ASEAN needs a new objective<\/p>\n
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional
\nForum held its sixth meeting in Singapore last week. Political
\nanalyst Jusuf Wanandi takes this opportunity to gauge the
\nrelevance of the organization's policies.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): It is normal for institutions to have their ups
\nand downs. ASEAN is no exception. This also has happened several
\ntimes before to the European Union (EU). In the 1970s, for
\ninstance, there was a deep sense of malaise among EU members,
\nknown as the Eurosclerosis.<\/p>\n
It was a period characterized by drift and even despair among
\nits members. However, this was overcome because there were
\nleaders, such as Jacques Delors, who were able to instill new and
\ngreat ideas for the European enterprise. There was the move
\ntoward a single market, followed by the creation of a union with
\na single currency, the euro, as its showpiece.<\/p>\n
ASEAN too needs such visions in order to overcome the crisis
\nit is now in. It needs to muster the political will to get away
\nfrom the traditional, step by step, incremental and pragmatic
\napproach. Perhaps this time ASEAN has to be ready to leapfrog,
\nbecause only by doing so can it develop the vision and the
\npolitical will to bring it into a higher degree of cooperation
\namong members and head toward regional integration.<\/p>\n
Until today ASEAN operates primarily on state-to-state
\ncooperation. This will no longer be sufficient in the future
\nbecause the challenges it is facing are huge and fundamental.
\nThose challenges can only be met by ASEAN if it becomes a
\nstronger entity with much more than just state-to-state
\ncooperation. It needs to make becoming an integrated entity its
\nlong-term objective. The group should begin to plan how this new
\nobjective will be achieved now.<\/p>\n
The economic crisis has brought about new challenges that are
\nfundamental to all the member countries, the region and the world
\nas a whole. This is a watershed era. If ASEAN cannot rise up to
\njointly face those new challenges it will become irrelevant to
\nthe member countries and their peoples that the association has
\npromised to serve.<\/p>\n
This does not mean that ASEAN will have to produce a big bang.
\nIt will not be easy for ASEAN to do so at this juncture. Even
\ntoday, there are strong tendencies for its members to go it alone
\nin resolving problems, despite the rhetoric to the contrary.
\nEfforts to revitalize ASEAN have thus far been mediocre at best.<\/p>\n
The main problem is that state-to-state cooperation is no
\nlonger adequate to respond to the challenges faced by ASEAN and
\nthe Asia-Pacific region. The challenge of globalization has to be
\nanswered with a determination to integrate more fully among
\nmembers, in the nature of the EU's response.<\/p>\n
This means that ASEAN needs a new objective, new principles to
\nbe based upon, more rules and institutions, and greater
\ncommitment from its members. Only then can it cope with the
\nproblems of foreign exchange instability, more open and freer
\ntrade relations, increased competition from other regions in the
\nworld, prevention of the emergence of a two-tier membership, the
\ngreater impact from instabilities in Northeast Asia, as well as
\nrivalries and tensions between the great powers in East Asia. In
\nshort, this is necessary to be able to further open their
\neconomies and even their societies to global forces and to play a
\nsignificant role in the greater Asia-Pacific region.<\/p>\n
It could be that this year is not the right time to expect a
\ndrastic change, because the region is still trying to cope with
\nand overcome the economic crisis, despite the euphoria in the
\npast two months about a recovery, which is not yet real.<\/p>\n
However, if Indonesia begins to recover in the next one to two
\nyears, and becomes active again in working within ASEAN, its
\ndemocratic impulses might invigorate the debate on the future of
\nASEAN.<\/p>\n
The new thinking about ASEAN, as has been aired by Thailand's
\nable and far-sighted foreign relations team, might get the full
\nsupport of Indonesia's future leadership. ASEAN's civil society
\nis another source of inspiration for change and it is going to be
\nan important source to reckon with. It seems that civil society
\nis already a few steps ahead of ASEAN officialdom.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asean-needs-a-new-objective-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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