Introduction to the ASEAN

Sources

1. Chapter 1 of The Elgar Companion to ASEAN by Jörn Dosch and Frederick Kliem
2. Chapter 2 of The Elgar Companion to ASEAN by Alan Chong, Jörn Dosch, and Frederick Kliem

1. Introduction to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Timeline

1. January 1959
   • The Southeast Asian Friendship and Economic Treaty was proposed as a result of the shared goal between Tunku Abdul Rahman and Carlos P. Garcia (a coordinated regional effort to fight against communists). Thanat Khoman supported this proposal.
2. 1961
   • Malaya, the Philippines, and Thailand formed the ASA, an association focused on promoting economic cooperation between these three regions.
3. 1963
   • Diosdado Macapagal arranged a summit meeting scheduled at this year, known as the MAPHILINDO. It aimed to unite the Malays into a political union.
     • The MAPHILINDO was inspired by Jose Rizal’s work that suggested that colonialism led to the division of the Malay people into Indonesia, Philippines, and Malaysia.
     • One major barrier to regional cooperation was the Konfrontasi—an armed conflict from 1963 to 1966, which stemmed from Indonesia’s disapproval of the formation of the Federation of Malaysia.
4. 1967
   • President Sukarno of Indonesia was removed from power and replaced by President Suharto—a president with foreign policy conducive to regional cooperation.
   • End of Konfrontasi.
5. August 1967
   • Foreign ministers from various Southeast Asian countries gathered at Bangsaen, Thailand.
     1. Adam Malik of Indonesia
     2. Narciso R. Ramos of the Philippines
     3. Tun Abdul Razak of Malaysia
     4. S. Rajaratnam of Singapore
     5. Thanat Khoman of Thailand
6. August 08, 1967
   • After a number of meetings at Thanat Khoman‘s private residence, the founding document—the Bangkok Declaration or the ASEAN Declaration—of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was signed at the Department of Foreign Affairs Building in Bangkok.
     • Security was the main reason for creating this organization. The leaders were worried of threats emerging from the East and West (e.g. Vietnam War).
     • The South-East Asian political leaders shared an anti-communist sentiment. They believed that communism or the soviets was a potential threat to their national sovereignty and national development (national development heavily relies on regional order).
7. 1976
   • First ASEAN summit meeting, which was held in Bali, Indonesia.
8. February 1976
   • Establishment of a central secretariat in Indonesia.
9. 1977
   • Signing of a Preferential Trading Arrangement (PTA) between member states.
10. 1984
    • Brunei joined the ASEAN.
11. 1992
    • ASEAN members agreed to gradually implement an ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA)
12. 1995
    • Vietnam joined the ASEAN.
13. 1997
    • Laos and Myanmar joined the ASEAN.
14. 1999
    • Cambodia joined the ASEAN.
15. 2002
    • Timor-Leste achieved national independence but is not part of the ASEAN
16. 2003
    • There was a decision to create a ASEAN community and a need to reform the organizational structure and decision-making process.
17. 2007
    1. The AEC Blueprint produced a framework and roadmap for establishing the ASEAN as a single market and production base, while targeting 2015 as the implementation’s deadline.
18. December 2008
    • Implementation of the ASEAN Charter.
      • It defined the duties and rights of each member states.
      • It stated the roles and relationships of every ASEAN body.
      • It encouraged ASEAN summits.
19. October 2009
    • Establishment of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights.
20. November 19, 2012
    • Signing of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration
21. December 31, 2015
    1. Redefining of the ASEAN at the ASEAN Community to be founded on three pillars:
       • ASEAN Political–Security Community (APSC)
       • ASEAN Economic Community (AEC)
       • ASEAN Social–Cultural Community (ASCC)

Model of Cooperation

The decision-making process and cooperation found in the ASEAN emphasize the virtue of sovereignty, wherein members do not interfere with the domestic affairs of other members, conflicts are resolved peacefully, and every member is treated equally. Their process is founded on 3 principles: musyawarah (consultation), mukafat (agreement), and gotong royong (sense of community).

This method aims to avoid any contentions between its members, and, as such, issues are typically resolved through agreement on the lowest common denominator, as opposed to the very legalistic strategy used by the European Union (EU).

NOTE

• The majority principle were rejected by some members, thereby removing it from the decision-making process.
• As an intergovernmental organization, the ASEAN cannot have supranational structures.

