Effects of crisis, globalization cast doubt on ASEAN

Effects of crisis, globalization cast doubt on ASEAN

This is the second of a two part article based on a keynote
address by Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the
Kingdom of Thailand at the conference on Transition and
Globalization: Comparative Strategies, organized by The Institute
of Security and International Studies on Dec. 17, 1999 in
Bangkok.

BANGKOK: Another issue of utmost importance is that of human
resource development. This is an objective that I consider
crucial to the efforts by developing countries to cope with the
tsunami of globalization. An investment in human resources is an
investment in human capital that, no doubt, will yield huge
dividends over the long term.

In this regard, I have proposed that the Southeast Asian
countries embark on a campaign to promote human resource
development within ASEAN. Such a campaign would draw on our own
resources in conjunction with the generosity and support of our
Dialogue Partners. And I am glad to report to you that there has
been a great deal of interest in this human resource development
project.

During my travels overseas and in discussions with visiting
dignitaries in Bangkok, I have urged ASEAN's Dialogue Partners
and other interested parties to support the establishment of a
"Human Resource Development Fund for ASEAN." Scholarships
provided by the Fund would serve not only to prevent school
dropouts, necessitated by economic difficulties, but would also
assist in the retraining of workers.

To my mind, it is no longer sufficient to create job
opportunities for the unemployed merely to become janitors and
security guards at factories. Over the long run, we must aim at
equipping our people with the necessary skills and knowledge to
become the administrators and executives of these factories.

One of the fundamental reasons for the crisis in Southeast
Asia was the fact that we do not have our own home-grown centers
of science and technology. We have to depend on outside centers
of excellence.

As a result, we have become merely adjacent to, or an
extension of, the major economies of the world. If we want to
stand on our own feet, we need to have our own competing and
complementary centers of science, technology and excellence in
the region, much like in North America, in Europe, and in
Northeast Asia, where scientific research can be conducted in
many places but the results would flow into one main place.

Examples of this are the high technology industry in Boston or
in Silicon Valley and the aerospace industry in Toulouse, France.
Research can be carried out anywhere, but results are shared by
all.

Is this the case in Southeast Asia? No. We take the technology
only if it is deemed appropriate for us. We are allowed to take
technology that we are thought capable of managing. In the end,
we produce only spare parts, rather than the whole automobile. We
need our human resource development urgently.

Such a program would be of great benefit to all the ASEAN
countries by creating a human infrastructure for long-term
sustainable development.

However, it would be particularly valuable to the newer
members of ASEAN by helping to enhance their integration into the
organization as well as into the mainstream of the region. Most
significantly, it would help in creating a new leadership for the
region, which is adequately prepared to face the challenges of
globalization in the 21st century.

To be sure, we in ASEAN shall have to rely first and foremost
on our own resources by training and educating our youth at local
institutions within the region -- here at Chulalongkorn,
Thammasat, the University of Singapore, the University of Malaya,
the University of Indonesia, and the rest.

We have many distinguished universities throughout Southeast
Asia. However, the problems that each of our countries are going
to face in the future will be global problems requiring global
solutions.

For this reason, it will not be adequate for ASEAN's youth to
receive their education and training in this region alone. Their
fresh minds will need to be exposed to new surroundings, new
technologies, new ideas, and new innovations -- the stuff of the
globalized age.

To cope with the challenges of the next millennium, they will
need to attain international exposure and experience overseas --
in Paris, Stockholm, Tokyo, Seoul, Boston, London, Budapest,
Warsaw, Johannesburg, Delhi, and other learning capitals of the
world.

In short, my proposal does not involve a short-term project
that will be realized during the next few years. Rather, it
constitutes a major, long-term initiative to train, shape and
mold a new generation of leadership in Southeast Asia. There is
scarcely anything more valuable that we can hand down to our
grandchildren than to ensure that the leaders of their generation
are more educated, more capable and more enlightened than that of
our time.

And when we have a wise and competent leadership, this will go
a long way towards fulfilling our vision of a prosperous,
peaceful and stable Southeast Asia.

There is one other topic -- the important issue of security.
It should be noted that during the previous Cold War era,
overriding concern that preoccupied most nations was that of
military security. However, in this day and age of globalization,
the primary consideration is increasingly turning towards human
security.

The concept of human security, as I asserted in my statement
before the United Nations General Assembly this past September,
goes far beyond the traditional definition of security since it
addresses the concept from every dimension, be it economic,
social, environmental, political or military. The full scope of
human security is not yet clearly defined, but the most important
point is that we must place people at the center of our
definition of security.

Accordingly, in order to keep up with the challenges and
demands of globalization, it is essential for ASEAN to be more
people-centered and responsive to the needs of its peoples. In
the words of the ASEAN Vision 2020, we need to create a community
of Southeast Asian nations "bonded together in partnership in
dynamic development and in a community of caring societies."

On the subject, I draw great inspiration from the wisdom of
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who shares with us
his vision of the future in the current edition of Newsweek
magazine.

Secretary-General Annan observes that "ours in a world in
which no individual, and no country, exists in isolation." Faced
with global threats, he points out, it is necessary for the world
to give more concrete meaning to the term "international
community" and to join together in identifying areas where
collective action is needed to safeguard global interests.

For, in the final analysis, the main element that binds us all
together as an international community is "a shared vision of a
better world for all people."

If there is a great lesson to be learned from this great
crisis here in East Asia and in ASEAN, it is this.
Interdependency -- no man, no country, is an island entire of
itself any longer.

Given the great interdependence among all countries in this
globalized world, it is therefore incumbent upon us to increase
our linkages and join hands in order to face globalization
together as a group. We must devote ourselves to helping any weak
links in the global chain since such links could create
vulnerabilities for the entire system.

And I, from Thailand, say this out of our own experience. The
"Tom Yum Kung Syndrome" started here. Remember? Countries in this
position must be given adequate encouragement and scope to
appreciate, realize and recognize the ultimate threat or
opportunity of globalization.

We in Thailand share the Secretary-General's optimism and his
vision of a better world. We are aware that during the decades
ahead, the nature of threats confronting our region is
undoubtedly going to change. Rather than armed conflict and
hostilities, new dangers will be posed in the form of economic
disruptions and transnational problems.

These include international crime, trafficking in illicit
drugs, men, women and children, environmental degradation, and so
forth. In a world without borders, these problems are likely to
become increasingly acute, and we must be fully prepared to
confront them together.

At the regional level, we attach great importance to ASEAN's
Hanoi Declaration which states that the ultimate goal of economic
development is "to raise standards of living and to promote
development in all its dimensions, so as to enable the people of
ASEAN to have the fullest opportunity to realize their
potential." We have therefore attached utmost priority to the
promotion of adequate social safety nets and the development of
human resources as steps in this direction.

At the global level, we strongly believe that the nations of
the world must join hands to promote "globalization with a human
face." Among other things, we need to ensure that globalization
leads to greater equity amongst peoples of all nations, enhanced
protection and preservation of our environment, greater
protection and promotion of human rights, and, perhaps more
importantly, a better life for all peoples.

Whether we like it or not, globalization has become the
predominant and overpowering force shaping the domestic politics,
economic policies and foreign relations of virtually every
country in the world today. How we cope with the challenges posed
by globalization can mean the difference between greater
prosperity and well-being for some countries and increased
poverty and hardships for others.

For this reason, it is extremely important for countries to
try to study and understand the experiences of others who have
gone through or are undergoing the process of transition and
reform in all its different dimensions.