ASEAN's quest for an identity gains urgency<\/p>\n
Shefali Rekhi, The Straits Times, Singapore<\/p>\n
Poll highlights need for closer ties but leaves open ways and
\nmeans of achieving integration<\/p>\n
The Straits Times AsiaPoll signals a yearning for a stronger
\nASEAN identity but also highlights just how much needs to be done
\nto achieve it.<\/p>\n
This was the view of analysts and ASEAN watchers who studied
\nits findings.<\/p>\n
Mr K. Kesavapany, director of the Institute of Southeast Asian
\nStudies in Singapore, a long-time follower of ASEAN's
\ndevelopment, summed it up this way: \"Thirty-eight years have gone
\nby, but we have not crossed the bridge.\"<\/p>\n
He added: \"I am pleasantly surprised that 60 percent of those
\npolled feel they identify with others in ASEAN.<\/p>\n
\"But my own feeling is that this consciousness is there among
\nthe ruling elite in capital cities. Much more needs to be done to
\nintegrate the places elsewhere.<\/p>\n
\"If at all progress has been made, it is only in the area of
\ntrade, and even then, not all countries have kept to their
\ncommitments.\"<\/p>\n
In other areas such as services, particularly finance, there
\nis little progress to record, and in the area of transport, the
\nproposal for an ASEAN open skies agreement has long been pending.<\/p>\n
\"ASEAN countries also have to agree on a set of core values so
\nthat everyone knows what the grouping stands for. I am afraid
\nthat a lot more work needs to be done before one can, with all
\nhonesty, say that ASEAN integration is well and truly in place,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Others shared his assessment. Manila-based researcher Minerva
\nGeneralao said policymakers should question the notion people
\nhave of ASEAN identity in order to build on it.<\/p>\n
\"ASEAN is so diverse. There are so many barriers --
\nhistorical, linguistic, cultural, religious -- to a common
\nidentity. So, is the notion of identity the same and common for
\nthe respondents?\"<\/p>\n
The poll found, for example, that when respondents were asked
\nwhere they would like to live and work, just over a third -- 36
\npercent -- made Europe their first preference, while an equal
\nnumber opted for either ASEAN or the United States.<\/p>\n
Many said, more candidly, that they would prefer to work in a
\nnon-ASEAN country if they had a choice.<\/p>\n
Even while many expressed a desire to visit another ASEAN
\ncountry, less than half had actually traveled around the region,
\nand only 44 percent said they planned to do so in the next six
\nmonths.<\/p>\n
Thailand and Singapore were the top destinations, followed by
\nMalaysia. Most other countries registered just single digits in
\nterms of being a draw for visitors.<\/p>\n
Analysts cited a variety of reasons for these findings. Intra-
\nregional travel remains in its early stages. Road and rail
\nconnections are limited, and costs can be prohibitive, not to
\nmention the hassle involved.<\/p>\n
Budget airlines are just beginning to take off, but many
\ncities remain unconnected or under-serviced by frequent or even
\nregular air links.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's Makmur Keliat, executive director of the Center
\nfor East Asian Cooperation at the University of Indonesia,
\npointed out that despite all the talk about integration, Jakarta
\nimposes a \"\"departure tax'' of 1 million rupiah (S$170) on
\nIndonesian citizens.<\/p>\n
\"Actually, other ASEAN governments have pleaded with us to
\nrevoke this strange policy because it limits the movement of
\nIndonesians to visit other ASEAN countries,\" he told The Jakarta
\nPost, Asia News Network's Indonesian member.<\/p>\n
ASEAN does not have the equivalent of a pan-regional rail or
\nairline network that would allow young people or businessmen to
\nroam about freely and cheaply.<\/p>\n
There are also no regional networks for exchanges among youth
\ngroups, and networks now are more often bilateral and ad hoc
\naffairs. Nor are there television stations with a regional reach
\nwhich might raise an ASEAN consciousness among the people.<\/p>\n
But, if the views expressed by the people polled are anything
\nto go by, there seems to be a growing awareness of the need for
\nchange, and a desire to see more linkages among member countries
\nfostered.<\/p>\n
A blueprint to integrate the region exists in the form of the
\nASEAN Economic Community, which leaders have agreed to achieve by
\n2020.<\/p>\n
This is envisaged to be a single market and production base
\nwhere there would be free flow of goods, services, investments
\nand other things.<\/p>\n
The importance of achieving this is not lost on most people:
\nIt would enable businesses to opt for economies of scale, thus
\nmaking the region a magnet for foreign direct investments, as
\nwell as for tourists.<\/p>\n
Achieving this, however, will require major policy changes and
\ndramatic shifts in mindsets. It could also take quite a while.<\/p>\n
Apart from conflicting national economic and political
\ninterests, fears of loss of respective national identities will
\nalso have to be addressed.<\/p>\n
But Universiti Putra Malaysia political science lecturer Jayum
\nJavan believes it would work to a nation's advantage.<\/p>\n
\"In fact, it will further enhance it,\" he told Malaysia's
\nleading daily, The Star.<\/p>\n
\"In Europe, Germans, Austrians, Italians, and Greeks, for
\nexample, are more eager to distinguish themselves from one
\nanother after the (European) Union.\"<\/p>\n
While there seems to be some consensus on the need for closer
\nties, the critical issue now seems to be how rapidly this should
\nbe pursued.<\/p>\n
Malaysian political scientist Nidzam Sulaiman believes the
\nprocess should be gradual to minimize shocks.<\/p>\n
\"ASEAN countries should be allowed to move at the pace they
\nwant. That is what regional cooperation is all about,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Others argue, however, that given the pace of change brought
\non by globalization and the rise of China and India, ASEAN can
\nscarcely afford a languid pace of integration. They propose
\na two-track approach: Those more ready and willing might hasten
\ntheir integration, and the rest can follow at their own pace.<\/p>\n
But one thing is clear: ASEAN needs to move together faster,
\nin real and practical ways, if their people's wishes for a closer
\nidentity as expressed in the poll are to be realized.<\/p>",
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