ASEAN lawmakers to meet in Yogya

ASEAN lawmakers to meet in Yogya

YOGYAKARTA: Lawmakers from the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations will convene for a two-day meeting in Yogyakarta on
Thursday to discuss establishing an ASEAN antipoverty bank and
combating drug abuse.

House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung, in his
capacity as president of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary
Organization (AIPO), is scheduled to officially open the meeting
on Thursday.

Some 70 delegates and ambassadors from the 10 ASEAN member
countries are expected to attend the meeting.

The meeting aims at increasing the interparliamentary
cooperation among ASEAN member countries, which are Brunei,
Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and
Indonesia.

"The meeting will also study, discuss and propose
solutions to various problems faced by member countries," a
statement released by the organizing committee said on Wednesday.

The organizing committee has also scheduled tours to nearby
tourist destinations such as the Kasongan ceramics center and
Borobudur Temple. --JP