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DEPARTMENT
OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
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DEPARTMENT
OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
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SFA-AGR-514-08 |
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RE-INVENTING ASEAN: THE ASEAN COMMUNITY FOR THE 21ST CENTURY AND BEYOND By Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago Chair, Committee on Foreign Relations Philippine National Candidate to the International Court of Justice
41st ASEAN Foundation Day Department of Foreign Affairs |
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Ladies and gentlemen:
I am honored to speak before the distinguished guests at this auspicious occasion – the celebration of the 41st Founding Anniversary of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations or ASEAN.
Formative Years of ASEAN
Forty-one years ago, on 8 August 1967, ASEAN was founded by five Southeast Asian countries, namely: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand, through an agreement called the 1967 ASEAN Bangkok Declaration. No sooner had it been created, critics predicted that it would reach its demise soon, like its moribund predecessors – the Association of Southeast Asia or ASA; and Malaysia-Philippines-Indonesia Organization or MAPHILINDO. They were wrong. ASEAN's membership even increased from five in 1967 to ten members today, with the admission of Brunei Darussalam in 1984, Viet Nam in 1995, Laos and Myanmar in 1997; and Cambodia in 1999.
It was said that ASEAN was formed both for security reasons and for greater economic cooperation. Some writers claim that this regional organization’s covert purpose is to protect Southeast Asia from security threats, internally and externally. These threats were feared upon the withdrawal of US forces from Asia in 1969, in compliance with the “Guam Doctrine” of US President Richard Nixon. Like its predecessor, the Southeast Asian Treaty Organization or SEATO, ASEAN was said to be an anti-communist alliance.
During its formative years, the Association has been criticized for its informally-made, legally-non-binding decisions and policies; and for non-confrontational “ASEAN Way” of diplomatic transactions. This ASEAN way follows the principle of respect for the national sovereignty of members. Thus, there should be no interference with the internal affairs of one another. However, its apparent “weakness” is said to be also its “strength.” Since 1967, ASEAN has managed to avoid irritants among its members from escalating into major wars, due to their non-confrontational and informal talks. Moreover, the “ASEAN Way” has even attracted Dialogue Partners to join the members in our ASEAN Regional Forum.
ASEAN at Forty-Plus
ASEAN has defied the critics and moved from triumph to triumph. The global landscape of the 1960s has changed drastically. We now have a globalized economy, greater political security, intermittent breakdown of international peace and order, and looming global environmental degradation.
On 7 October 2003, the ten ASEAN leaders jointly responded to these challenges by issuing the Declaration of ASEAN Concord II which is simply known as Bali Concord II. The new Bali Concord called for the creation of an ASEAN Community comprising three pillars, namely: (1) political and security cooperation, (2) economic cooperation, and (3) socio-cultural cooperation. These three pillars are closely intertwined and mutually reinforcing for the purpose of ensuring durable peace, stability, and shared prosperity in the region. Allow me to discuss briefly these three pillars.
The Three Pillars of the ASEAN Community
The first pillar is political and security cooperation. ASEAN has already started laying down the foundation of an ASEAN Security Community. This community will enhance peace, stability, democracy, and prosperity in the region, through comprehensive political and security cooperation. As a legislator and student of International Law, I was particularly interested to see non-ASEAN countries ratify ASEAN peace treaties like the 1976 Treaty of Amity and Cooperation; the 1971 Declaration on Zone, Peace, Freedom and Neutrality; the 1995 Treaty on the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone; and the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. These peace treaties are very important, because we have to befriend our neighbors in the Asian region so that we can continuously enjoy peace and order. If we invest now in these peace treaties, we will also benefit from their peace dividends in the future.
Within the Southeast Asian region, I support the plans of the Association to have more binding treaties like ASEAN Charter, ASEAN Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance, ASEAN Extradition Treaty, and ASEAN Convention on Counter Terrorism. I am also happy to note that ASEAN is not leaving any stone unturned in its effort to build a resilient ASEAN Security Community through the establishment of mechanisms to combat corruption, protect human rights, prevent and resolve conflicts, and re-build peace from the ruins of war.
The second pillar is economic cooperation. Peace without economic development stands on shaky grounds. Empty stomachs can fire up feelings of attention-deficit people who could wage war to express their sufferings. Thus, the Association's plan to build a robust ASEAN Economic Community should be applauded. In a globalized economy, it is every-man-for-himself, or worse, it could be a dog-eats-dog. There is no denying the fact that the majority of ASEAN economies are vulnerable to these harsh realities.
Hence, it is incumbent on our ten ASEAN leaders to enhance the competitiveness of our region. In this celebration, let us wish them the best of luck, and support them in their efforts to integrate the ten economies of the region. It is a herculean task, given the disparities in the level of socio-economic development of the ASEAN member-countries. Since it is for the best interest of the region, I support the Association's “Prosper-Thy-Neighbor” policies to institute a single market and production base by 2020. There would be free flow of goods, services, and skilled labor, and a freer flow of capital.
The third pillar of the ASEAN Community is socio-cultural cooperation. This pillar is now being operationalized through the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community which is also called “A Community of Caring Societies.” This community will nurture human, cultural, and natural resources for sustained development in a harmonious and people-centered ASEAN. I am glad our ASEAN leaders included this third pillar in the Association's roadmap for the 21st century. Economic development and peace and order should not be treated as ends in themselves. Rather, we should use them as instruments to make the peoples of Southeast Asia reach their full potentials as human beings. As part of this potential, the cultural diversities of the peoples of the region should be respected, protected, and promoted.
It is commendable that the third pillar acknowledges the development-environment nexus. This is the worldview without a healthful environment, economic development cannot be sustained. Mankind's socio-economic development should be pursued, alongside environmental protection. I do not subscribe to the Environmental Kuznets Curve's proposition that increasing environmental degradation and economic development will reach a “turning point”, after which there will be a reduction in environmental damage, while the level of economic development steadily increases. Rather, I am a believer in Gaia Hypothesis which posits that mankind is connected to and part of the living Gaia or Mother Earth; that whatever affects one, affects the other. Therefore, I support the third pillar's call for “environmentally-sustainable development” or “green growth.”
Concluding Remarks
It is clear by now that immediately after the new Bali Concord II was issued in 2003, ASEAN has started to re-invent itself after four decades of existence, by calling itself a “community.” From a fledgling organization whose death was foretold by its critics on the day it was born, ASEAN is now at the crossroads of transforming itself as a rules-based and economically integrated regional organization, ready to face the challenges of the 21st century and beyond. It is still far from approximating the level of the European Union, but it is headed toward that direction. At 41, truly, life begins at forty for ASEAN.
Congratulations to ASEAN on its 41st Founding Anniversary! I wish you all the best for the coming years ahead. Mabuhay!
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