summit
Updated January 23, 2009 08:01 PM

BANGKOK (Xinhua) - The Thai anti-government group today submitted a letter to embassies of Myanmar and Singapore in Bangkok saying the current Thai government was illegitimate to hold the forthcoming Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.

In front of the two embassies, up to 100 members of the anti-government Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship (DAAD), led by the DAAD's core leaders, were present, in their red shirts.

"...We will continue to support the ASEAN framework. But we found it impossible to let a group of ill-received political appointees to represent us in there..." the letter said.

The ASEAN summit is planned to be held in the central resort town of Hua Hin of Thailand's southern province of Prachuab Khirikhan from Feb. 27 to March 1.

"The Abhisit (Vejjajiva) government came into existence only because of the heavy maneuvering of undemocratic external forces, the ones that disregard the true will of the people and their rights of self-determination..." the letter read.

The current Thai government is led by the Democrat Party, with the party leader Abhist Vejjajiva appointed on Dec. 17, 2008 as the 27th Thai Premier.

"Furthermore, the appointment of Kasit Piromya as Foreign Minister is an unbelievable act of recognizing a personality Thai people view as a terrorist, as he was a constant contributor to the seizure of both international airports of Thailand quite recently...," the letter said.

Kasit was known as a supporter of the People's Alliance for Democracy's (PAD) political movement and prior to taking office, once commented that the closure of Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports late last year by the PAD in the climax of protests, which caused great loss to the country's tourism industry and international image, was "fun".

Hence, the DAAD's letter read, "Such state of leadership should not be allowed to tamper with ASEAN's good works, especially as its Chair."

Jakrapob Penkair, a core DAAD leader, said that the group believed that the ASEAN countries would express something to Thais who were affected (by the current government).

The group's latest view was based on the belief that after years of the ASEAN's integration, the ASEAN community which had been economically strengthening was the pro-democracy, according to Jakrapob.

"...What to do and what gesture to be made are entirely up to you (nine other ASEAN country members). Our civil duty is to inform you most directly of the will of the democratizing Thai citizens..." the letter stated.

The DAAD group plans to complete submitting the same letter to embassies of the remaining ASEAN countries by Jan. 29.

Thailand seeks role in regional rice reserve

Bangkokpost By: Published: 29/01/2009 at 12:00 AM


Thailand proposes to be the regional centre for a permanent rice reserve in order to ensure food security and assist other countries in cases of unexpected events such as natural disasters.

The draft proposal will be presented at the Asean summit in Hua Hin next month. It covers the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and economic giants China, Japan, and South Korea, according to Monthon Jiumcharoen, deputy secretary-general of the Office of Agricultural Economics.

Under the programme, the Asean+3 countries would be required to stock a total of 350,000 tonnes of rice. Operating the programme would need about 1.36 billion baht in funds, expected to come from multinational institutions such as the World Bank or Asian Development Bank.

Mr Monthon said that Thailand had been running a pilot rice reserve programme as agreed at the meeting of Asean leaders plus Japan, China and South Korea in 2002. So far, it has delivered rice to assist Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos and Burma, at about 500 tonnes each.

can't we have an ASEAN, like EU is for europe. same money, etc.

Three countries each pick 30 stocks

Bangkokpost Published: 11/02/2009 at 12:00 AM


Six Asean countries will formalise an agreement to create an Asean securities trading board later this month.

Nongram Wongvanich, the chief operating officer of the Stock Exchange of Thailand, said the agreement among exchanges of Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines would aim to set up a regional board within one year.

"The agreement will first establish principles, and afterwards bilateral agreements among the markets, starting with Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia," she said. "Trading among the first participants should be able to begin within the end of the year."

The Singapore, Thai and Malaysian stock markets together account for 60% of the total market capitalisation of the six participating Asean countries.

Creating linkages among the Asean capital markets is a key goal under a broader policy platform to create an Asean Economic Community by 2015.

Mrs Nongram said each market would designate 30 securities for the board.

Each market would be responsible for designating its own stocks for the Asean board. Thai authorities will select securities based on market capitalisation and trading liquidity, while Singapore plans to designate its 22 largest stocks and select another eight based on their business exposure in the region.

Mrs Nongram said the market linkage programme would expose stocks of each country to a broader investor audience.

She said authorities also would work with market participants on trading details in the programme. Nine local brokers have already expressed interest in participating: UBS Securities, DBS Vickers Securities, Asia Plus Securities, Phatra Securities, Bualuang Securities, Seamico Securities, Tisco Securities, Credit Suisse and Kasikorn Securities.

Market integration will also pressure the SET to adjust to attract investors and brokers to submit trades.

The SET already plans to demutualise, or transform itself into a for-profit public company within the next several years.

Mrs Nongram said the SET's cost-to-income ratio would fall to around 90% by 2010 from over 100% now as non-core businesses are separated off.

"Once the SET demutualises, the cost-to-income [ratio] should be around 40% to 50% if we are to be competitive with other markets," she added.

Two vendors have proposed trading solutions for the Asean board: Nasdaq OMX and NYSE.

Vietnam, RP discuss security cooperation (http://http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090212-188869/Vietnam-RP-discuss-security-cooperation)
By Abigail Kwok
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 09:02:00 02/12/2009


MANILA, Philippines—High-ranking public security officials of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam arrived in the country Wednesday for a four-day visit to discuss security cooperation between their country and the Philippines.

Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno welcomed Le Hong Anh, Vietnam’s minister of public security, in a brief ceremony at Camp Crame early Thursday.

Top Vietnamese officials led by Anh will meet with top Philippine officials for the implementation of the Philippines-Vietnam Action Plan 2007–2010, which aims “to establish and strengthen working relations between the DILG and the MPS of Vietnam through bilateral talks, seminars and other public safety and security initiatives,” Puno said.

Anh will also pay a courtesy call to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and will meet with Puno to discuss the implementation of the cooperation agreement on the prevention and fight against criminal activities, which will focus on transnational crimes.

Anh was accompanied by a 15-man delegation including Vietnamese Ambassador to the Philippines Vu Xuan Truong; Lt. Gen. Bui Van Nam, director general of General Department of Intelligence; Lt. Gen. Le Quy Vuong, director General of General Department of Force Building; and other top security officials.

Thailand to host ASEAN+3 finance ministers in Phuket


BANGKOK, Feb 13 (TNA) - Thailand will host a meeting of finance ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and three East Asian partner nations of Japan, China, and South Korea (ASEAN+3) on February 22 in the Andaman Sea resort of Phuket to discuss joint efforts to revive the region's economies, according to Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij.

Mr. Korn said and the South Korean finance minister would co-chair the meeting to be attended by the ASEAN secretary- general and the president of the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The meeting is designed to encourage greater financial cooperation, and to strengthen relations amid the global financial crisis, to respond to the lack of stability in financial markets, and to deal with the fluctuation of oil prices, he said, adding that the member countries would also discuss and exchange views over the global economy and the regional economic situation.

They will also focus on the stimulus measures of the member countries, Mr. Korn said.

The meeting plans to draft a joint policy or measures to counter the economic downturn and determine ways to lead ASEAN+3 to become a world economic powerhouse once again, he added.

At the meeting, the ASEAN+3 finance ministers will also discuss the progress of the Chiang Mai Initiative, a programme of financial cooperation launched in 2000.

One issue on the agenda was how to expand the Chiang Mai Initative from bilateral cooperation into multilateral cooperation in terms of funding to support member countries suffering liquidity problems, he said.

Meanwhile, Fiscal Policy Office director-general Somchai Sujjapongse said the meeting would discuss the plan to set up a Chiang Mai Initative fund of contributions from member country reserves. The amount, he said, was expected to be increased from the originally planned US$84 billion to US$120 billion.

The Bank of Thailand (BoT) will initially contribute US$4 billion to the fund, he said.

As for the country proportions of the fund, he said, China, Japan and South Korea would together hold a total of 80 per cent of the stake as they have larger reserves.

The remainder of the contributions levied would be from the ASEAN member countries themselves, Mr. Somchai said.

A development plan for the Asian bond market would also be discussed at Phuket, Mr. Korn said.

The Thai finance minister added that the statement issued at the conclusion of the Phuket meeting will be discussed at the ASEAN summit in Hua Hin February 27 to March 1. (TNA)

Thaksin makes Valentine's Day call from exile (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=440619&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 15, 2009 05:20 PM


BANGKOK (AP) - Fugitive ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra made a Valentine's Day phone call broadcast to supporters from a mystery location, vowing to return one day to Thailand.

"I want to commend you on your love for democracy. Today is the day of love," Thaksin told a Saturday evening rally of thousands of supporters still angry over the 2006 coup that ousted him.

His 20-minute telephone call had more invective than sweet talk. The former telecoms tycoon repeated claims that he was politically persecuted and cannot return home because he feels the courts are biased.

"Democracy has been eroded by the military and the court," he said.

Thaksin went into self-exile after the coup and is now a fugitive from a two-year prison term imposed after he was convicted in October of violating a conflict of interest law. Critics accused him of massive corruption during his six years in office.

Saturday's rally at a Buddhist temple outside Bangkok was billed as a fundraiser for Thaksin supporters, who still hold periodic rallies that have failed to muster significant crowds.

Thaksin did not mention where he was calling from. A close political ally in Bangkok, Jakrapob Penakir, declined to comment on his whereabouts or recent reports that Thaksin was traveling in Nicaragua and elsewhere in South America.

He has been spotted repeatedly in Dubai, China and Hong Kong and was living on-and-off in London until Britain revoked his visa following the Thai court's conviction.

"I can adjust to living abroad, but I will not die abroad," Thaksin said.

"I am ready to return," he said. "But I have to ask first if I am going to be treated fairly."

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was the opposition leader for much of Thaksin's tenure. Abhisit was named premier in December by Parliament, an appointment that eased a political crisis that revolved around Thaksin's political legacy.

300 illegal Pinoys deported from Malaysia (http://http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/pinoy-migration/02/16/09/300-illegal-pinoys-deported-malaysia)
abs-cbnNEWS.com | 02/16/2009 4:11 PM


More than 300 Filipino repatriates from Sabah, Malaysia arrived in Zamboanga City Saturday via a commercial vessel.

Elizabeth Dy, operations chief of the local Department of Social Welfare and Development Office, said Pinoy deportees continue to arrive in Zamboanga City as part of an arrangement made by the country and the Malaysian government.

Dy said the latest batch of deportees include 31 children and 116 young people while the rest were aged 19 and above. She said Malaysian authorities deport the Filipinos after they failed to present proper travel documents.

She said the deportees usually arrive on a Wednesday or Saturday and are brought to DSWD's Center for Displaced People in Barangay Talon-talon, Zamboanga City for processing.

Most of the deportees are usually sent back to their hometowns in Tawi-tawi, Basilan, Sulu and Palawan.

Cambodia genocide trial begins (http://http://www.gmanews.tv/story/149126/Cambodia-genocide-trial-begins)
02/17/2009 | 11:20 AM

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — A notorious torture center boss went before Cambodia's genocide tribunal Tuesday for its first trial over the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million people at the hands of the Khmer Rouge regime more than three decades ago.

Kaing Guek Eav — better known as Duch, who headed the S-21 prison in Phnom Penh — is charged with crimes against humanity, and is this first of five defendants scheduled for long-delayed trials by the U.N.-assisted tribunal. The hearing Tuesday was for procedural matters, and testimony was expected to begin only in late March.

Duch intently followed the proceedings in a courtroom packed with some 500 people after he was was driven there in a bulletproof car from a nearby detention center.

"This first hearing represents the realization of significant efforts to establish a fair and independent tribunal to try those in leadership positions and those most responsible for violations of Cambodian and international law," presiding judge Nil Nonn told the chamber.

Duch, 66, is accused of committing or abetting a range of crimes including murder, torture and rape at S-21 prison — formerly a school — where up to 16,000 men, women and children were held and tortured, before being put to death.

He has made no formal confession. However, unlike the other four defendants, Duch "admitted or acknowledged" that many of the crimes occurred at his prison, according to the indictment from court judges. Duch, who converted to Christianity, has also asked for forgiveness from his victims.

Duch has been variously described by those who knew him as "very gentle and kind" and a "monster."

"Duch necessarily decided how long a prisoner would live, since he ordered their execution based on a personal determination of whether a prisoner had fully confessed" to being an enemy of the regime, the tribunal said in an indictment in August.

In one mass execution, he gave his men a "kill them all" order to dispose of a group of prisoners. On another list of 29 prisoners, he told his henchmen to "interrogate four persons, kill the rest."

After the fall of the Khmer Rouge, Duch disappeared for two decades, living under two other names and as a converted Christian before he was located in northwestern Cambodia by a British journalist in 1999.

Taken to the scene of his alleged crimes last year, he wept and told some of his former victims, "I ask for your forgiveness. I know that you cannot forgive me, but I ask you to leave me the hope that you might."

His defense lawyer Francois Roux said Tuesday that his client has been in detention for nine years, nine months and seven days, adding, "This situation is unacceptable."

When the communist Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975 after five years of bitter civil war, many of their countrymen thought peace was at hand. But in their effort to remake society, they instituted a reign of terror that lasted nearly 4 years, until ended by an invasion by neighboring Vietnam.

Many victims feared that all the Khmer Rouge leaders would die before facing justice, and getting even one of them on trial is seen as a breakthrough. But there are concerns that the process is being politically manipulated and that thousands of killers will escape unpunished.

"It's going to be a very big day for the Cambodian people because the justice that they have been waiting for 30 years is starting to get closer and closer," tribunal spokesman Reach Sambath said on the eve of the trial opening.

Duch's hearing before the tribunal was expected to last two or three days, Reach Sambath said.

The trial comes 30 years after the fall of the Khmer Rouge, 13 years after the tribunal was first proposed and nearly three years after the court was inaugurated.

The tribunal has been plagued by political interference from the Cambodian government, allegations of bias and corruption, lack of funding and bickering between Cambodian and international lawyers.

Some observers believe Prime Minister Hun Sen — a former Khmer Rouge officer himself — is controlling the tribunal's scope by directing the decisions of the Cambodian prosecutors and judges.

The Cambodian side in the tribunal has recently turned down recommendations from the international co-prosecutor to try other Khmer Rouge leaders, as many as six according to some reports. This has sparked criticism from human rights groups.

