Southeast Asian foreign ministers began a meeting on Monday that will focus on how to deal with military-ruled Myanmar, whose dismal human rights record is diverting attention from the bloc’s efforts at economic integration.
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo inaugurated the annual ministerial meeting of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) but did not specifically mention Myanmar or human rights, an issue that has divided the group.
“An ASEAN community is going to be anchored first and foremost on economic integration, with a focus on social justice and raising the standard of living in the region,’’ she said. “It is about creating a dynamic force in Asia to maximise the benefit of globalisation.’’
ASEAN’s goal is to achieve economic integration among its 10 members by 2015 but the task looks difficult with nations at differing stages of development. Singapore for example is one of the richest nations in Asia while Laos is among the poorest.
The bloc is also under a cloud over Myanmar and its military regime. The European Union, which ASEAN hopes to emulate, and the United States have criticised the Asian group for failing to bring enough pressure on Myanmar to restore democracy and free Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. That, however, may be changing. At an informal dinner on Sunday, many of the ASEAN ministers sharply criticised Myanmar.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo said the host nation was joined by several other countries in calling for the restoration of democracy in the former Burma.
Impatience
“We urged Myanmar in the spirit of ASEAN that they should accelerate the process of the roadmap to democracy,” Rumolo said.
It was a major departure from tradition for ASEAN, which usually avoids commenting on the internal affairs of member states.