SPEAKING
FREELY Time for a new ASEAN
way By Khanh Vu Duc
Speaking Freely is an Asia Times
Online feature that allows guest writers to have
their say. Please
click hereif you are interested in
contributing.
If the recent
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
conference in Phnom Penh will be remembered for
anything, it will be for what went wrong rather
than what was accomplished. For the first time in
ASEAN's 45-year history, the 10-nation grouping
failed to deliver a joint statement, underscoring
deep internal divisions behind the façade of
unified consensus.
At the heart of the
problem is the South China Sea, where certain
member states have simmering territorial conflicts
with China. In
particular, this has pitted
Vietnam and the Philippines, proponents of a
multilateral resolution to the disputes, against
Cambodia, a close China ally whose position has
been to keep the conflict from going
international.
But rather than despairing
over ASEAN's future, the crisis of consensus
should be looked upon as an important opportunity
for change. Currently ASEAN summits and forums
allow only for member states to air their
concerns, which are often as varied as the reasons
for why they are ultimately not jointly addressed.
Because member states are not bound to honor any
proposed or passed resolution, these assemblies
lack the power to force action.
After the
breakdown in Phnom Penh, it is clearly time to
change all of that. Established in 1967 as a
six-nation bulwark against the spread of
communism, ASEAN continues operates on the
principles of respect for each member's national
sovereignty and non-interference in each other's
internal affairs.
Over the years, this
arrangement has helped to avoid the creation of
internal power blocs, where the biggest and most
powerful states could have tried to dictate the
affairs of smaller members. The absence of any
binding force, however, has rendered ASEAN
essentially ineffective in leading the region or
resolving crises.
The future of ASEAN
depends on how much its members are willing to
give in order to take. If ASEAN is to become an
effective force for change in Southeast Asia, it
must have the ability to bind its members to
resolutions. To be sure, consensus rather than
majority rule will still serve the grouping. At
the same time, ASEAN would be more effective if
member states were willing to surrender a measure
of sovereignty over certain international affairs.
A supranational organization whose authority is
legally binding would provide the teeth necessary
for ASEAN to act when parties are in general
agreement.
Much like a court of justice, a
new binding arrangement would allow member states
to opine and rule in favor or against certain
group decisions. Dissension would necessarily be
encouraged and protected, allowing for opposition
voices to state countervailing views and opinions.
To maintain a unified front, however, all member
states would be required to honor and uphold any
final resolution.
Consensus rule is far
from perfect, as there will undoubtedly be times
when member states believe certain resolutions
work against their national interests. But the
recent breakdown of unanimity in Phnom Penh
represents a valuable opportunity to weigh ASEAN's
strengths and weaknesses, and make the necessary
adjustments to improve its credibility as an
effective organization.
Non-committal
values ASEAN's motto, "One Vision, One
Identity, One Community", is a lofty ideal that to
date has little basis in reality across the region
of 600 million people. Many now hope that the
ASEAN Economic Community planned for 2015 will
through more regional trade, travel and transfers
prompt faster economic growth and regional
coherence.
Yet ASEAN states differ in
almost every measurable way, ranging from levels
of economic development to technological
advancement to basic governing structures and
principles. These differences have made it
difficult to establish an agreed set of core
values - nominally human rights, democracy, and
the rule of law - to which all members sincerely
subscribe and uphold.
ASEAN has not been
completely negligent in protecting these values,
seen in the recent creation of a dedicated, though
non-binding, ASEAN human rights body. But with its
complex mix of authoritarian, semi-democratic and
democratic regimes, it would be naïve to assume
that all ASEAN member states subscribe to these
values in equal degrees.
Indeed, these
divergent political outlooks are arguably the
biggest stumbling block to transforming ASEAN from
a talking shop into an effective regional and
global player.
Independent research shows
that countries whose values mirror or nearly
mirror one another are more likely to resolve
differences than with countries whose values do
not align. While basic values of human rights,
democracy and the rule of law are respected to
varying degrees among ASEAN states, is it any
wonder that related issues have so frequently
failed to result in concrete, unified action?
Take, for example, Vietnam, which has
recently experienced a significant deterioration
of its human rights situation and continues to
resist any move towards democratic rule.
Vietnamese citizens enjoy certain basic civil
liberties, but are strictly barred from voicing
their opinions against the government lest they be
charged and potentially jailed on anti-state
charges.
Although Vietnam may share the
Philippines' position on the need to
internationalize its South China Sea disputes with
China, these two countries are no more alike than
Singapore and Cambodia. The Vietnamese government
has proven unwilling to compromise on even
marginal matters of political and constitutional
reform, while the Philippines accommodates a
lively, if not unruly, democracy.
This is
not a criticism strictly reserved for Vietnam.
ASEAN members Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar all
maintain various anti-democratic laws and measures
aimed specifically at stifling dissent. Yet for
ASEAN to move forward in a unified direction, all
ten members must reach a common stance on these
basic values.
An organization divided over
basic questions of rights and freedoms cannot lay
claim to having "One Vision, One Identity, One
Community", let alone reach a unified stance on
more complex matters such as territorial disputes
in the South China Sea.
Every effective
group needs a strong leader, ideally a person or
state who possesses qualities others seek to
emulate. In ASEAN's context, such a leader would
need to embody the wealth and technological
prowess of Singapore, the economic power of
Indonesia, the openness of Thailand and the bold
rhetoric of the Philippines. Such a person or
state, of course, is strictly hypothetical in
ASEAN's current context.
Through not
without flaws and not a clear beacon of democracy,
human rights and rule of law, Indonesia
nonetheless would provide a compelling face for a
new and improved ASEAN. Indonesia has stayed above
the fray of South China Sea tensions and recently
played a behind-the-scenes mediating role to keep
internal divisions from becoming full-blown
fissures over the issue.
With its strong
bilateral ties with China and the United States,
Indonesia is also well-positioned to navigate
ASEAN the growing superpower rivalry for influence
and advantage in the region. As this rivalry
intensifies and the risk of divide and rule
tactics rise, a unified ASEAN will be crucial to
maintaining regional peace and stability.
Whether ASEAN can serve that role will
remain doubtful without substantial and prompt
changes in the grouping's culture, rules and
leadership. Khanh Vu Duc is a Vietnamese
Canadian lawyer in Ottawa, focusing on various
areas international relations and international
law.
Speaking Freely is an Asia
Times Online feature that allows guest writers to
have their say.Please
click hereif you are interested in
contributing. Articles submitted for this section
allow our readers to express their opinions and do
not necessarily meet the same editorial standards
of Asia Times Online's regular contributors.
Head
Office: Unit B, 16/F, Li Dong Building, No. 9 Li Yuen Street East,
Central, Hong Kong Thailand Bureau:
11/13 Petchkasem Road,
Hua Hin, Prachuab Kirikhan, Thailand 77110