"The tribunal cannot bring justice to the millions of the Khmer Rouge's victims if it tries only a handful of the most notorious individuals, while scores of former Khmer Rouge officials and commanders remain free," the New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a release Monday.

Others facing trial are Khieu Samphan, the group's former head of state; Ieng Sary, its foreign minister; his wife Ieng Thirith, who was minister for social affairs; and Nuon Chea, the movement's chief ideologue.

All four have denied committing crimes. - AP

10 Myanmar nationals barred at Clark airport (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=441439&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
By Ding Cervantes Updated February 18, 2009 11:15 AM


CLARK FREEPORT, Philippines -- Ten Myanmar nationals who arrived from Kuala Lumpur were barred by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) from entering the country last Sunday via the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) here.

The Myanmar nationals apparently intended to stay in the Philippines and then fly to Palau on Feb. 25 via the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila, but they arrived here without any local hotel reservations.

In a report to Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan, the immigration bureau here said the foreigners arrived via Air Asia. They had stayed in Malaysia for 15 days prior to their arrival in Clark. The group intended to stay for another 10 days in the Philippines before proceeding to Palau.

Heranio Manalo, chief of the BI’s airport operations at the DMIA, cited records of Myanmar nationals using the Philippines as a transit point. He noted that the foreigners did not have return tickets to Myanmar.

Manalo said the group had been sent back to Malaysia on the same Air Asia flight because “they could become public charge” in the country should they be allowed to stay. “We are also preventing human traffickers from using the country as a transit point,” he said.

18.02.09
Indonesian Muslim leader snubs Clinton
World
Agence France-Presse

JAKARTA — An Indonesian Islamic leader rejected Wednesday an invitation to dine with Hillary Clinton, as she seeks to rebuild ties with the Muslim world on her first trip abroad as US secretary of state.

The snub came as Clinton was set to arrive later Wednesday in the world’s most populous Muslim country as part of a four-nation swing through Asia.

But her plans to open a new chapter with the Islamic world as promised by President Barack Obama received an early setback when local Muslim leader Din Syamsuddin, representing some 30 million Muslims, rejected her dinner invite.

“If it’s only a dinner without a dialogue it won’t be useful,” the chairman of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia’s second-largest Islamic organization, told Agence France-Presse.

He said he would prefer to attend an inter-faith meeting in Australia rather than waste time discussing local delicacies with the new US secretary of state.

“That kind of meeting won’t be effective,” he said.

Obama spent part of his early childhood in Muslim-majority Indonesia and has promised rapprochement with the Islamic world after the US-led invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan under George W. Bush.

“We have a responsibility to speak out and to work with the Muslim world on behalf of positive change and to enlist the help of Muslims around the world against the extremists,” Clinton told students at Tokyo University on Tuesday.


I don't know if Clinton deserves a SNUB. or she ought to experience it :)

ASEAN civic groups to gather in Bangkok for upcoming ASEAN summit (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=441709&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 19, 2009 01:40 PM


BANGKOK (Xinhua) -- Almost 1,000 people from civic groups of the country members of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) would gather in Bangkok of Thailand from Friday to Sunday in order to prepare their inputs to the upcoming ASEAN summit, local media reported Thursday.

The ASEAN summit is planned to be held in the central resort town in Hua Hin of Thailand's central province of Prachuab Khirikhan from Feb. 27 to March 1.

As many as 34 workshops with a focus on peace, human security, human right, social, culture, disaster and economic crisis will be organized at Chulalongkorn University during these coming-three- day event, the website by The Nation newspaper reported.

Also, they would meet with ASEAN Secretary General Surit Pitsuwan and Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya on Sunday to wrap up their concerned issues, the website said.

Later the civic groups' representatives would bring the outcomes from the discussions which they called "ASEAN People Forum" to the ASEAN leaders during the summit at the end of this month.

Clinton sees new role for Indonesia in US 'smart power' (http://http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/world/02/18/09/clinton-sees-new-role-indonesia-us-smart-power)
by Stephen Coates, Agence France-Presse | 02/18/2009 11:22 PM

JAKARTA - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday said Indonesia -- as a democratic and mainly Muslim country -- would play a key role in the Obama administration's new commitment to "smart power".

In her first visit to a Muslim country as secretary of state, she said the US president "wants to reach out to the entire world" and Indonesia would be an important partner in that effort.

"Certainly Indonesia, being the largest Muslim nation in the world, the third-largest democracy, will play a leading role in the promotion of that shared future," Clinton told a press conference here alongside Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda.

"Building a comprehensive partnership with Indonesia is a critical step on behalf of the United States' commitment to smart power," she said.

She added that it was important "to listen as well as talk to those around the world, to support a country that has demonstrated so clearly... that Islam, democracy and modernity cannot only coexist but thrive together."

Clinton said the US looked forward to deepening cooperation with Indonesia on several "shared issues", referring to areas such as the global economic crisis, climate change, security and human rights.

Wirajuda said Indonesia -- where Obama went to primary school from 1967 to 1971 -- looked forward to US support as Asia-Pacific countries seek to shape a "new architecture" of diplomacy in the region.

Clinton later met leaders of the Jakarta-based Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- a 10-nation bloc comprising around 500 million people.

She said the Obama administration would start the process to accede to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, which promotes regional peace and stability via cooperation in scientific, economic and other areas.

"We are taking this step because we believe that the United States must have strong relationships and a strong and productive presence here in Southeast Asia," Clinton said.

ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan welcomed Clinton's announcement as "a reaffirmation of the US's political and security commitment to the region."

Fifteen non-ASEAN members have acceded to the 1976 treaty, including countries as diverse as New Zealand, Pakistan and China.

Clinton will meet Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Thursday before completing her four-nation trip through Asia -- her first outing as secretary of state -- with visits to South Korea and China.

The son of a white American mother and a black Kenyan father, Obama was raised in Hawaii and moved to Indonesia when he was six after his divorced mother remarried an Indonesian.

Obama is hugely popular here and expectations are high here that he will prioritise relations with Indonesia as a possible bridge with other Islamic countries and a democratic bulwark against extremism.

He has promised a new chapter in relations with the Islamic world after the ill-will generated by former president George W. Bush's invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Indonesia has seen its share of Islamist violence since 9/11 -- including the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings which killed more than 200 people -- and has worked closely with US and Australian police to track down terror suspects.

The vast majority of Indonesian Muslims -- about 90 percent of the archipelago's 234 million people -- are moderates but a small extremist fringe continues to back "holy war" with the West.

About 50 Muslim students protested at the presidential palace earlier Wednesday, carrying banners reading "America is a rubbish civilisation" and "America is the real terrorist".

She said her talks with Wirajuda covered a range of issues from the economic crisis to climate change, the threat of terrorism, nuclear proliferation and human rights violations in countries like Myanmar.

The United States and Indonesia are among the top five emitters of greenhouse gases and Clinton applauded Jakarta's efforts to "integrate deforestation into the broader climate negotiations".

Wirajuda said Indonesia "shared the joy" of Obama's election and "cannot wait too long" for him to return to the country as president of the United States.

Asean, partners eye $120-billion credit line (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=442748&publicationSubCategoryId=63)
Updated February 23, 2009 12:00 AM


MANILA, Philippines - Finance ministers and top officials from Southeast Asia, China, Japan and South Korea met in Phuket, Thailand yesterday to discuss how the region can soften the blow from the global financial crisis.

Topping the agenda is a proposed multibillion-dollar credit line to help members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) cope with the crisis, which members want to see expanded from $80 to $120 billion.

“The meeting will send a very strong signal to the world that we are committed to alleviating the global economic slowdown,” Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said at the meeting on the southern resort isle of Phuket.

The meeting precedes the annual leaders’ summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) next week which President Arroyo is slated to attend.

The summit, originally set January but which was postponed due to a political firestorm last year when demonstrators took over the airport, will be held in Hua Hin from Feb. 28 to March 11. Mrs. Arroyo is expected to leave for Thailand on Feb. 27.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said the official delegation would be “very small” to include himself, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, Trade Secretary Peter Favila, Finance Secretary Margarito Teves, and Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap.

“The (summit) agenda is still to address the global economic crisis and on how the ASEAN members can better cope with the crisis,” Remonde told dzRB.

He said Mrs. Arroyo will also press for her long-running campaign to allow developing countries like the Philippines to be included in the decision-making of developed economies in addressing the global economic crisis.

“We are thankful that the Philippines is not in recession, thanks to the tough decisions of the Arroyo administration,” he said.

He said there are bilateral meetings being arranged between Mrs. Arroyo and other ASEAN leaders but he could not give more details.

Remonde said the President is also scheduled to make an official visit to South Korea in the first week of March and Kuwait in the coming weeks but details are still being finalized.

Base solutions

The Thai finance minister said, “Finance ministers in all countries need to work to find the base and most effective solutions and measures to tackle and underlie uncertainty.”

Ministers and officials from ASEAN’s Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are meeting with Chinese and South Korean finance ministers and a top Japanese official.

ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said the long-discussed regional fund would be used to help members “badly affected” as the global economic downturn hits Asia’s key trading partners in the United States and Europe.

“It is one of the mechanisms — it is not to replace or compete with the IMF (International Monetary Fund), but it will be an alternative for Asian countries,” Surin said on Thai television.

“If it materializes, it will be one of ASEAN’s most tangible achievements.”

ASEAN members plus China, Japan and South Korea agreed after the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis to set up a bilateral currency swap scheme known as the Chiang Mai Initiative to prevent a repeat of the turmoil.

Asian nations now want to expand that agreement into a multilateral fund pool to help member nations as the current economic climate threatens millions of jobs as well as the recent robust growth in Asia’s developing economies.

Asian nations had previously discussed an 80-billion-dollar emergency pool, but last year mooted expanding that figure to 120 billion dollars.

“Unfortunately our region is currently facing enormous challenges including global economic slowdown and financial turbulence,” said South Korean Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-Hyun.

“The environment calls for stronger cooperation among the ASEAN countries. I believe the Chiang Mai Initiative and its multilateralization is a prime example of such regional collaboration efforts.”

As the morning session came to a close, Surin told reporters that the meeting was “good and positive,” and said all ministers agreed in principle to expand the fund.

He said ASEAN members would equally contribute to make up 20 percent of the pool, with the remaining 80 percent coming from the big three Asia economies.

“This idea will be submitted to the ASEAN summit in Hua Hin next week,” Surin said.

Sunday’s meeting comes ahead of ASEAN’s annual summit starting on Feb. 27, which current chair Thailand will host at the seaside resort town. – Paolo Romero

ASEAN+3 FMs agree on action plan to foster regional economic confidence (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=442833&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 23, 2009 01:29 AM


PHUKET (Xinhua) -- Finance ministers from the ASEAN plus three countries agreed yesterday to speed up the process of operationalising the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM), a regional foreign reserve pool in case of currency flow shortage.

The agreement was reached at a special meeting yesterday in Phuket in southern Thailand in a bid to ensure the regional market stability and to foster confidence in the markets.

According to the Action Plan to Restore Economic and Financial Stability of the Asian Region agreed by the ministers, 120 billion US dollars, instead of 80 billion US dollars as initially proposed, will be injected into the reserve pool, or the CMIM, said Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij at a joint press conference after the one-day special meeting.

The ASEAN+3 group initiated the Chiang Mai Initiative (CMI), a bilateral currency swap arrangement in the aftermath of the 1997 Asian financial crisis in a bid to help countries tackle a possible foreign capital flow shortage.

In May 2008, the ASEAN plus three finance ministers agreed to transform the CMI to CMIM, with each country contributing a share to a common reserve fund in the scenario of a financial crisis.

The ratio of contribution between ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and the plus three countries -- China, Japan and South Korea, was set at 20:80, said Korn.

The five major economies in the ASEAN including Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, will make a equal contribution and altogether take the bigger share of the 20- percent proportion, while the other smaller economies including Brunei, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Myanmar will take the rest, with the exact amount of distribution yet to be finalized, said Korn.

The ratio of contribution among China, Japan and South Korean for the 80-percent share was still under discussion, said Chinese Finance Minister Xie Xuren.

The finance ministers agreed to speed up the process in finalizing the key terms before the ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers' Meeting in Bali, Indonesia in May, said Xie.

The ministers also agreed to establish an independent regional surveillance mechanism to promote economic monitoring in the region.

The meeting also reiterated the importance of the Asian Bond Market Initiative (ABMI) among the participants.

The meeting resolves to create a new roadmap which focuses on the promotion of the issuance of local currency-denominated bonds, facilitation of demand of local currency-denominated bonds, improvement of legal framework and strengthening of infrastructure for bond markets in the region, said Korn.

The meeting reaffirmed the important role of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in mitigating the impacts of the global financial turmoil and providing necessary capital to regional growth, by more lending on infrastructure development and trade finance in the region.

The ministers agreed for an immediate and substantial capital hike for ADB, said Korn. "We call for an early agreement on the Fifth General Capital Increase of ADB by its next Annual Meeting in May 2009," said Korn.

Yesterday's Special ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers' Meeting was held ahead of 14th ASEAN Summit scheduled on Feb. 27 - March 1 in Cha- am, central beach resort in Thailand.

EU to aid ASEAN to improve foodstuff hygiene deficiencies (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=442849&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 23, 2009 12:11 PM


KUALA LUMPUR (Xinhua) -- The European Union would give technical aid to any ASEAN country to help improve hygiene deficiencies which could prevent the exports of their foodstuff to the EU, local newspapers said on Monday.

EU's main concern was the safety of all food exported to the EU for human consumption, European Commission Health and Consumer Protection director-general Jerome Lepeintre said.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was a major food exporter to the EU, he told reporters last weekend at a one- day forum on EU-ASEAN cooperation on Codex food standards in Kota Kinabalu, capital of the Sabah State in East Malaysia.

Stressing that Codex standards benefited both the EU and ASEAN, he said that ASEAN countries like Malaysia and Thailand were already active in that respect, while Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam were lagging.

Lepeintre also said that all food must be labelled as such if they contain genetically modified organisms, something which the United States has resisted.

PSE joins electronic trading link with ASEAN Exchanges (http://http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20090225148959.html)
By JAMES A. LOYOLA

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the other ASEAN Exchanges to create an electronic trading linkage allowing ASEAN investors to buy or sell ASEAN-listed securities through their local brokers by 2010.


