The annual summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Thailand last week made several issues, regarded as strategic by its leaders, although many of them remain a wish list.
Meetings with ASEAN’s main partners – China, Japan and South Korea – and meetings with Australian, Indian and New Zealand leaders only led to several decisions. But it does not mean the meetings were totally fruitless.
There were at least two matters that captured our attention. First was the formal establishment of ASEAN’s Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights. But as The Jakarta Post reported on Saturday, most human rights activists in the region described the new institution as “toothless”, because it lacks the power to prosecute.
Who should we blame for not having a powerful human rights protector? It is easy to point our finger at Myanmar’s brutal junta. But to be honest, perhaps most, if not all, of the 10 ASEAN members are still not ready to accept such a law enforcement agency.
Indonesia, as perhaps the most democratic state in the Asian region, has achieved tremendous progress in respecting its citizens’ basic rights. But it is also not ready to resolve gross human rights violations, not only from the past, but those occurring under President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s first term in office. The killing of human rights activist Munir is a clear example.
But let us be more patient, as Indonesian diplomats have insisted. Who knows, in coming years the wind of change may also flow to other ASEAN members such as Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam. And human rights will become top priorities for them.
We also see the rising competition between China and Japan as they show off their wealth to persuade ASEAN to follow their leadership.
In the past, Japan was the leader in terms of financial assistance to the region. But now China is becoming more generous and aggressive.
ASEAN can utilize the rivalry of the two countries for its own benefits. But when ASEAN governments fail to play the game correctly, it will get little from China and Japan.
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