ANN Asiapoll: The Unity Within<\/p>\n
Shefali Rekhi, The Straits Times\/Asia News Network, Singapore<\/p>\n
A region-wide poll has found that ASEAN's citizens and residents
\nbelieve they share a common identity and want the pace of
\nintegration speeded up.<\/p>\n
Six in 10 of those polled said that people in ASEAN identified
\nwith one another.<\/p>\n
Just over half said they could speak the language of another
\nASEAN country.<\/p>\n
Close to half -- or 44 percent -- said they have been
\ntraveling within the region, and about an equal number said they
\nexpect to do so within the next six months.<\/p>\n
Five in 10 said they would be willing to invest in an another
\ncountry, while six out of 10 (excluding Singapore) said they
\nwould encourage their children to go to school in an ASEAN
\nneighbor.<\/p>\n
Asked if ASEAN should have a common currency, nearly half --
\n45 percent -- backed the idea, despite the wide economic
\ndisparities among ASEAN members. About 38 percent rejected the
\nidea, while the rest were undecided.<\/p>\n
One thing on which there was general agreement: integration is
\nmoving too slowly. Nearly half of those polled thought so, with a
\nthird saying the pace was just right. Just 2.6 per cent felt
\nthings were moving too fast.<\/p>\n
\"The results are an eye-opener,\" ASEAN's former secretary-
\ngeneral Rodolfo Severino told The Straits Times.<\/p>\n
\"The people are clearly ahead of the government. While leaders
\nand officials are still debating the ASEAN identity issue, people
\nto people links have grown strong over the years.<\/p>\n
\"We need to look at the findings closely. There is much you
\ncan do when there is this kind of consciousness about the
\nregion.\"<\/p>\n
The findings point to a willingness on the part of the people
\nto accept a closer integration of their economies and societies,
\nwhich some of ASEAN's leaders have been calling for.<\/p>\n
The rise of China and India has given greater impetus to do
\nso, as ASEAN will need to \"reposition\" itself to play a role in a
\nchanging world, argued Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo in
\nSeptember.<\/p>\n
Closer integration would enable the region to face the
\nchallenges ahead, he said.<\/p>\n
ASEAN co-operation is also a theme that is likely to feature
\nin talks among leaders, officials and commentators meet for the
\ninaugural East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur beginning next week.<\/p>\n
Ironically, the survey found Singaporeans to be the laggards
\nwhen it comes to willingness to integrate.<\/p>\n
Ever the pragmatists, Singaporeans were generally more
\nskeptical about ASEAN integration than their counterparts in the
\nregion.<\/p>\n
Six in 10 Singaporeans -- the highest of all members -- felt
\nthat ASEAN countries did not identify with each other. Seven in
\n10 Singaporeans were against the idea of a common currency for
\nASEAN members.<\/p>\n
Only 21 percent were willing to invest in another ASEAN
\ncountry.<\/p>\n
\"The difference in results is not very surprising,\" said Dr
\nLeo Suryadinata, a senior research fellow at the Institute of
\nSoutheast Asian Studies.<\/p>\n
\"The Republic is a very urban city-state, most-developed and
\nahead of everybody in the region. So you can expect the views of
\npeople here to be different.\"<\/p>\n
The Straits Times initiated Asiapoll was conducted together
\nwith five members of the Asia News Network (ANN), a grouping of
\nAsia's 14 leading newspapers.<\/p>\n
The Straits Times is a founding member of the ANN. Malaysia's
\nleading daily The Star, Thailand's The Nation, The Jakarta Post
\nfrom Indonesia, Philippine Daily Inquirer and Vietnam News
\nparticipated.<\/p>\n
Newspapers polled over a thousand English speaking, urban
\nrespondents in one-to-one interviews, via email and over the
\nphone.<\/p>\n
The survey was also posted on ANN member websites and
\nresponses from ASEAN citizens and residents was accepted.<\/p>\n
The poll was commissioned in October amid debate on regional
\nintegration.<\/p>\n
Poll results also pointed to areas where there was room for
\ngreater co-operation across the region.<\/p>\n
While 48 percent said they would be willing to invest in
\nanother ASEAN country, just 11 percent said they had actually
\ndone so.<\/p>\n
Property and shares were the two preferred areas of
\ninvestments among ASEAN neighbors.<\/p>\n
When asked where they would chose to live or work if they
\ncould do so abroad, most of those polled cited Europe as their
\ntop choice, followed by another ASEAN country, or the U.S.<\/p>\n
Among ASEAN countries, Thailand was the top destination for a
\nvisit, followed by Singapore.<\/p>\n
Summing up the findings, said Dr Leo Suryadinata, senior
\nresearch fellow at ISEAS said: \"It is time people in ASEAN
\nrealized that there will be economic benefits as well as
\npolitical and security ones, if the region is integrated.\"<\/p>\n
\"It will be more stable and allow ASEAN to compete with
\nanother region. On its own, it will be difficult for the region
\nto face globalization.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ann-asiapoll-the-unity-within-1447899208",
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