The MoU was signed on Monday during the 7th ASEAN Exchanges CEOs Meeting in Bangkok, Thailand.

"We welcome with much enthusiasm this project to set up an electronic linkage among the ASEAN Exchanges. Not only will the project mean a more meaningful partnership with our ASEAN counterparts but it will also lay the foundation for an integrated and harmonized ASEAN stock market," said PSE president Francis Lim.

Lim cited the benefits of an integrated and harmonized market for securities among the ASEAN Exchanges, saying that this trading linkage will position the ASEAN as an asset class and a viable investment destination.

"This linkage provides exciting opportunities for our market participants to expand their investment horizon to ASEAN markets. Any Filipino investor can now buy Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai and Singaporean securities with the same ease as buying Philippine securities and vice-versa," said Lim.

He added that the trading linkage can also provide opportunities for investors outside ASEAN to easily trade ASEAN securities.

The ASEAN stock exchanges are presently composed of Bursa Malaysia (BM), Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE), Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX), Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), Singapore Exchange (SGX) and the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET).

Based on the MOU, the project will start with the creation of an electronic linkage currently referred to as the "ASEAN Common Exchange Gateway" which will be an entry point to be set up in each exchange for brokers and investors to trade securities listed on any of the ASEAN exchanges.

This ASEAN electronic link is expected to be launched in 2010, beginning with Bursa Malaysia and the Stock Exchange of Thailand, followed by the Singapore Exchange and the Philippine Stock Exchange.

Lim said these matters will be submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission for consideration and approval at an appropriate time.

"This project is not just an integration of the ASEAN stock markets, but more importantly, reflects our vision of taking the PSE onto the global platform of a wider investment community. With this intra-ASEAN initiative, we’re taking along with us the growth of our listed companies, investors, market participants as well as the economy of the ASEAN countries," Lim concluded.

Thousands demand dissolution of Thai parliament (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=443325&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 24, 2009 10:00 PM


BANGKOK (AP) – Thousands of protesters surrounded the prime minister's office today demanding Thailand's parliament be dissolved and new elections held, the latest challenge to the two-month old coalition government.

The rally by demonstrators allied with exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra came three days before Thailand is to host the annual summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The crowd swelled to about 20,000 people as dusk approached, police said.

Thailand was plagued by political upheaval last year when demonstrators who oppose Thaksin's allies in the previous government occupied the seat of government for three months. They also held Bangkok's two airports for eight days in November and December.

The protest ended only when a court ruled to oust Thaksin's allies for electoral fraud and Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was voted into office by parliament.

One of the protest leaders, Jakrapob Penkair, said the demonstration Tuesday was being staged this week to show Thailand's Southeast Asian neighbors that Abhisit's government had no right to rule.

Abhisit's Democrat Party, which came in second in a December 2007 general election, cobbled together a ruling coalition from defecting supporters of the previous administration.

"This government is full of robbers," said Jatuporn Phromphan, another protest leader, on top of a pickup truck amid loud cheers. "The majority of this country did not vote for them but somehow they are in power because the elite want them to be."

Abhisit's government held its weekly Cabinet meeting in Hua Hin, 150 kilometers southwest of Bangkok, instead of its usual venue at Government House, at which some 3,000 police in riot gear were deployed. Two-thousand army troops were on standby in the area, said police Lt. Gen. Worapong Chiewpreecha.

"We will not use violence," Abhisit told reporters. "I am ready to walk into (the Government House) as long as there are no weapons."

Jakrapob said the demonstrators would camp out there for at least two days to press their demands but would not break in as their political rivals had done.

The Tuesday protest was organized by the Democratic Alliance against Dictatorship — commonly known as the "red shirts" because of their attire, which contrasts with the yellow shirts worn by their rivals, the self-styled People's Alliance for Democracy, who dominated last years' protests. The DAAD is an eclectic mix of Thaksin loyalists, rural farmers and laborers, all of whom benefited from Thaksin's policies that reached out to the poor.

Thaksin, a former telecommunications tycoon, remains popular among the rural majority for introducing social welfare plans, including virtually free medical care. He now lives in self-imposed exile after being forced from office in a 2006 military coup for alleged corruption and abuse of power.

Central Java to host 2011 Southeast Asia Games in Indonesia (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=443268&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 24, 2009 09:00 PM


JAKARTA (Xinhua) - The Indonesian National Sports Council (KONI) confirmed that Central Java province, alongside with West Java and South Sumatra, will be hosting the Southeast Asia (SEA) Games in 2011, Firmansyah Gindo, KONI's Media Officer, said today.

He echoed the words of Rita Subowo, Chairperson of KONI, earlier today.

"We will suggest Candi Borobudur as the 2011 SEA Games logo. Candi Borobudur represents the spirit of the nation. Our ancestors were able to work together in building the massive temple, a spirit to uphold," Subowo said.

She added the Central KONI committee would discuss the idea with the KONI committees of West Java and South Sumatra.

According Subowo, at least three sporting competitions would take place in Central Java, namely bilyard, sepak takraw and shooting.

"We deliberately chose sports that have taken root in the regions and carry the potential to develop with a sporting event like SEA Games," she said.

ASEAN officials asked to intervene in conflict (http://www.mb.com.ph/PROV20090225148998.html)


COTABATO CITY — Taking advantage of their participation in a dialogue in Bangkok, Thailand, Muslim youth leaders from the United Youth for Peace and Development (UNYPAD) and the Mindanao People’s Caucus (MPC) asked Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to intervene in the Mindanao conflict for the benefit of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) that have reached over 600,000.

UNYPAD spokesman Anwar Upahm and MPC’s Rexaal Kaalim participated at the ASEAN People’s Forum at the Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok recently.

They took the opportunity to meet and speak with Pitsuwan.

Upahm expressed his opinion that the Philippine leadership is politically weak because of the failure of the Arroyo administration to stick with and sign the aborted Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MoA-AD).

He said ASEAN members could act as guarantors to peace processes not just in Mindanao, but in all members where there is a conflict.

While Kaalim suggested that the ASEAN form its own peacekeeping force.

Pitsuwan, a Muslim Thai from Nakhon Si Thammarat Province and former minister of Parliament and minister of foreign affairs from 1997 to 2001, replaced Singapore’s Ong Keng Yong as ASEAN Secretary-General during the bloc’s regional meeting in Manila on Jan. 1, 2008.

Economy catching up with neighbors (http://Economy catching up with neighbors’)
By Joel Guinto
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 22:12:00 02/24/2009

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga, Philippines — The Philippine economy continues to grow, albeit slightly slower than previously projected, and is therefore “catching up” with others in the Southeast Asian region that are in contraction, the secretary of economic planning said here Tuesday.

The government will lower its growth forecast for 2009 "slightly" but not to an extent that would worry the financial markets, Secretary Ralph Recto said in this special economic zone north of Manila.

Recto gave no figures but said that the revised forecast of growth in the gross domestic product (GDP) would be higher than those of credit ratings agencies and higher than those of other countries in the region.

He also said the government could raise its target limit for the budget deficit ceiling to 2.0 percent of the GDP, which he said would be "acceptable" to the markets.

"We don’t expect interest rates to significantly increase” because of a projected bigger deficit, Recto said. “The two percent is factored in, the way I see it," he said.

The current GDP growth forecast is 3.7-4.7 percent, and the target ceiling for the budget deficit is 1.2 percent of the GDP, or P102 billion.

"There will be slight reduction” in the GDP forecast but “not enough to scare the market," Recto said in an interview after a Cabinet meeting here.

"We're catching up with our neighbors,” he said. “There might be slowdown here but there's a slowdown everywhere. In their case [it’s economic] contraction. We don’t have contraction."

Recto said there would also be revisions in other economic targets, which will be revealed during the government's annual economic briefing this Wednesday.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will be the keynote speaker at the briefing.

Thai premier enters his office despite protesters (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=443434&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 25, 2009 01:40 PM


BANGKOK (AP) -The Thai prime minister entered his office unhindered Wednesday, easing fears of confrontation after 20,000 anti-government protesters surrounded the building the day before demanding that parliament be dissolved and new elections held.

Hundreds of demonstrators allied with exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra sat outside the Government House compound for a second day, eating breakfast and listening to speakers, while taking turns on a makeshift stage to criticize the government. Hundreds of police in full riot gear looked on.

A car carrying current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva entered the Government House compound through a side gate without hindrance before leaving two hours later, witnesses said.

The latest protest which comes a few days before Thailand is to host the annual summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations was trying to show Thailand's Southeast Asian neighbors that Abhisit's 2-month old government had no right to rule, said a protest leader, Jatuporn Phromphan.

"We want the world to know that this government has no legitimacy," Jatuporn said. "They have the support of the elite but they don't have the support of the people."

Thailand was plagued by political upheaval last year when demonstrators who opposed Thaksin's allies in the previous government occupied the seat of government for three months. They also shuttered Bangkok's two airports for eight days in November and December.

The protest ended only when a court ruled to oust Thaksin's allies for electoral fraud and Abhisit whose party came in second in a December 2007 general election was voted into office by parliament.

The protesters planned to march to the Foreign Ministry later Wednesday to call for the resignation of Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, Jatuporn said. Kasit was a vocal supporter of the anti-Thaksin demonstrators and publicly praised their airports siege as a "new innovation for public protests."

Protest leaders said the demonstrators also would continue to camp at Government House to press their demands, but would not break in.

Sukhum Nuansakul, a political scientist at Bangkok's Ramkhamhaeng University, said Thailand would remain unstable but that he did not expect things to turn violent for now.

"Both sides know they will lose public support if things turn violent. There is no catalyst for the situation to spiral out of control at this point," he said.

The latest protests have been organized by the Democratic Alliance against Dictatorship commonly known as the "red shirts" because of their attire, which contrasts with the yellow shirts worn by their rivals, the self-styled People's Alliance for Democracy, who dominated last years' protests. The DAAD is an eclectic mix of Thaksin loyalists, rural farmers and laborers.

Arroyo ready to defend baselines bill (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090225-191000/Arroyo-ready-to-defend-baselines-bill)

MANILA, Philippines -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is ready to defend the country’s baselines bill before China and leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), when she attends the regional bloc’s 14th summit in Thailand later this week, Malacañang said on Wednesday.

China has protested the baselines bill, calling it a violation of its sovereignty over the Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal, which were defined under the measure as a “regime of islands under the Republic of the Philippines” even as these were excluded from the national territory,

Asked if Arroyo would defend the baselines bill, should the need arise, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said: “Definitely.”

“The President is informed properly of the positions taken by the Chinese government... The President is conversant on the issue. I’m sure she will be able to discuss the matter in a very intelligent manner, and even [with] leaders of other claimant countries,” he said.

Also high on the agenda of the summit are the measures undertaken by ASEAN-member nations to weather the global recession, Ermita said.

Arroyo will leave for Thailand early Saturday morning.

Aside from the Philippines and China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brueni, and Tawian also lay claim to the reportedly oil-rich Spratlys in whole or in part.

The Philippines, China, and Taiwan claim the Scarborough Shoal.

14th ASEAN summit kicks off in Thai town (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090225-191030/14th-ASEAN-summit-kicks-off-in-Thai-town)

BANGKOK, Thailand —The 14th ASEAN Summit kicks Thursday in the Thai coastal town of Cha-Am in Petchaburi province with regional integration, the global financial crisis, human rights, food and energy security, labor and trade issues expected to dominate discussions.

This year's theme of the ASEAN summit is "ASEAN Charter for ASEAN Peoples."

Topping the agenda of the summit, which will last until March 1, is the signing by leaders of the 10-member regional bloc of the Declaration on the Roadmap for an ASEAN Community 2009-2015. The declaration sets out the guidelines for the creation of a single free trade area for the region of 800 million people by 2015.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is expected to arrive on February 28 at the Hua Hin International Airport on board a chartered Philippine Airlines flight from Manila. She will be accompanied by members of her Cabinet and Congress.

She will be met at the airport by Thai Deputy Prime Minister Sanan Kachornprasat and Philippine Ambassador to Thailand Antonio Rodriguez, among others.

The President and members of the Philippine delegation will be billeted at the Hilton Hua Hin, a short distance from the main summit venue at the Dusit Thani Hua Hin Hotel in Cha-Am, about 200 km from Bangkok.

Upon her arrival, President Arroyo is expected to attend the 5th Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) summit scheduled at 10:15 a.m. on Saturday.

At least 23 agreements, declarations and statements will be signed or adopted by ASEAN leaders, foreign ministers and economic ministers during the four-day summit which will formally open on February 28.

The agreements will cover issues relating to ASEAN community-building, food and energy security as well as economic cooperation.

ASEAN leaders will also adopt five documents. These include the ASEAN Political-Security Community Blueprint, the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Blueprint, the Second Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Work Plan, the Joint Declaration on the Attainment of the Millennium Development Goals in ASEAN and a Statement on Food Security in the ASEAN Region.

ASEAN economic ministers are expected to sign on Thursday afternoon various agreements aimed at boosting trade, investment and employment in the region.

Among the trade agreements to be signed by the Philippines are the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (Atiga), the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA) and the ASEAN-Australia New Zealand Free Trade Area (Aanfta).

The trade agreements come at a crucial time when the region's exports are plunging due to weak demand from the US and Europe, which have slipped into recession.

By progressively reducing tariffs and eliminating other trade barriers, ASEAN-member countries hope to boost trade within the region.

ASEAN foreign ministers will also sign the Petroleum Security Agreement, the Draft Terms of Reference of an ASEAN Human Rights Body and the Recommendations of the High Level Legal Experts' Group on Follow-Up to the ASEAN Charter.

After the summit's formal opening ceremony on February 28, ASEAN leaders and their spouses will have a royal audience with King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit at the Klai Kangwol Palace, the royal seaside retreat in Hua Hin.

Being held parallel to the summit is the 2008 ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (ASEAN-Bis) from February 25 to 27 in Bangkok.

The business summit is annually organized by the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (Abac) to coincide with the ASEAN Summit. ASEAN-Bis brings together private and public sector organizations, government representatives and the business community from within and outside ASEAN for dialogue and networking.

