Asean should adopt a development model that upholds democracy towards a transformative and ‘people-centred’ region, says its civil society forum.

 

The Asean Peoples’ Forum (APF) 2015, in their statement today,  said that progress in South-East Asian countries must also uphold democracy and human rights standards.

 

It welcomes Asean’s commitment to establishing a people-centric and peaceful community but regrets that member states have not heeded recommendations they have submitted since 2005, they said.

 

“Our engagement with the Asean process is therefore anchored on a critique and rejection of deregulation, privatisation, government and corporate-led trade and investment policies that breed greater inequalities, accelerate marginalization and exploitation, and inhibit peace, democracy, development, and social progress in the region,” APF said.

 

The regional forum released their statement today, ahead of the Asean foreign ministers’ meeting on Jan 26 and 27.  

 

Titled ‘ Reclaiming the Asean Community for the People ’, the statement highlights four regional priorities, namely development justice; democratic processes, governance and fundamental rights and freedoms; peace and security; and discrimination and inequality.

 

“At previous APFs, we drafted the statement during the conference itself, and the statement would be handed to Asean governments at their Summit,” explained Jerald Joseph of Pusat Komas in Malaysia, the chair of APF 2015.

 

“However, this year we are releasing the statement at the Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, a few months ahead of the summit.

 

“We hope this will allow ample time for open and constructive dialogue between governments and civil society representatives, so that the peoples’ voices are included in Asean’s decision-making process,” he added.

 

‘Policies must benefit marginalised communities’

 

“We hope that through this statement, voices of all people will be heard by Asean leaders. Asean policies must benefit its most marginalised communities, not work against them,” said Wathshlah Naidu of Women’s Aid Organisation in Malaysia, who led the drafting process of the statement.

 

“Asean seeks to realise the Asean Economic Community by the end of this year. Our message has never been more urgent,” she added.

 

Soe Min Than of Singapore-based Think Centre said, “Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak ( right ) pledged to ‘make Asean as close as possible to the people’.

"We’re hoping that Asean governments will meet us at the Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting to receive and discuss the statement.”

 

Najib had pledged to meet civil society representatives at the handing over ceremony of the Asean chairpersonship from Myanmar to Malaysia in November last year.

 

The APF is an annual conference that is held parallel to the Asean summit. It is the tenth year that Asean civil society is organising this conference.