Severino installed as new ASEAN secretary-general

Severino installed as new ASEAN secretary-general

JAKARTA (JP): Rodolfo C. Severino took over the reigns as
Secretary-General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) yesterday saying that the group faces new challenges
never before seen in its 30-year history.

In his address at yesterday's transfer of office ceremony
here, Severino said ASEAN was undergoing a period of transition.

"But a transition, like this season, is also time for renewal.

"ASEAN is faced with challenges such as it has not faced
before... the challenge of enlargement, the challenge of scope,
the challenge of integration and the challenge of identity," said
Severino who replaces Malaysian Dato' Ajit Singh.

Severino, 61, has carved himself a distinguished diplomatic
career, holding a number of important posts in the Philippines
foreign office. For the past six years he has been Philippine
Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs Policy, which oversaw ASEAN-
related matters.

Yesterday's ceremonies, while still somewhat ebullient, were
held under a dark cloud shaking the economic success which was a
hallmark of ASEAN member states.

The currency crisis has severely damaged the economies of most
ASEAN founding members causing a fall in their domestic
currencies.

Born in 1967, ASEAN groups Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,
Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The ASEAN Secretariat is based in Jakarta.

Ajit Singh, 60, began his five-year term in 1993 as the first
elected secretary-general of the group. Prior to him, the
position was rotational.

But the reality of the economic crisis was not lost on
yesterday's ceremony as Severino said that recent events
demonstrated the imperative of approaching ASEAN cooperation in
an integrated manner.

"No longer can we separate finance from commercial and
investment concerns, nor the environment or science and
technology from the demands of economic growth," he said.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas, whom
Severino described as a mentor and guide to the ASEAN
Secretariat, also highlighted the "great strain" on ASEAN
economies which "have taken a severe blow".

But Alatas maintained that ASEAN has been through worse and
therefore should be able to overcome the current crisis.

"The situation in the region is not half as bleak as it was at
the time of ASEAN's founding more than 30 years ago, when a war
was raging in Indochina and the rest of us in Southeast Asia,
nursing a hangover from ancient conflicts and recent disputes
between and among ourselves, were in the midst of political
upheaval aggravated by economic underdevelopment," Alatas said.

"Like all crises, the one we face today has two sides: peril
and opportunity. Let us squarely face this crisis, making full
use of our unique resources, tame the peril and seize the
opportunity.

"This means renewal. We in ASEAN are called upon today to make
that renewal," he added.

Both Alatas and Severino spoke highly of Ajit Singh who has
now retired from the foreign service and will soon return home to
Malaysia.

Alatas described the former secretary-general tenure as highly
successful while Severino said his predecessor left him a
"priceless legacy not only to me but to Southeast Asia".

Ajit Singh, known to many as being a consummate bureaucrat,
said the Secretariat should be satisfied with its work over the
past five years which he called "truly eventful".

"This is not goodbye ASEAN. It's a fond adieu. I am sure our
paths will cross again," he said. (mds)