^^ The political conflict in Thailand and the Muslim insurgency in the South are escalating. Hope it will not affect the ASEAN summit.

US wants 'political progress' in Myanmar (http://http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/world/02/26/09/us-wants-political-progress-myanmar)
Agence France-Presse | 02/26/2009 10:01 AM


HANOI - The United States on Wednesday called on Southeast Asian nations to push for "political progress" in military-ruled Myanmar.

Scot Marciel, the US ambassador to the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) told reporters his country wanted the group's members to "use whatever contacts and access they have in the country to encourage new thinking and reform and increase openness and political progress".

The diplomat, speaking after an official visit to Hanoi, said he would go to Thailand for the opening of the ASEAN summit starting on Friday.

But he refused to elaborate on a policy review towards Myanmar US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had announced earlier.

Marciel told reporters Clinton said "that our approach to date, emphasising sanctions, hadn't worked".

"She also emphasised that the ASEAN approach of engagement hadn't worked," he said.

"So she said, given that we haven't achieved that success, it's logical and appropriate to review and look for new ideas to see if there is a way we can be more effective."

A day after Obama took office a senior official in Yangon said Myanmar hoped the new president would change Washington's tough policy towards its military regime and end the "misunderstandings" of the past.

Former US President George W. Bush's administration strengthened decade-old sanctions against Myanmar while his wife Laura was an outspoken critic of the country's ruling junta.

"Our goal vis-a-vis Myanmar or Burma remains to encourage release of political prisoners, dialogue between the government and the people in the opposition and overall progress so that the country stops going in a negative direction and moves in a more positive direction", Marciel added.

106 Filipino fishermen detained in Indonesia (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=443723&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
By Edith Regalado Updated February 26, 2009 12:47 PM


MANADO, Indonesia --- At least 106 Filipino fishermen are now detained in various prison cells in East Indonesia for reportedly illegally fishing in the country's territorial waters.

According to Cresente Relacion, Philippine Consul General based here in Manado, the fishermen were caught in different parts of East Indonesia and in separate occasions starting October last year.

These fishermen were reportedly based in General Santos City and nearby localities in South Cotabato, most of whom were employed by big fishing firms in the area.

The lack of fish to catch in the Philippine waters forces Filipino fishermen to venture into foreign territories such as in Indonesia and Palau.

Aside from those presently detained, there were 138 others who were already repatriated back into the country two months ago, Relacion said.

Filipino fishermen detained here are usually sent home aboard either a commercial flight or on a Philippine Navy vessel because Indonesian authorities also seize their fishing boats upon arrest.

Relacion said that most of the detained fishermen were already due for repatriation. He explained that the consulate assists the imprisoned fishermen by helping them in processing their repatriation.

“But before we extend any assistance, we make sure that those caught were really Filipino citizens. We first verify their citizenship by asking authorities back in the Philippines if indeed they are really Filipinos and that they have birth certificates with the National Statistics Office (NSO),” the consul-general told The STAR.

The verification of the citizenship of the fishermen, according to Relacion, is an effort to help thwart terrorism in the area.

Relacion admitted that there has been an increase in the number of arrests of Filipinos illegally fishing in Indonesia for the past few months.

“Almost every week we receive reports of arrests either from the Indonesian authorities or from the fishing company itself or from the relatives of the fishermen,” he added.

Relacion further said that illegal fishing is so far the biggest problem the Philippine consulate has to deal with in Indonesia.

“Other than illegal fishing, we do not have problems with the few Filipinos here,” Relacion said.

He estimated that there are at least only 50 Filipinos working here in Manado and the nearby port city of Bitung, including the personnel of the consulate and their families.

Financial crisis to test ASEAN leaders (http://http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/02/26/09/financial-crisis-test-asean-leaders)

Agence France-Presse | 02/26/2009 9:52 AM

BANGKOK - Southeast Asian leaders are to seek ways of insulating their export-driven economies from the global financial meltdown when they hold their annual summit in Thailand this weekend.

Until recently a relative bright spot in the world economy, several countries in the region of more than half a billion people are facing recession and growing unemployment as demand from trading partners plummets.

Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva recently said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit would "discuss ways and means to mitigate the effects of the financial and economic crisis on the ASEAN community."

Leaders gathering at the royal beach resort of Hua Hin are expected to sign a declaration on a roadmap for forming an EU-style community by 2015 and to formally ink a free trade pact with Australia and New Zealand.

They will also discuss a 120-billion-dollar emergency fund agreed on by Asian finance ministers on Sunday -- but analysts warn that the region is largely at the mercy of global events.

"What ASEAN can do itself is probably pretty limited," said Barclays capital regional economist Nicholas Bibby.

"The main thing is ASEAN's exposure to the global economy. Because of its reliance on exports, if the global economy takes a hit, then so will ASEAN's."

In terms of their financial systems, ASEAN countries have been relatively unscathed by the global crisis, partly due to strengthened oversight after the 1997/1998 Asian financial crisis.

ASEAN states also have little exposure to the toxic mortgage-based securities and other financial instruments blamed for the turmoil.

But the real economies of Southeast Asian countries have been hit after exports to developed markets fell dramatically and incoming investments slowed.

Current ASEAN chair Thailand -- the region's second biggest economy -- was the most recent country to post depressing economic data.

Official figures released on Monday showed that the Thai economy shrank by 4.3 percent in the final quarter of 2008. Thai exports in January meanwhile suffered their biggest year-on-year fall since 1997.

Trade-dependent Singapore, ASEAN's wealthiest member per capita and its financial hub, is meanwhile facing its worst recession since independence.

Key exports fell by more than a third in January year-on-year and the government now sees economic growth shrinking by between 2.0 and 5.0 percent for this year.

Indonesia, ASEAN's largest economy, has also started to feel the pinch with growth slowing in the fourth quarter of 2008, and in Malaysia falling exports could force the government to revise its growth forecast for 2009.

Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said each of the steps being taken by ASEAN in response to the crisis was "not dramatic in itself, but collectively representing a determination to move forward."

In comments published in the Straits Times on Tuesday, Yeo said the economic crisis should strengthen the ties between ASEAN members -- a disparate mix of young democracies, communist states, a monarchy and a military dictatorship.

But he warned against resorting to protectionism because of domestic pressures and called for the region to look for new solutions, including cooperating on tourism.

Bad news for ASEAN's economies could also be bad news outside the region.

Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij told AFP last week that ASEAN was "increasingly the focus of the rest of the world" because of its role in Asia, which has the "world's best chance of driving economic recovery."

Yet key regional partners China, Japan and South Korea are staying away from the summit because of repeated delays due to Thailand's recent political upheaval, leaving the region to deal with its own problems for now.

Human rights must top ASEAN agenda (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090226-191158/Human-rights-must-top-ASEAN-agenda)

BANGKOK -- Human rights violations in the region and repression in military-run Myanmar must top the agenda at a summit of Southeast Asian nations this week, global rights watchdogs said Thursday.

Leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are meeting in Thailand's resort of Hua Hin from Friday, and are expected to discuss the formation of a regional human rights body.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said the summit must address the rights of refugees and migrants, in particular Myanmar's Rohingya boat people, whom the Thai military stands accused of abusing.

"The treatment of the Rohingya boat people has highlighted the urgent need for regional action on human rights," Donna Guest, London-based Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific deputy director, said in a statement.

"ASEAN must act now to address human rights concerns in Southeast Asia, many of which are having a negative impact regionally and even globally."

Thailand's army allegedly towed hundreds of Rohingya who had washed up on its shores out to sea in barges with little food or water. Many were rescued in Indonesian and Indian waters, but rights groups fear that scores died.

Human Rights Watch, headquartered in New York, said the Rohingya issue "reveals glaring failures" in ASEAN's dealings with Myanmar.

Myanmar, ruled by the military since 1962, is a member of ASEAN but has long been a thorn in its side, with Western nations urging the regional bloc to push its awkward member towards political reform.

"Burma's military government continues to deny its citizens basic freedoms, including freedom of expression, association and assembly," Human Rights Watch said in a statement, referring to Myanmar by its former name.

The group also highlighted issues including the recent harsh prison terms handed down to pro-democracy activists and the ongoing army crackdowns on civilians living in areas where ethnic insurgents are still active.

Amnesty's Guest said Myanmar would be a key test for any new regional human rights organization.

"Violations in this ASEAN member state have been going on for decades, and include crimes against humanity," she said. "To be worthy of its name, the body must be empowered to effectively address human rights in Myanmar."

^^ ASEAN has always put on a hands-off policy on Myanmar's Humar Rights issue. Hopefully they tackle that issue more indepth now.

ASEAN leaders challenged on rights, economy (http://http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/world/02/26/09/asean-leaders-challenged-rights-economy)

by Thanaporn Promyamyai, Agence France-Presse | 02/26/2009 10:58 PM

HUA HIN, Thailand - Southeast Asian leaders Thursday faced renewed pressure to deal with rights abuses in Myanmar on the eve of an annual summit likely to be dominated by the global economic crunch.

International rights watchdogs and the United States both urged Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders gathering here this weekend to push for reform in the military-ruled nation, the 10-member group's black sheep.

Tight security was in place in the Thai beach resort of Hua Hin, amid fears anti-government protesters who have besieged the premier's office in Bangkok could turn their attentions to the three-day summit starting Friday.

ASEAN ministers are expected to discuss the formation of a regional human rights body on Friday, a day before heads of state formally meet, but Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch expressed concerns.

"To be worthy of its name, the body must be empowered to effectively address human rights in Myanmar," Donna Guest, London-based Amnesty's Asia-Pacific deputy director, said in a statement.

Myanmar, ruled by the military since 1962, is a member of ASEAN but has long been a thorn in its side, with Western nations urging the regional bloc to push the junta towards political reform.

The rights groups said the summit must in particular address the rights of refugees and migrants, in particular Myanmar's Rohingya boat people, whom the military of fellow ASEAN member Thailand is also accused of abusing.

They also highlighted recent harsh prison terms handed down to pro-democracy activists.

Separately the US ambassador to ASEAN, Scot Marciel, called on the region to push Myanmar's rulers for "political progress" using their contacts and access to the country.

ASEAN has not put the issue of the Rohingyas on its agenda for the rigidly organised summit, but Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said it might be discussed at an informal dinner with his colleagues late Wednesday.

Kasit defended the planned rights body, saying: "We are an ASEAN family... we can talk to one another without making demands or questioning."

But the focus of the summit is expected to be ASEAN's efforts to help its export-driven economies escape the ravages of the global financial crisis, with several member nations either already in recession or on the brink.

Leaders are to sign a declaration on a roadmap for forming a European Union-style community by 2015 and to formally initial a free-trade pact with Australia and New Zealand.

They will also discuss a 120-billion-dollar emergency fund agreed on by Asian finance ministers on Sunday -- but analysts warn that the region is largely at the mercy of what happens elsewhere.

Several ASEAN nations are also distracted by elections or political turmoil, with Thailand facing a recent resurgence of months of unrest that had forced the summit to be delayed from its original date in December.

Key regional partners including China, Japan and India have stayed away from the rescheduled summit.

In Bangkok, supporters of ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra rallied for a third day outside current Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's office to demand new elections.

Thailand's Kasit, who faces calls to quit over his involvement in a protest movement that shuttered Bangkok's airports last year, defended his record and said he did not think his attendance at the summit would be a distraction.

"I am such a nice person and serving society to the best of my ability," Kasit said.

Officials said there was no threat to the summit from the latest protests but police said they had deployed more than 5,000 officers, including some with sniffer dogs, to protect the venue.

Thailand currently holds the rotating chair of ASEAN, which includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam.

Financial crisis to test ASEAN leaders (http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20090227149137.html)

BANGKOK, Feb. 26 (AFP) – Southeast Asian leaders are to seek ways of insulating their export-driven economies from the global financial meltdown when they hold their annual summit in Thailand this weekend.

Until recently a relative bright spot in the world economy, several countries in the region of more than half a billion people are facing recession and growing unemployment as demand from trading partners plummets.

Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva recently said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit would ‘’discuss ways and means to mitigate the effects of the financial and economic crisis on the ASEAN community.’’

Leaders gathering at the royal beach resort of Hua Hin are expected to sign a declaration on a roadmap for forming an EU-style community by 2015 and to formally ink a free trade pact with Australia and New Zealand.

They will also discuss a 120-billion-dollar emergency fund agreed on by Asian finance ministers on Sunday -- but analysts warn that the region is largely at the mercy of global events.

‘’What ASEAN can do itself is probably pretty limited,’’ said Barclays capital regional economist Nicholas Bibby.

‘’The main thing is ASEAN’s exposure to the global economy. Because of its reliance on exports, if the global economy takes a hit, then so will ASEAN’s.’’

In terms of their financial systems, ASEAN countries have been relatively unscathed by the global crisis, partly due to strengthened oversight after the 1997/1998 Asian financial crisis.

ASEAN states also have little exposure to the toxic mortgage-based securities and other financial instruments blamed for the turmoil.

But the real economies of Southeast Asian countries have been hit after exports to developed markets fell dramatically and incoming investments slowed.

Current ASEAN chair Thailand -- the region’s second biggest economy -- was the most recent country to post depressing economic data.

Official figures released on Monday showed that the Thai economy shrank by 4.3 percent in the final quarter of 2008. Thai exports in January meanwhile suffered their biggest year-on-year fall since 1997.

Trade-dependent Singapore, ASEAN’s wealthiest member per capita and its financial hub, is meanwhile facing its worst recession since independence.

Key exports fell by more than a third in January year-on-year and the government now sees economic growth shrinking by between 2.0 and 5.0 percent for this year.

Indonesia, ASEAN’s largest economy, has also started to feel the pinch with growth slowing in the fourth quarter of 2008, and in Malaysia falling exports could force the government to revise its growth forecast for 2009.

Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said each of the steps being taken by ASEAN in response to the crisis was ‘’not dramatic in itself, but collectively representing a determination to move forward.’’

In comments published in the Straits Times on Tuesday, Yeo said the economic crisis should strengthen the ties between ASEAN members -- a disparate mix of young democracies, communist states, a monarchy and a military dictatorship.

But he warned against resorting to protectionism because of domestic pressures and called for the region to look for new solutions, including cooperating on tourism.

Bad news for ASEAN’s economies could also be bad news outside the region.

Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij told AFP last week that ASEAN was ‘’increasingly the focus of the rest of the world’’ because of its role in Asia, which has the ‘’world’s best chance of driving economic recovery.’’

Yet key regional partners China, Japan and South Korea are staying away from the summit because of repeated delays due to Thailand’s recent political upheaval, leaving the region to deal with its own problems for now.

ASEAN presses for emergency fund (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20090227-191358/ASEAN-presses-for-emergency-fund)

HUA HIN -- Southeast Asian foreign ministers called for a planned multi-billion-dollar emergency fund to be boosted as a "matter of urgency" to fight the global downturn, a top official said.

Asian finance ministers agreed last weekend to increase the size of the proposed fund from $80 billion to $120 billion but did not give a date for setting it up.

The foreign exchange pool functions as an emergency credit line for Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and will be created with assistance from China, Japan and South Korea.

"The foreign ministers agreed that this is a matter of urgency," ASEAN secretary general Surin Pitsuwan told reporters after the ministers held an informal dinner late Thursday at the grouping's annual summit in Thailand.

He said they agreed it should be completed "most desirably" before the 10 ASEAN leaders meet with their Chinese, Japanese and South Korean counterparts in April.

He said the leaders had also agreed to hold the so-called ASEAN+3 summit from April 10-12.

The meeting was originally due to take place in December alongside the summit, but both were postponed because of political turmoil in Thailand.

An ASEAN foreign ministry official said that the group's leaders planned to issue a statement on the fund at the end of the summit which lasts from Friday until Sunday.

ASEAN's 10 member states plus China, Japan and South Korea agreed after the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis to set up the bilateral currency scheme to prevent a repeat of the turmoil.

The Asian nations now want to expand that agreement into a multilateral reserve pool, as the current economic climate threatens millions of jobs as well as recent robust growth in the developing economies.

The foreign ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the statement would include a section on the "need to multilateralize" the fund.

Intra-ASEAN trade vital in tough times (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20090227-191335/Intra-ASEAN-trade-vital-in-tough-times)

BANGKOK—With their major markets—the United States and European Union (EU)—in recession, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members must boost trade and investments among themselves to offset the severe drop in their export earnings and mitigate the impact of the global financial crisis on their economies.

“We need to trade more among ourselves and invest more in each other,” ASEAN Secretary General Dr. Surin Pitsuwan told participants of the 2008 ASEAN Business and Investment Summit at the Plaza Athenee in Bangkok.

ASEAN groups the Philippines, Thailand, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Burma (Myanmar).

Intra-ASEAN trade has expanded fivefold since 1993 to $403 billion, representing 25 percent of total ASEAN trade with the world.

This was quite impressive compared to the EU, which has 27 member countries, but should be increased further, Surin said.

“We need your initiatives to increase this,” he told the businessmen, adding that ASEAN was aiming to increase intra-region trade to 35-45 percent of total ASEAN trade by 2015.

As for intra-ASEAN investments, Surin noted that these amounted to only $9.5 billion or a mere 15 percent of the $63-billion total foreign direct investments (FDI) that went into ASEAN in 2007.

“We must increase FDI from ASEAN sources into ASEAN economies,” he said. “We must invest more in each other so that the economic integration (of the region) will be successful.”

Weekend summit

ASEAN heads of state will seek ways to insulate their export-driven economies from the global financial meltdown when they hold their annual summit in Thailand this weekend.

Until recently a relatively bright spot in the world economy, several countries in the region of more than half a billion are facing recession and growing unemployment as demand from trading partners plummets.

Thai Premier Abhisit Vejjajiva earlier said the ASEAN summit would “discuss ways and means to mitigate the effects of the financial and economic crisis on the ASEAN community.”

Leaders—including Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo—who will gather at the royal beach resort of Hua Hin are expected to sign a declaration on a roadmap for forming an EU-style community by 2015 and to formally ink a free trade pact with Australia and New Zealand.

They will also discuss a $120-billion emergency fund agreed on by Asian finance ministers on Sunday—but analysts warn the region is largely at the mercy of global events.

Aside from the world economy, the ASEAN leaders are also expected to discuss the formation of a regional human rights body.

Global rights watchdogs Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said Thursday human rights violations in the region and repression in military-run Burma (Myanmar) must be on top of the ASEAN summit agenda.

They said the summit must address the rights of refugees and migrants, in particular Burma’s Rohingya boat people, whom the Thai military stands accused of abusing.

“The treatment of the Rohingya boat people has highlighted the urgent need for regional action on human rights,” Donna Guest, London-based Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific deputy director, said in a statement.

Asean to sign trade pact with Australia, New Zealand (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=444015&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 27, 2009 12:10 PM


CHA-AM (AP) -Southeast Asian economic ministers are set to sign a free trade pact with Australia and New Zealand along with other agreements at an annual summit, vowing to resist protectionism as the global slump sends the region's economies into a tailspin.

Leaders and top officials from the 10 member Association of Southeast Asia Nations a region of more than 500 million people are gathering Thursday in the Thai resort town of Cha-Am, 200 kilometers (120 miles) south of the capital Bangkok, for the grouping's 14th annual summit.

The meeting, usually dominated by human rights issues, is overshadowed this year by the global economic meltdown, which has already dragged the region's most advanced economy Singapore into recession.

Thailand's economy, also undermined by political unrest, shrank in the fourth quarter and other nations such as Malaysia and the Philippines are grappling with rapidly slowing growth amid a drop-off in export demand.

The global slump has raised the prospect of nations becoming more protectionist to protect homegrown industries, potentially reducing global trade even more a particular threat to export-dependent Southeast Asia.

ASEAN has "always been open to free trade and we want more of it," Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya told reporters.

"With the recent economic crisis our position is to have unhindered global trade," he said.

During the summit, economic ministers will sign an agreement for a free trade zone with Australia and New Zealand and a second pact related to merchandise trade within ASEAN.

The ASEAN goods trade agreement will create a single framework for all existing and new trade commitments as the region works to further reduce tariffs and eliminate other barriers to trade.

An investment agreement, aiming to encourage the flow of capital within the region, will also be signed.

Negotiations for the free trade pact with New Zealand and Australia began in 2004 and the two countries announced last year that they had successfully concluded talks with ASEAN.

In 2004, it was estimated the agreement would boost the combined gross domestic product of the 12 countries by more than $48 billion by 2020.

The summit is also expected to sign a roadmap document outlining further steps for reaching achieving ASEAN's goal of forming a European Union-style economic community by 2015.

Liberalizing of trade and investment within the region is seen as important steps toward achieving the 2015 goal.

Finance ministers from the region plus South Korea, China and Japan met at the Thai resort island of Phuket last weekend and agreed in principle to expand a proposed emergency currency fund to $120 billion from $80 billion.

Some 80 percent of the funds would be provided by China, South Korea and Japan

Vietnam reports 2nd bird flu death this year (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=444017&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 27, 2009 01:00 PM


HANOI (AP) -A 32-year-old man from northern Vietnam has died of bird flu, in the country's second death from the disease this year, a health official said Friday.

The man died Wednesday at the National Institute for Infectious and Tropical Disease in Hanoi after battling with the disease for two weeks, said Vu Van Can, deputy director of the health department in Ninh Binh province, where the man was from.

Can said the man, who tested positive for bird flu, had become ill after slaughtering and eating ducks his family raised in Ninh Binh, which is some 100 kilometers (60 miles) south of Hanoi.

Last week, a 23-year-old woman from the northern province of Quang Ninh died of bird flu, in Vietnam's first bird flu death in 2009. Bird flu has killed 54 people in Vietnam, including five last year, since it began rampaging through Asian poultry stocks in late 2003.

So far this year, bird flu outbreaks among poultry have spread to 13 provinces nationwide, killing or forcing the cull of more than 50,000 birds, according to the Department of Animal Health.

The H5N1 strain has killed at least 255 people worldwide since 2003, most through contact

Asean human rights body lacks power to punish (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=444018&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated February 27, 2009 01:15 PM


CHA-AM (AP) -Southeast Asian officials on Friday hailed the creation of a regional human rights body as a historic first step toward confronting abuses in the region, but the body will lack the power to investigate or punish violators of human rights like military-ruled Myanmar.

A confidential document obtained by The Associated Press says the rights body, which the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations hopes to form later this year, would "promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms" in the region but will abide by the bloc's bedrock policy of not interfering in members internal affairs.

The document, which outlines the proposed powers of the future rights body, falls short of key demands voiced by international human rights groups, which say the body will have limited effectiveness unless it can impose sanctions or expel countries that violate the rights of their own citizens.

The document was being presented behind closed-doors to ASEAN foreign ministers gathered at a coastal resort in Thailand ahead of an annual leaders summit this weekend. It is a first draft for the body's proposed powers, with a final draft scheduled for completion in July.

The delegates are expected to devote most of their time to grappling with how the region can best cope with the global economic crisis. Although reform in Myanmar may be discussed on the sidelines of the conference, ASEAN traditionally shies away from criticism of its members.

Thailand, which currently holds ASEAN's rotating chairmanship and is hosting the summit, bills the meeting as a turning point for the bloc.

It is the first time leaders will meet since the group signed a landmark charter in December. The document made ASEAN a legal entity and moves it a step closer toward the goal of establishing a single market by 2015 and becoming a European Union-like community.

One of the charter's key pledges is to set up the regional human rights body. It is a landmark step and a highly controversial one for the Cold War-era bloc made up of fledgling democracies, authoritarian states, a military dictatorship and a monarchy.

"It is a historic first for Southeast Asia," said Rosario Manalo, a senior diplomat representing the Philippines on the high-level panel that drafted the human rights body's outline. "It marks the efforts of the region to move toward democracy."

Officials describe the human rights body as a work in progress, saying its powers will evolve over time.

"Investigative powers should not be ruled out. We'll take it step by step," said Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Thailand's chairman of the drafting committee. "We have to go as far as we can but at the same time we have to be realistic."

ASEAN's 10 members -Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam range from very poor to moderately rich.

The bloc that has long been criticized as a talk shop that forges agreements by consensus and steers away from confrontation a factor that rights groups note will impede progress for the eventual human rights body.

According to the confidential document, the human rights body would follow the principles of "noninterference in the internal affairs of ASEAN member states" and would "respect the right of every member state to (be) free from external interference, subversion and coercion."

Any decisions taken by the group "shall be based on consultation and consensus," the document says, effectively giving Myanmar and other violators veto power to block decisions.

International human rights groups have urged ASEAN leaders to press military-ruled Myanmar to end its rights abuses.

London-based Amnesty International said in a statement earlier this week that ASEAN "must be empowered to effectively address human rights in Myanmar."

New York-based Human Rights Watch, in a letter to ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan, urged the summit to address "the dire human rights situation in Burma" and also improve treatment of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants in the region.

The United States also blasted Myanmar's junta for having "brutally suppressed dissent" through a campaign of extrajudicial killings, disappearances and torture.

In its annual report on the state of human rights around the world, the U.S. State Department on Wednesday criticized Myanmar's junta for a range of abuses including the holding of more than 2,100 political prisoners, the continued detention of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and a brutal military campaign against ethnic minority groups.

Backgrounder: Documents to be signed or adopted during the 14th ASEAN Summit (http://news.nabou.com/cgi-bin/newsframe/437892yks4328903Dnabou2BInews421789994asgw3798etys6787/18A8047A97056E4D9B2CDA039BFF5E58backheadline3DHow2Bdo2BI2Bcut2Ba2Boout3Fnews26o3D0/FrameIt.cgi?Url=http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?r1840311744)

HUA HIN, Thailand, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- The 14th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and related meetings will be held here from Feb. 27 to March 1. A total of 24 related documents are expected to be signed or adopted by ASEAN leaders, foreign ministers and economic ministers at the meetings.

The document to be signed by ASEAN leaders is Cha-am Hua Hin Declaration on the Roadmap for an ASEAN Community (2009-2015).

Documents to be adopted by ASEAN leaders include ASEAN Political-Security Community Blueprint; ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Blueprint; 2nd Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Work Plan; Joint Declaration on the Attainment of the Millennium Development Goals in ASEAN; Statement on Food Security in the ASEAN Region.

The documents to be signed by ASEAN foreign ministers is ASEAN Petroleum Security Agreement.

Documents to be adopted by ASEAN foreign ministers include Draft Terms of Reference of an ASEAN Human Rights Body; Recommendations of the High Level Legal Experts' Group on Follow-Up to the ASEAN Charter.

ASEAN economic ministers will sign eight documents on trade and investment, and another seven documents with their dialogue partners.

Arroyo to Thailand Sat for ASEAN meet (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090227-191433/Arroyo-to-Thailand-Sat-for-ASEAN-meet)

MANILA, Philippines -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will leave Saturday for Thailand to attend the 14th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit, Malacañang said.

During the two-day meeting in Hua Hin, Arroyo will push for the “immediate” implementation of a proposed $120-billion liquidity fund for ASEAN, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde told a news conference at the Palace.

Arroyo and a small party will depart from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at 5 a.m., he said.

Arroyo’s official delegation includes Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, Trade Secretary Peter Favila, Finance Secretary Margarito Teves, Labor Secretary Marianito Roque, and himself, Remonde said.

Leaders of ASEAN are also expected to sign a declaration for a roadmap to establish a European Union-style organization in the region by 2010, according to a statement released by the Palace.

Arroyo is scheduled to return to the country on Monday.

SEAsian ministers to sign key trade deal (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20090227-191403/SEAsian-ministers-to-sign-key-trade-deal)

HUA HIN -- Southeast Asian ministers opened a key summit focused on the global economic meltdown Friday at which they were expected to sign a major free trade deal with Australia and New Zealand.

Ministers will also discuss forming a long-awaited human rights body, but the annual meeting in the Thai beach resort of Hua Hin is set to be dominated by efforts to shield their export-driven economies from turmoil elsewhere.

With the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) suffering plummeting demand from its developed trading partners, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva called for cooperation to ride out the crisis.

"We must not resort to protectionist tendencies at trying times," Abhisit said in a speech to business leaders. "We must continue to believe in free and fair trade that shall remain the cornerstone of our ASEAN economic community."

The deal to set up a free trade area with Australia and New Zealand is the most comprehensive ever agreed by the bloc, which comprises nearly 600 million people.