Summits are held at the state of the current ASEAN chair. The chair changes each year, in the alphabetical order of the country names. That state also chairs the ACC, the three community councils, and the CPR.

ASEAN’s Main Decision-Making Bodies

Name	Description
ASEAN Summit	- Highest policy-making body - Made up of the members states’ government or their heads - Held twice each year
ASEAN Coordinating Council	- Made up of the foreign ministers of member states - At least two annual meetings - Organize the implementation of decisions made during summit meetings - Assists in Community Council Activities - Reviews the annual reports submitted by the Secretary General
ASEAN Community Councils	- The three pillars of the ASEAN Community—the Security Council, the Economic Council, and the Socio-Cultural Council—have at least two meetings each year for the implementation of summit decisions pertinent to their areas of responsibility. - They make reports for the ASEAN Summit. - They provide recommendations to the ASEAN Summit. - They arrange the activities of ministerial bodies related to them.
ASEAN Sectoral Ministerial Bodies	They are responsible for the summit decision implementation pertinent to their area of responsibility.
ASEAN Secretariat	The secretariat facilitates the collaboration between the ASEAN organs and stakeholders.
Secretary General of ASEAN	- Supervises the implementation of joint member states’ decisions. - Attends the meetings of other bodies. - Presents the ASEAN policy. - After every five years, a new secretary is appointed by the ASEAN Summit. - Four deputies support them.
Committee of Permanent Representative to ASEAN	- Assists the activities of the Community Councils - Works with the National Secretariats and Secretary General - Promotes collaboration with ASEAN partners
ASEAN National Secretariats	Appointed by member states, they facilitate the Summit decision implementation at a national level
ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR)	Promotes and protects human rights
ASEAN Foundation	- Promotes face to face interactions - Provides identity - Fosters close cooperation between different facets of society

• Track two activities assist in enhancing communication and socialization at a government level. Track one and track two activities are crucial means for the government and academics to facilitate intra-regional communication.
• The Association of Institutes for International and Strategic Studies serve as one of the ASEAN’s primary think tanks.
• The ASEAN Civil Society Conference/ASEAN Peoples Forum is held every year alongside the ASEAN Summit, ever since 2005.
• The ASEAN Charter and the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 serves as the guideline document for the association.

Was ASEAN Successful?

Was ASEAN successful in their mission to maintain peace and stability?

Although wars between its members have not yet occurred, occasional skirmishes have happened in the past:

• Burmese ethnic conflicts that affected Thai territory; hence, their troops met at the border in 2001.
• Territorial dispute between Thailand and Cambodia from 2008 to 2011
• The conflict between Philippine militants and Malaysian security forces—also known as the Lahad Datu stand-off of 2013.

Luckily, the Southeast Asian conflict management strategies, often informal, aided in preserving the stability of the region and preventing the disputes from escalating. Various problems also demonstrate the readiness of ASEAN member states and the effectiveness of their conflict management strategies. The challenges they encountered include the following:

• Controversies involving the distribution of resources;
• Territorial disputes;
• Heated discussions over migration issues

Currently, the most high-profile ASEAN issue is the South China dispute, wherein a solution still does not exist and the conflict can still escalate.

Besides the informal conflict management mechanisms, ASEAN’s security agenda stressing the importance of being aware of non-traditional security led them to develop effective potential responses to all noteworthy challenges involving human security (e.g., terrorism, infectious diseases, natural disasters, etc.).

As a result of emphasizing security and stability, ASEAN greatly contributed to the rapid economic growth of its member states (therefore, cultivating a favorable investment climate), outpacing plenty of other regions in the world. This is evidenced by the leap of member states to at least medium level of development in the Human Development Index. In addition, the rise of the ASEAN’s share of global gross domestic product (GDP) from 0.8% in 1970 to 2.6% in 2015.

Despite the rapid economic growth, economic integration still evolved slowly. The signing of PTA to reinforce economic relations, even if having only a small effect, still signified the end of some member states’ resistance towards trade liberalization. Another major achievement in promoting economic integration was the implementation of the AFTA.

OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS

• Currently, ASEAN members eliminated 98.6% of their tariff lines.
• Harmonization of product standards across the region helped in minimizing the technical barriers to trade
• Introduction of an electronic region-wide customs clearance system—the ASEAN Single Window.

2. ASEAN and the International Relations Theory