'Other agenda behind ASEAN currency plunge'

'Other agenda behind ASEAN currency plunge'

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad
believes an international financier opposed to Myanmar joining
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is behind the
turmoil sweeping Southeast Asian currencies, newspapers reported
yesterday.

The reports, carried by several Malaysian newspapers, said
Mahathir made the remarks to a business group in the Japanese
city of Okayama Monday on the eve of his return home following an
extended overseas break.

"We feel that there is some other agenda apart from making
money. As you may have noticed ASEAN countries are the targets,"
he was quoted as saying by Business Times, citing Thailand,
Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia.

"We ask ourselves is it just speculation to make money or is
it something else? We feel that there is some other agenda,
especially by this particular person who is the patron of a
foundation," Mahathir said.

"If they want to attack the British pound, by all means do so.
Britain is rich. Malaysia is a poor country and it is not right
for people like these to play and speculate with our currency,"
he was quoted as saying.

"If we are sovereign nations, shouldn't we be able to protect
what belongs to us? Instead, we are told that we should allow for
such speculative activities, But they are teaming up to
impoverish the poor countries."

Although Mahathir refused to name the financier, the New
Straits Times said he was "known to have tried to have used his
financial clout in the United States to block (Myanmar's) entry"
into the Association of Southeast Nations on Wednesday.

George Soros of the U.S. seemed to be the target.

Business Times added that the Malaysian prime minister "would
not rule out the possibility that this foundation is against
ASEAN's decision to admit (Myanmar) and is therefore putting
pressure on the currencies of the grouping's members in the hope
of undermining their economies."

Several western countries, notably the United States, strongly
opposed Burma's entry, citing human rights abused by the
country's military junta.

"What is most distressing is that people can push up or down
your currencies simply because they have a lot of money," the
Malaysian prime minister was quoted as saying. "This is very
bad."