ASEAN is starting to feel the effects of the global economic crisis, with its financial hub Singapore facing its worst recession since independence and others including Thailand sliding in the same direction.

Officials said the pact with the two Pacific countries was expected to be signed later Friday, nearly four years after talks on the deal first began.

It covers trade in goods and services, investment, financial services, telecoms, electronic commerce, intellectual property, competition policy and economic cooperation.

Australia is ASEAN's sixth-biggest trading partner and New Zealand the ninth, while ASEAN collectively is Australia's biggest overseas market.

The agreement is part of a raft of measures mooted by the organisation to ride out the crisis.

Leaders will sign a declaration on a roadmap for forming a European Union-style community by 2015 and discuss a $120-billion emergency fund agreed on by Asian finance ministers on Sunday.

Foreign ministers discussed the fund on Thursday night and called for it to be implemented as a "matter of urgency" to fight the global downturn, ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan told reporters.

He said they agreed it should be completed "most desirably" before the 10 ASEAN leaders meet with their Chinese, Japanese and South Korean counterparts from April 10-12.

That meeting was originally due to take place in December alongside the summit, but both were postponed because of political turmoil in Thailand.

The ASEAN grouping, whose diverse members include a military dictatorship, an absolute monarchy, several young democracies and some communist countries, faces its perennially tricky problem of human rights.

Foreign ministers are due to meet Friday on a human rights body due to be set up under ASEAN's new charter, signed in December, but critics say it will be toothless because of the bloc's policy of non-interference.

The top problem in this department remains military-ruled Myanmar. Rights watchdogs urged the group again on Thursday to press the country's generals to end rights abuses and introduce political reform.

These abuses include the treatment of the Muslim Rohingya boat people, who hit the headlines earlier this year when Thai security forces allegedly abandoned hundreds of the migrants at sea.

The ASEAN summit itself also faces accusations of lacking relevance because of the absence of major regional partners and key economic powers China, Japan and South Korea.

They said they were unable to attend after the summit was delayed.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

ASEAN ministers debate rights body (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090227-191417/ASEAN-ministers-debate-rights-body)

HUA HIN -- (UPDATE) Southeast Asian ministers Friday discussed the details of a long-awaited human rights body that critics already fear may be powerless to stop abuses in regional blackspots such as Myanmar.

Foreign ministers were finalizing the terms of reference and debating the makeup and scope of the panel, agreed under the charter of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) signed in December.

But sources said the current proposals would not only stick to ASEAN's policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of member nations, but also fail to give the body any investigative powers.

Officials have said they want the body to be operational before the end of the year although leaders gathering for their three-day annual summit in the Thai beach resort of Hua Hin were not expected to reach any concrete agreement.

Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi admitted that finding common ground on the body would prove challenging, while Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya described the ongoing talks as an "evolving process."

"It is going to be difficult. I want to admit this right at the beginning because we are at different stages of development," Abdullah said in an interview with the Bangkok Post.

"We are at different stages of development and our own history of development of democracy is different," he said.

"In this region we have Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Christians. So there are certain things that we may find that they are not compatible from cultural perspectives."

Human rights have been a perennial issue for ASEAN, which includes military-ruled Myanmar and two communist states. The group has repeatedly been pressed to use its influence to improve the rights situation in Myanmar.

Proposals outlining the body's mandate did not give it the power to investigate abuses, but rather to act in an educational and promotional capacity, sources said.

Yap Swee Seng, executive director of the Bangkok-based Asia Forum told Agence France-Presse that the body's ability to gather complaints and probe alleged abuses "are very important in order to provide limited protection for human rights victims."

He said the planned body risked being powerless unless it was given an expanded mandate and included independent representatives.

Diplomats said that while some countries wanted to appoint independent experts to the body, others were pushing for it to be made up of government officials.

"That is a concern for us," Yap said. "The body will not be independent if government officials are appointed."

Furthermore, a policy whereby ASEAN member states agree not to interfere in each others' internal affairs would also clip its wings.

"From what we understand... principles of non-interference will be enshrined in the terms of reference," Yap said.

"We fear that this would be invoked by some states to prevent the body or to prevent other states talking about human rights violations in that particular country."

International rights watchdogs and the United States on Thursday both urged ASEAN leaders to push for reform in military-ruled Myanmar.

"To be worthy of its name, the body must be empowered to effectively address human rights in Myanmar," Donna Guest, London-based Amnesty's Asia-Pacific deputy director, said in a statement.

The rights groups said the summit must in particular address the rights of refugees and migrants, in particular Myanmar's Rohingya boat people, whom the military of fellow ASEAN member Thailand is also accused of abusing.

Separately, the US ambassador to ASEAN, Scot Marciel, called on the region to push Myanmar's rulers for "political progress" using their contacts and access to the country.

ASEAN has not put the issue of the Rohingyas on its agenda for the summit, but the issue was discussed informally both on Thursday and Friday.

ASEAN leaders seek urgent action on $ 120-B Asian fund (http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20090228149191.html)

HUA HIN, Thailand, Feb 27, 2009 (AFP) – Southeast Asian foreign ministers called for a planned multi-billion-dollar emergency fund to be boosted as a "matter of urgency’’ to fight the global downturn, a top official said.

Asian finance ministers agreed last weekend to increase the size of the proposed fund from US$ 80 billion to US$ 120 billion but did not give a date for setting it up.

The foreign exchange pool functions as an emergency credit line for Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and will be created with assistance from China, Japan and South Korea.

‘’The foreign ministers agreed that this is a matter of urgency,’’ ASEAN secretary general Surin Pitsuwan told reporters after the ministers held an informal dinner late Thursday at the grouping’s annual summit in Thailand.

He said they agreed it should be completed ‘’most desirably’’ before the 10 ASEAN leaders meet with their Chinese, Japanese and South Korean counterparts in April.

Southeast Asian ministers opened a key summit focused on the global economic meltdown Friday at which they were expected to sign a major free trade deal with Australia and New Zealand.

Ministers will also discuss forming a long-awaited human rights body, but the annual meeting in the Thai beach resort of Hua Hin is set to be dominated by efforts to shield their export-driven economies from turmoil elsewhere.

With the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) suffering plummeting demand from its developed trading partners, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva called for cooperation to ride out the crisis.

‘’We must not resort to protectionist tendencies at trying times,’’ Abhisit said in a speech to business leaders. ‘’We must continue to believe in free and fair trade that shall remain the cornerstone of our ASEAN economic community.’’

The deal to set up a free trade area with Australia and New Zealand is the most comprehensive ever agreed by the bloc, which comprises nearly 600 million people.

ASEAN is starting to feel the effects of the global economic crisis, with its financial hub Singapore facing its worst recession since independence and others including Thailand sliding in the same direction.

Officials said the pact with the two Pacific countries was expected to be signed later Friday, nearly four years after talks on the deal first began.

It covers trade in goods and services, investment, financial services, telecoms, electronic commerce, intellectual property, competition policy and economic cooperation.

Australia is ASEAN’s sixth-biggest trading partner and New Zealand the ninth, while ASEAN collectively is Australia’s biggest overseas market.

The agreement is part of a raft of measures mooted by the organisation to ride out the crisis.

Leaders will sign a declaration on a roadmap for forming a European Union-style community by 2015 and discuss a 120-billion-dollar emergency fund agreed on by Asian finance ministers on Sunday.

ASEAN goal: To be like EU (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20090301-191647/ASEAN-goal-To-be-like-EU)

CHA-AM, Thailand—Southeast Asian Nations are to endorse an early warning system to defuse conflicts that could derail their goal of becoming a European Union-like community by 2015, according to a confidential document obtained yesterday by The Associated Press.

The blueprint for peace in the highly diverse region where conflicts still erupt was to be adopted today at the climax of the 14th summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma (Myanmar), the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The final draft of the ASEAN Political-Security Community Blueprint outlines a long “wish list,” ranging from fighting piracy, terrorism and cyber crime to promoting democracy and good governance.

“More efforts are needed in strengthening the existing modes of pacific settlement of disputes to avoid or settle future disputes,” says the document.

“It is envisaged that the will bring ASEAN’s political and security cooperation to a higher plane,” it says.

The blueprint calls for an early warning system “based on existing mechanisms to prevent occurrence/escalation of conflicts,” as well as intensified cooperation among the bloc’s military forces. But it does not spell out details.

The summit, hosted by current chair Thailand, is the first since ASEAN signed a landmark charter in December making it a legal entity and moving it a step closer to its goal of integration.

[B]Stumbling blocks

But officials of the 10-member bloc stress that numerous stumbling blocks remain on the road to true economic, political and security integration.

ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said there remained “a lot of challenges along the way; we won’t be able to complete the journey soon.”

“The European Union has been and remains our inspiration, not our model. Not yet, anyway,” Surin said.

He said that for the foreseeable future, economic integration was largely about dropping trade barriers, and that a common currency was probably “a long, long way off.”

Asean, which encompasses a region of more than 500 million people, includes among its members two communist regimes, two constitutional monarchies, a military dictatorship and fledgling democracies.

While Southeast Asia has not seen major conflicts since the Vietnam War era, tensions and confrontations persist.

Thailand and Cambodia narrowly avoided a shootout last year in an ongoing dispute over an ancient temple along their common border, and territorial claims remain unresolved in the resource-rich South China Sea. Bloody Muslim insurgencies plague southern Thailand and the southern Philippines.

Human rights

In another effort to move the region forward, ASEAN is finalizing a new human rights body to promote fundamental freedoms, although it will lack the power to punish violators such as military-ruled Burma.

A confidential draft document, which outlines the proposed powers of the future rights body, says ASEAN will “promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

But it falls short of key demands voiced by international human rights groups, which say the body will have limited effectiveness unless it can impose sanctions or expel countries that violate the rights of their own citizens.

The draft is the first to outline the body’s proposed powers; a final one is expected in July.

ASEAN traditionally shies away from criticizing its members, although some leaders said that issues of democratic reform in Burma and human rights abuses were being discussed on the sidelines of the meetings.

Plans for leaders to meet with delegates from civil society and nongovernmental organizations yesterday suffered a setback when Cambodia and Burma refused to recognize groups representing their countries.

Focus on economic meltdown

While human rights issues are getting some attention, leaders say the summit is focusing on the global economic meltdown and how the export-dependent region can best cope with the crisis.

Top officials have offered homilies against signs of creeping protectionism in world trade, even as they defend their own buy-local campaigns as not inconsistent with world trade rules. Asean signed a free trade agreement with Australia and New Zealand on Friday, a pact that could boost the combined gross domestic product of all 12 nations by more than $48 billion by 2020.

The free trade area covers 12 countries with a combined population of more than 600 million people and GDP of more than $2 trillion. Officials hope the agreement will come into play by yearend.

Despite frequent criticism of ASEAN's non-intervention policy and its lack of action on human rights, Secretary General Surin insisted that the grouping was committed to moving forward.

“A new ASEAN means an ASEAN living under the rules of law among ourselves,” Surin told reporters on Friday.

“We will be very much compliant to our commitments that we make along the way, in every form, document and every agreement.”

Asean, Armed With New Charter, Remains Far From EU Dream (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aHgEFYFhvQfg)

March 2 (Bloomberg) -- Southeast Asian governments want to speed the formation of a European Union-modeled economic grouping, as the global recession slows their export-driven economies. They may not be willing to make the hard choices required to achieve it.




Leaders from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (http://www.aseansec.org/), who met in Thailand Feb. 27 to March 1 for their annual summit, signed trade deals and agreements to form an integrated economic community, without a common currency, by 2015. Absent from the agenda were the deep concessions analysts say are necessary to boost growth in the region.
“Asean’s biggest problem is that individual members haven’t been willing to sacrifice for the common good,” said Michael Montesano (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Michael+Montesano&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1), a visiting research fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore. “Every European Union member has given up sovereignty to be part of a stronger union, and we haven’t seen that in Asean.”



Wide economic disparity among Asean members has hindered the region’s ability to leverage its market of 570 million people and compete for investments with China and India, the world’s fastest growing economies. Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Abhisit%0AVejjajiva&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1), who chaired the summit, called on the bloc to “accelerate” the formation of an “attractive single market.”



Common Standards ‘Difficult’




Southeast Asian leaders agree that closer regional integration would boost growth, Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Korn%0AChatikavanij&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1) said in an interview. Still, the large differences in wealth among Asean members “makes it difficult to create common standards because our national standards remain so far apart,” he said.



“We’ve got to be realistic in the kind of goals that we set for 2015,” Korn said. “We’re not talking about the level of integration that has taken place in the EU.”



The push for more integration comes at a time when the EU is straining under the pressures created by a similar disparity in the strength of its constituent economies.



Multinational companies have scaled back spending plans because of the global recession, leading to fiercer competition among governments looking to attract investment and create jobs. Singapore has cut corporate taxes for the second time in three years, Malaysia has pledged to liberalize its services sector and Cambodia extended tax breaks for garment makers.
Trade deals such as the one Asean signed with Australia and New Zealand Feb. 28 “won’t make a difference in the short term as long as the drop in global demand doesn’t stabilize,” said David Cohen (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=David+Cohen&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1), director of Asian economic forecasting at Action Economics. “There is no magic bullet.”



Foreign Direct Investment



Two years ago Asean saw foreign direct investment jump 18 percent to more than $60 billion, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Lee%0AHsien+Loong&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1) said Aug. 26. China attracted about $83 billion of foreign direct investment that year. The bloc includes Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.




Singapore, Asean’s richest country, said fixed-asset investments may fall as much as 44 percent this year to S$10 billion ($6.5 billion) as the island slides into recession. By contrast, China announced a 4 trillion yuan ($585 billion) stimulus plan to boost the economy, which the government expects to grow 8 percent in 2009.



The region’s four largest economies -- Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia -- account for almost 90 percent of all foreign investment into Asean. The purchasing power of the group’s four poorest countries was five times less than the other members in 2007, according to statistics on the bloc’s Web site.



No Enforcement Mechanism



Asean’s new charter, which came into force three months ago, has no mechanism to stop member countries from implementing protectionist policies. Earlier this month Indonesia ordered civil servants to use local products, and Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Abdullah+Ahmad+Badawi&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1) said it was “normal” for countries to resort to protectionist measures in a slowdown, according to local media reports.



