Singapore vs Rest of ASEAN<\/p>\n
Thinking Rationally<\/p>\n
Shefali Rekhi, Asia News Network\/The Straits Times, Singapore<\/p>\n
Pragmatic Singapore believes the pace of ASEAN integration is
\njust right and in this they differ from the other residents of
\nthe region who say it is too slow.<\/p>\n
Over eighty percent of those polled from Singapore, for The
\nStraits Times-ANN Asiapoll, said they believe the pace of
\nintegration is appropriate but slightly more than half from the
\nrest of ASEAN -- 52 percent -- believe it can be hastened.<\/p>\n
Responses from Singapore differ on other questions in the poll
\non ASEAN identity as well.<\/p>\n
The affinity with the rest of the region does not come across
\nas very strong, with 41 percent of those polled saying they
\nidentify with others in the region, and the rest responding in
\nthe negative.<\/p>\n
The corresponding figures, for the other five countries of the
\nregion, were 69 percent for those who said yes and 31 percent who
\nreplied otherwise.<\/p>\n
Two in ten Singapore respondents said they would consider
\ninvesting in ASEAN, while more than half from the other countries
\nwere willing.<\/p>\n
An overwhelming majority -- 92 percent -- they would opt for a
\nnon-ASEAN country for getting themselves treated if they had a
\nmajor illness and 14 percent said they would encourage their
\nchildren to study in an ASEAN country.<\/p>\n
Five in 10 of those polled in the city-state said they would
\nprefer to work in a non-ASEAN country, but from the rest of the
\nregion, seven in 10 said the same.<\/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 knowledge and awareness of happenings in the region
\nclearly could have played a role -- as high as 86 percent of the
\nrespondents said they have followed news about ASEAN in the past
\nsix months.<\/p>\n
And an overwhelming majority -- 95 percent -- said they got in
\nfrom mainstream media, the newspapers and television.<\/p>\n
This is different in the other countries.<\/p>\n
In Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand close to half of those
\npolled said they depended on the internet for ASEAN news and in
\nVietnam, a quarter of those surveyed said the web was their
\nsource, suggesting that ASEAN news was not equally covered in the
\nmainstream media.<\/p>\n
It also suggests that those who do not have easy internet
\naccess may not be closely following developments in the region
\nand in turn explains the difference in opinion as well.<\/p>\n
But despite this respondents from Singapore do see a future in
\nASEAN and support moves to have flags and other symbols to
\npromote ASEAN identity.<\/p>\n
It is the pace that they worry about.<\/p>\n
On the question of a common currency for the region, for
\ninstance, 30 percent of the respondents from Singapore said they
\nwould support such a move, while seventy said they would not.<\/p>\n
The tally for the region on this account was: 48 percent said
\nyes; 31.5 percent said no while the rest did not share their
\nviews or were not sure.<\/p>\n
"The results from the rest of the region on this question
\nsurprise me," said Dr Denis Hew, Fellow and Coordinator of the
\nRegional Economic Studies Programme at the Institute of Southeast
\nAsian Studies.<\/p>\n
"It is hard to guess why as many as 45 percent support such a
\nmove. Perhaps it could be because those countries suffered quite
\na bit during the Asian financial crisis.<\/p>\n
"But there is much to be done before any such move can be
\ninitiated. Trade integration is among the first steps. ASEAN has
\nmade a beginning but it will take some time."<\/p>\n
For the ST-ANN Asiapoll, Singapore Press Holdings' marketing,
\nplanning and development (research) department polled 419
\nSingaporeans and Permanent Residents across the city.<\/p>\n
The sample was randomly selected, for the face-to-face
\ninterviews in the last week of October and about a fifth of those
\nsurveyed were professionals, managers, executives and
\nbusinessmen.<\/p>",
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