ASEAN is the abbreviation of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations which is – according to the Wikipedia – is the economic organisation of 10 Southeast Asian countries. Its member states are Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. The bloc that seeks to become as significant union as the European Union was formed back in 1967.
Leaders of the 10 member states sat down and had round-table discussions to evaluate current economic situation. Among the topics was the stimulation of economic activity, easier access to credit and, most importantly, avoiding trade protectionism. At the end of the summit held in Thailand they also expressed their idea of forming an economic community similar to EU by 2015. According to BBC correspondent Jonathan Head it will take more than six years for them to reach their goals, what is especially problematic because of the issue of human rights – Vietnam and Burma are not democratic countries. And even though the first charter of rules is ready, member states are not forced to adhere to them.
The community whose vision is “One Vision, One Identity, One Community” has so far achieved some significant results. Free trade agreement exists between the member nations and its trading partners such as Australia and New Zealand. Human rights are also very important for the community, but understandably, during last conference more emphasis was on the ongoing economic downturn.
No comments:
Post a Comment