For four decades, Asean made decisions mainly by consensus, refusing to interfere in the affairs of individual countries. Two years ago the bloc’s leaders signed a charter, the first legally binding document since the group’s founding in 1967.



Governments found to be in violation of its rules will be referred to Asean leaders to come up with a consensus on action. The group rejected proposals to add voting, expulsion or sanctions on its members.
Later this year, Asean plans to finalize a human rights body that cannot tackle country-specific issues. At the summit, Asean leaders sidestepped concerns about the treatment of Myanmar migrants who reportedly died after Thai authorities towed them out to sea, though said “the welfare and well being” of Palestinians in Gaza “was of paramount importance.”
‘Bite the Bullet’



Asean will never become similar to the EU because the political and institutional differences between the countries are too large, said Razeen Sally, a director of the European Centre for International Political Economy in Brussels. Individual countries must “bite the bullet” and make structural reforms on their own to benefit when the global economy recovers, he said.



“The problem with Asean is that they can only arrive at a very low common denominator,” Sally said. “It’s not going to be a strong collective body and we can’t expect it to come up with a strong collective response to global challenges.”

Asean vows to stand firm versus protectionism (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=444821&publicationSubCategoryId=63)
Updated March 02, 2009 12:00 AM


President Arroyo is greeted by Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and his wife Pimpen at the gala dinner for ASEAN heads of states and their spouses at the 14th ASEAN Summit in Cha-am, Thailand last Saturday.
CHA-AM, Thailand – Southeast Asian leaders vowed yesterday to stand firm against protectionism and knit the diverse region into a European Union-style community by 2015 despite the global economic crisis.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), in a statement released at the conclusion of its 14th annual summit, also called for “bold and urgent reform of the international financial system” that would take into account the needs of developing nations.

The summit delegates grappled with the region’s economic woes in the face of the global crisis but also aimed to highlight ASEAN’s championship of human rights. Instead, the issue suffered a setback when military-ruled Myanmar and Cambodia refused to talk to two pro-democracy activists.

The statement said the leaders “reaffirmed their commitment to implement measures adopted in the ASEAN Economic Blueprint,” which calls for economic and some political and security integration by 2015, adding that the scope for regional cooperation must be expanded.

ASEAN’s goal of forming a single market mainly involves lifting trade barriers but not, at this point, adopting a common currency.

“They agreed to stand firm against protectionism and to refrain from introducing and raising new barriers,” the statement said.

Trade Secretary Peter Favila told The Associated Press there was reluctance to push ahead with the goal to drop all trade barriers by 2015.

“Some ministers during unofficial discussions on the sidelines were saying that in the light of the global meltdown of course the local industries were affected,” he said.

“But those are just sentiments. You know everybody has to follow the leaders’ instructions: Do it by 2015.”

Summit delegates also worked on the formation of a human rights body, but critics noted that the body, expected to begin functioning later this year, would lack power to punish violators such as Myanmar with expulsion or sanctions.

ASEAN has followed a policy of so-called “engagement” with Myanmar and noninterference in its internal affairs.

Saturday’s incident - when leaders from Cambodia and Myanmar threatened to walk out rather than meet pro-democracy activists invited to the talks - proved a ready-made example of ASEAN’s impotence in regulating human rights.

Calling it “unfortunate,” US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Scot Marciel noted that nobody has yet come forth with a strategy to reform Myanmar’s entrenched military regime.

“The sanctions based approach hasn’t worked, the ASEAN engagement approach hasn’t worked,” Marciel said, reiterating recent comments by Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state.

“The fact is there isn’t any obvious way ahead.”

“The military regime of Burma is the one who has been sabotaging ASEAN ever since they joined ASEAN in 1997,” said Debbie Stothard with the human rights group ALTSEAN-Burma.

The summit is the first since the group signed a landmark charter in December, making ASEAN a legal entity and moving it a step closer to its goal of integration.

The charter also calls for adherence to basic freedoms and human rights.

“For Myanmar, we continue to hope that because of the ASEAN charter and the forthcoming ASEAN human rights body that among other things they immediately release Aung San Suu Kyi,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo said, referring to Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader who has been in detention for most of the last 19 years.

ASEAN’s 10 members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

ASEAN, which encompasses a region of more than 500 million people, includes two communist regimes, two constitutional monarchies, a military dictatorship and fledgling democracies.

Coordinated action

Leaders called for “coordinated action” and reforms in the international financial system to allow the region to confront the global economic crisis,

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde, who accompanied President Arroyo to the summit, said.

ASEAN leaders also took more steps towards the full integration of the region.

“I think the global economic crisis has hastened efforts for integration. If there have been reservations in the past of becoming one economic community, this (crisis) became an opportunity to speed up the integration,” Remonde said.

He said the summit also put in place new initiatives, some of which were originally pushed by Mrs. Arroyo, who arrived in Manila yesterday afternoon.

Among the notable proposals the President presented at the summit, Remonde said, were the creation of a $120 billion equity fund, which ASEAN member-countries could tap into to address liquidity problems they may experience due to the global crisis.

Her other proposals were to expand Philippine fishing grounds and the implementation of a roll-on, roll-off (Ro-Ro) nautical highway type of transport system in ASEAN sub-group of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines East Asia Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), he said.

Remonde said the BIMP-EAGA adoption of the President’s proposals was “a significant breakthrough in the sub-region’s vision to adopt a common Asean economic community.”

The creation of a fishing consortium will, in effect, lead to the expansion of the Philippines fishing grounds within the BIMP-EAGA region, he said.

He said it would greatly boost the Philippine fishing sector, particularly the tuna industry, and lead to a sharp increase in income for Filipino fishermen since they would be allowed to fish way beyond the Philippine territorial boundaries.

On the other hand, the adoption by the BIMP-EAGA countries of the Roll-On, Roll-Off Nautical Highway will enable them to further enhance the seamless flow of goods and services within their respective territories.

“In the Philippines, the Ro-Ro system is part of the Strong Republic Nautical Highway (SRNH)—an efficient mix of roads and seaports that the various business sectors utilize to transport their goods and services at much lesser cost than air transport,” a Palace statement on the ASEAN summit said.

Another welcome development, he said, was the formation of the ASEAN Retail Chain which will showcase the cultural products of member nations as produced by their respective micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

The retail chain, he said, hopes “to provide a venue to display ASEAN products and be a cultural center for Asean.”

It is “also meant to facilitate (the trade) of ASEAN products” as the region’s “response to the current economic crisis.”

Favila: Asean economic ministers laud RP programs vs recession
02/28/2009 | 10:42 PM

MANILA, Philippines – Economic ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) lauded the Philippines for its programs minimizing the effect of the global economic crisis, Trade Secretary Peter Favila said Saturday.

A Malacañang statement quoted Favila, who is in Hua Hin in Thailand for the 14th Asean Summit, made the claim following the economic ministers' meeting at the Dusit Hotel there.

"My colleagues [in Asean] appreciate these programs we are currently undertaking such as the stimulus package and [increasing infrastructure] spending," Favila said.

He added that the ministers expressed hope that the major markets of Asean, as well as those of the United States, Europe, and Japan, would recover soon from the global financial crisis.

Favila said he also took time during the ministers' meeting to showcase the other programs of President Arroyo to address the economic slowdown.

These include strengthening micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and creating emergency employment and livelihood for Filipinos, particularly overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

He also mentioned a recommendation of Asean Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan who called for Asean member economies to focus more on "intra-ASEAN movements of goods" especially with Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam.

Also, he agreed with Pitsuwan's recommendation because of the economic favorability of the said countries.

"The Philippines should do business with ASEAN members such as Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam until the consumption pattern of the country's major trading partners will turn for the better," he said.

Meanwhile, Asean finance ministers signed a free trade agreement with Australia and New Zealand to increase the ASEAN member countries' respective gross domestic products by $48 billion over the next 20 years.

Favila, who represented the Philippines in the finance ministers meeting Friday morning, said Asean leaders, realizing the importance of this FTA, have directed their respective economic ministers to have the particulars of the accord completed and signed during this year's summit.

"The FTA is a comprehensive single undertaking which covers services, goods, investments,and economic cooperation [between Asean, Australia, and New Zealand]," Favila said.

Favila pointed out that the FTA would benefit its signatories.

"This is evident in the increases in trade volumes and in certifications in processes and procedures like custom procedures," he said.

Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean hailed the signing of the agreement as one of the largest trade arrangements that would help the region overcome and surpass the economic crunch sweeping the world.

"This is an extremely strong signal to the rest of the world that the Asian region remains committed to pursuing economic growth, exports and jobs to help drive the economic recovery," Crean said.

Crean said that based recent studies in Canberra prove that the agreement would add some $48 billion to the gross domestic product of each ASEAN member-countries, Australia, and New Zealand over the next 20 years.

New Zealand Trade Minister Tom Groser, meanwhile, said trade figures could double with the implementation of the free trade pact.

"Putting together the 12 economies with existing gross domestic product of $1.2 trillion, the FTA with Asean is very significant in terms of political and commercial development," Groser said. - GMANews.TV

SE Asian leaders against protectionism (http://http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20090302-191906/SE-Asian-leaders-against-protectionism)
Agence France-Presse
First Posted 14:39:00 03/02/2009

BANGKOK, Thailand - Southeast Asian leaders have taken a firm stand against protectionism despite divisions in the region on how to tackle the global financial meltdown, a top official said Monday.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), holding their annual summit in Thailand on Sunday, issued a statement vowing to shun protectionist policies as the crisis hits the bloc's export-driven economies.

But there were apparent differences between some of the heads of government over the issue of buying local, with Malaysia's premier suggesting it was "normal" to do so during a recession.

"This is the first time in ASEAN's history that they have tried to adopt a common front on this particular subject," said the bloc's secretary general Surin Pitsuwan, referring to the leaders' statement.

"We must put up a united and brave front and that is what they did," he told a post-summit briefing in Bangkok.

The statement by the leaders of the 10-nation grouping also called for "bold and urgent reform" of the international financial system and said that they had agreed on coordinated action to fight the global downturn.

ASEAN has started to feel the effects of the crunch as demand for its exports plummets. Singapore is already in recession and Thailand's economy shrank in the last quarter of 2008.

Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who holds the bloc's rotating chairmanship, and his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong urged against protectionism at the summit in the Thai beach resort of Hua Hin.

But Malaysian premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi broke ranks, saying in an interview with a local newspaper that it was a "normal reaction" to urge people to buy local goods during times of crisis.

Some countries in the region have also started to lay off foreign workers.

Surin however said the statement showed that ASEAN had learned the lessons from the Great Depression in the 1930s when "governments adopted protectionist measures and the world suffered."

"This time we know better and we hope we can face the challenges together without resorting to protectionism," he said.

The ASEAN statement came on the same day as EU leaders meeting in Brussels rejected protectionism as a response to the economic crisis.

ADB pushes Southeast Asia cooperation By EDU LOPEZ (http://http://www.mb.com.ph/node/197461)
March 02, 2009

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has stressed that strong subregional cooperation is crucial to helping Southeast Asia withstand the challenges of the current global economic downturn.

ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda told regional leaders at the 4th Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) Summit, as well as at the 5th Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) Summit that "regional cooperation becomes even more important as we seek to pursue joint approaches and pool our resources to cope with difficulties that we all face."

ADB will this year conduct further work to help develop three connectivity corridors in that subregion. It will also kick off studies to facilitate trade, improve logistics and streamline customs with a view to enhancing subregional trade and accelerating growth in the participating provinces and states.

The bank expects to unveil a plan later this year to involve other development partners and private investors in IMT-GT, a reflection of ADB’s confidence in the region’s potential.

BIMP-EAGA has made progress toward improving transport links, facilitating trade and developing economic corridors. Looking forward, the region could become a major player in the regional and global food market.

"To increase productivity in the agriculture sector, increased investment is needed in infrastructure development, technology upgrading, and marketing support," Kuroda told the BIMP-EAGA Summit.

"Policies on trade in agriculture products also need to be reformed to eliminate non-tariff trade barriers. ADB will continue its technical and lending assistance to foster development in those areas, he added.

Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand launched the IMT-GT program in 1993 while the BIMP-EAGA program was launched in 1994. The initiatives seek to expand opportunities for trade and investment in the two subregions to support sustainable economic growth. ADB is a development partner-advisor to the two cooperation initiatives.

Southeast Asian telecom market resilient (http://http://www.mb.com.ph/node/197462)
March 02, 2009


Despite the global economic slowdown, IDC predicts that the telecom market in Southeast Asia (SEA), would remain resilient in 2009.

While market players and end- users will exercise extra caution in their spending on telecom products and services, certain technology areas will sustain momentum and pockets of opportunities will emerge from the crisis.

"The global economy heavily influences IDC’s predictions for 2009 of the Southeast Asia telecom markets. The global downturn will impact many telecoms sectors. Nonetheless, IDC sees bright spots in the Southeast Asia telecom market that will yield great opportunities for both market players and end users in 2009", says Karen Rondon, Research Manager, Communications Research, IDC.

IDC projects the combined telecom services market of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, to reach US$35.7 billion in 2009, which is 10% higher than its 2008 performance.

Telecom services encompass mobile services, Internet access services (IAS), corporate data services and fixed telephony. Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand are expected to show modest growth at a 4% to 6% range.

Vietnam and Indonesia, each expecting double-digit expansion rates, will be the higher growth markets as they are at the early stages of the technology adoption curve and currently addressing the digital divide in their markets.

IDC says the global economic slowdown will affect the SEA telecom sector, but to a lesser extent than the IT markets. It anticipates that telecom market players in this region will be reassessing their strategies and reconsidering CAPEX plans, marketing strategies and product focus.

Incumbents with healthy balance sheets will be able to focus CAPEX on enhancing core and backhaul networks and be farther ahead of their competitors once the economy recovers.

Consumers or enterprise tier two operators, on the other hand will have to focus on investments that will see faster returns. Meanwhile, the economic situation will present opportunities for operators with facilities and funds available to begin diversifying into higher value consumer and business services.

IDC expects renewed interest among SEA telecom incumbents in the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) segment that will bring forth the second wave of SME-centric marketing and product development initiatives by these players.

The financial crisis will dampen any prospects of growth within the large corporations in 2009 and possibly in 2010 as well. Any recovery that happens is always through the SME sector first. Hence, 2009 will be a good time for incumbents to invest in marketing of products and services targeted to the SME segment.

With the tightening of budgets, IDC expects end users will seek alternative telecoms devices and services in 2009. The selection of what is affordable and beneficial may range from choosing the better service option, to picking out the more practical telecom products and services. Broadband and mobile subscribers will find affordable ways to stay connected.

IFJ welcomes press freedom commitment, new Asean body (http://http://www.gmanews.tv/story/151107/IFJ-welcomes-press-freedom-commitment-new-Asean-body)
03/03/2009 | 10:17 AM

MANILA, Philippines - An international media watchdog group welcomed Tuesday the formation of the Legislative Caucus on Rights and Free Expression, a new regional body of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to promote press freedom.

The International Federation of Journalists noted the formation of the Caucus was announced at the 14th Asean summit in Thailand last February 28.

"The IFJ encourages the Legislative Caucus on Rights and Free Expression to take an active role in opening stronger lines of dialogue between Southeast Asian governments and the international human rights and press freedom communities," IFJ Asia-Pacific Director Jacqueline Park said.

"In 2008, nine journalists in the Philippines, four in Thailand and one in Cambodia were killed while conducting their professional work. In 2009, the Philippines has already seen the murder of a radio journalist and the attempted murder of another," IFJ added.

IFJ added press freedom and the safety of journalists in Southeast Asia is a significant concern for it.

Members of the Caucus include Cambodian MP Yim Sovann, Indonesian MP Djoko Susilo, Senator Francis Pangilinan and Rep. Teodoro Casino of the Philippines, and Thailand MPs Buranaj Smutharaks and Kraisak Choonhasan.

"We believe that the dream of a true Asean Community and the formation of an Asean Human Rights Body must recognize free expression, press freedom, and people’s access to information as essential to human rights," the Caucus said in a statement issued on February 28.

Aside from the situation in the Philippines, IFJ noted journalists in Indonesia continue to face threats of imprisonment under archaic criminal defamation laws.

It noted a high-profile media advocate and leader of the Coalition of Journalists Against Criminalization of the Press, Upi Asmaranda, is currently on trial for allegedly "provoking journalists to resist the head of the South Sulawesi Regional Police Office."

"The Caucus’s acknowledgement of the UN Declaration of Human Rights as minimum standards for human rights across all countries in Southeast Asia is a positive step," IFJ said.

"The IFJ looks forward to observing implementation of these standards in Asean countries, including standards applying to freedom of expression and the rights of journalists to conduct their work without fear of harm or restriction," it added.

IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries worldwide. - GMANews.TV

RP military invited to multilateral exercise in Thailand (http://http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=445181&publicationSubCategoryId=200)
Updated March 03, 2009 02:30 PM


MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) -- The visiting chief of the defense forces of Thailand today asked the Philippine military to join Thai forces and troops from four other countries, including the United States, in a multilateral military exercise held in Thailand.

Gen. Songgitti Jaggabatara, chief of the defense forces of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, said they were looking forward to the actual participation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the training, where the Philippine military is a mere observer.

"We have a multi-nation exercise between Thailand, United States, Indonesia, Singapore, and Japan and the Philippine Armed Force still is observer. After this, maybe the Philippine Armed Force will take part to join the exercise," said Jaggabatara.

Philippine forces are holding military exercises in its territory with various countries, including the United States under a bilateral Visiting Forces Agreement.

Jaggabatara said that during his talks with his Filipino counterpart, Gen. Alexander Yano, they agreed to "enhance the cooperation between the Philippine Armed Force and the Royal Thail Armed Force in the future."

ASEAN charter not pro-women, pro-kids (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090304-192280/ASEAN-charter-not-pro-women-pro-kids)
By Veronica Uy

Seeks bigger role in drafting terms of reference

MANILA, Philippines -- The charter that binds the 10 member-states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is not pro-women, pro-children, or pro-poor, various women’s groups in the region said Wednesday.

The Women’s Caucus for the ASEAN Human Rights Body (AHRB), which participated in various for a before and during the ASEAN Summit in Bangkok last week, noted that “the ASEAN charter does not specifically address human rights of women, children and other marginalized communities.”

In a statement, the Women’s Caucus, which counts many of the region’s civil-society activists, urged that these marginalized women, indigenous peoples, children, migrant workers peasants, among others, be represented in the AHRB.

“The Women’s Caucus calls for an independent, autonomous, and transparent mechanism within the AHRB whose experts will have equal representation between women and men representing different areas…and whose nominations will include those from civil society organizations,” the statement said.

The group also noted that the draft terms of reference (TOR) for the AHRB does not specify women’s participation in the body, nor ensures human rights, particularly of women.

“It is clear that the basic principle of gender equality, provisions to ensure gender parity in the members of the AHRB, and women in decision-making positions of the Secretariat, which will support the work of the said body, are not expressly addressed in the TOR,” the statement said.

The Women’s Caucus recommended that the draft TOR be disseminated so interested parties can propose inputs to the document that will shape the operations of the AHRB.

It said the AHRB and its TOR must comply with the region’s international legal obligations, specifically international human rights treaties, to which the Philippines is a state party.

“We urge that the principles of substantive equality and non-discrimination as established in international human rights laws, especially through the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), are adopted and enshrined in the TOR,” the statement said.

All 10 ASEAN member-states are party to CEDAW.

“We call on the Philippine government to maintain a position in the remaining stages of finalizing the terms of reference that will not defeat the object and purpose of the treaties we have ratified and to comply in good faith with our treaty obligations as we are bound under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties,” the statement said.

The Women’s Caucus said the body must not be a consultative body but must be able to investigate human rights violations, protect victims, and effectively address such complaints.

“The principle of non-interference between ASEAN member-states must be stricken off as it is a tool that will be used by state actors to perpetuate human rights violations with impunity,” it said.

“We call for a body that works toward the full realization of all

human rights and fundamental freedoms of ASEAN peoples,” it said.

Southeast Asian telecom market resilient (http://www.mb.com.ph/node/197462)

Despite the global economic slowdown, IDC predicts that the telecom market in Southeast Asia (SEA), would remain resilient in 2009.

While market players and end- users will exercise extra caution in their spending on telecom products and services, certain technology areas will sustain momentum and pockets of opportunities will emerge from the crisis.

"The global economy heavily influences IDC’s predictions for 2009 of the Southeast Asia telecom markets. The global downturn will impact many telecoms sectors. Nonetheless, IDC sees bright spots in the Southeast Asia telecom market that will yield great opportunities for both market players and end users in 2009", says Karen Rondon, Research Manager, Communications Research, IDC.

IDC projects the combined telecom services market of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, to reach US$35.7 billion in 2009, which is 10% higher than its 2008 performance.

Telecom services encompass mobile services, Internet access services (IAS), corporate data services and fixed telephony. Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand are expected to show modest growth at a 4% to 6% range.

Vietnam and Indonesia, each expecting double-digit expansion rates, will be the higher growth markets as they are at the early stages of the technology adoption curve and currently addressing the digital divide in their markets.

IDC says the global economic slowdown will affect the SEA telecom sector, but to a lesser extent than the IT markets. It anticipates that telecom market players in this region will be reassessing their strategies and reconsidering CAPEX plans, marketing strategies and product focus.

Incumbents with healthy balance sheets will be able to focus CAPEX on enhancing core and backhaul networks and be farther ahead of their competitors once the economy recovers.

Consumers or enterprise tier two operators, on the other hand will have to focus on investments that will see faster returns. Meanwhile, the economic situation will present opportunities for operators with facilities and funds available to begin diversifying into higher value consumer and business services.

IDC expects renewed interest among SEA telecom incumbents in the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) segment that will bring forth the second wave of SME-centric marketing and product development initiatives by these players.

The financial crisis will dampen any prospects of growth within the large corporations in 2009 and possibly in 2010 as well. Any recovery that happens is always through the SME sector first. Hence, 2009 will be a good time for incumbents to invest in marketing of products and services targeted to the SME segment.

With the tightening of budgets, IDC expects end users will seek alternative telecoms devices and services in 2009. The selection of what is affordable and beneficial may range from choosing the better service option, to picking out the more practical telecom products and services. Broadband and mobile subscribers will find affordable ways to stay connected.

ASEAN economic ministers sign FTA with Australia and New Zealand (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090305.htm&no=15&r=&y=&mo=)

Manila -- Economic ministers of the 10-member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) signed a free trade agreement (FTA) with Australia and New Zealand to increase the ASEAN member countries' respective gross domestic products by $48-billion over the next 20 years.

Trade Secretary Peter Favila, who represented the Philippines in the economic ministers meeting held here Friday morning said, earlier ASEAN leaders, realizing the importance of this FTA, have directed their respective economic ministers to have the particulars of the accord "completed, concluded and signed" during this year's ASEAN Summit.

"The FTA is a comprehensive single undertaking which covers services, goods, investments and economic cooperation (between ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand)," Favila said during an interview at the Dusit Hotel here.

"This (FTA) aims to liberalize and, progressively at that, strengthen trading rules among the parties with substantial sectoral coverage and likewise establish a cooperative framework for strengthening, diversifying and enhancing our trade investments and economic links among ASEAN members, Australia and New Zealand," he added.

Favila pointed out that the FTA would benefit all parties who are signatories to the accord.

"This is evident in the increases in trade volumes and in certifications in processes and procedures like custom procedures," Favila said.

For his part, Australian Trade Minister Simon Crean hailed the signing of the agreement as one of the largest trade arrangements that would help the region overcome and surpass the economic crunch sweeping the world.

"This is an extremely strong signal to the rest of the world that the Asian region remains committed to pursuing economic growth, exports and jobs to help drive the economic recovery," Crean said.

Crean said that based on recent studies in Canberra, the agreement would add some $48-billion to the gross domestic product of each ASEAN member-country, Australia and New Zealand over the next 20 years.

New Zealand Trade Minister Tom Groser, meanwhile, said trade figures could double with the implementation of the free trade pact.

"Putting together the 12 economies with existing gross domestic product of $1.2-trillion, the FTA with ASEAN is very significant in terms of political and commercial development," Groser said.

can we integrate like the European union?

^^
that will be
difficult to achieve
but i think that's
the plan

Brunei, Indonesia beat the Philippines in tourism ranking (http://http://www.gmanews.tv/story/151368/Philippines-slips-five-notches-in-global-tourism-survey/_/2/)

Besides Singapore, other Philippine peers in the Southeast Asian region fared better in the ranking with Malaysia, 32nd; Thailand, 39th; Brunei, 69th; and Indonesia, 81st. Vietnam was ranked 89th.

“Our study aims to measure the factors that make it attractive to develop the travel and tourism industry of individual countries. The top rankings of Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France and Canada demonstrate the importance of supportive business and regulatory frameworks, coupled with world-class transport and tourism infrastructure, and a focus on nurturing human and natural resources for fostering an environment that is attractive for developing the travel and tourism sector," said Jennifer Blanke, Senior Economist of the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Network.

The rankings are based on the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI).

The TTCI uses a combination of data from publicly available sources, international travel and tourism institutions and experts, as well as the results of the Executive Opinion Survey, a comprehensive annual survey conducted by the WEF, together with its network of partner institutes such as research institutes and business organizations in the countries covered by the report.

“To thrive, or even survive, in this period of uncertainty and change, both the travel and tourism industry, and destinations themselves will need to approach the challenges in a holistic and systemic manner. This would allow innovative ideas to emerge, new directions to be taken, new alliances to be forged and profits to be reaped," said Thea Chiesa, Head of Aviation, Travel and Tourism at the WEF. - GMANews.TV

naku sad news to kailangan na gumusing ng DOT at PTA...Mr Durano and Barbers pano na yan?

^^ Wala na si Barbers sa PTA. Pinalitan na siya ni Mark Lapid.

Mercado named envoy to Asean (http://http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=news7_mar12_2009)


PRESIDENT Arroyo has appointed former Senator Orlando Mercado as the Philippines’ permanent representative to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and nine months after the Commission on Appointments sat on his nomination as ambassador to China.

Mrs. Arroyo swore him in at the Palace yesterday after withdrawing his earlier appointment as top envoy to Beijing.

Mercado’s appointment no longer required the commission’s approval because he was not being assigned to a country but to an international organization, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said.

“His case is similar to those of Ambassadors [Hilario] Davide and [Manuel] Teehankee, who were appointed permanent representatives to the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, respectively,” Ermita said.

Mercado’s appointment makes the Philippines the fifth Asean member-state to assign a permanent representative to the regional grouping, after Vietnam, Laos and Singapore.

Mercado had previously served as president and chief executive of the state-run television network RPN-9.

He also served as senator for two terms before being appointed by former President Joseph Estrada as his defense secretary in 1999. He ran for a third term at the Senate in 2004 but lost.

Ermita said the President had nominated former Office of External Affairs executive director Antonio Albano to replace Mercado as president of RPN-9. Joyce Pangco Pañares

Asean free trade talks with EU stalled

Bangkokpost Published: 14/03/2009 at 12:00 AM


Free trade talks between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and the European Union have stalled due to the gap between the economies of some of Asean's 10 members and the EU's requirements. Chutima Bunyapraphasara, director-general of the Trade Negotiations Department, said trade talks with the EU under the Asean framework were now paused temporarily following the seventh round of talks on March 4-5 in Kuala Lumpur.

Asean and the EU agreed to launch free trade talks in May 2007, but little progress has been made.

Ms Chutima said Europe wanted to negotiate with individual Asean members, while Asean prefers a regional agreement, rather than bilateral pacts with member countries. Any change to this policy would require the approval of regional ministers, she said.

Philippe Meyer, the director-general for trade at the European Commission, earlier said in Bangkok that Europe was willing to move forward with bilateral talks with Thailand and other Asean countries while still maintaining the broader framework of regional trade talks.

Besides Thailand, the EU is interested in talks with Asean members including Singapore, Brunei and Vietnam.

Mr Meyer said conflicting interests among Asean and the spread in development in international trade in the region were the constraints in negotiating a region-to-region agreement.

EU trade commissioner Catherine Ashton has been invited to discuss free trade disputes between the two blocs at the Asean Economic Ministers' Retreat May 4-6 in Siem Reap, Cambodia.