South-East Asian leaders OK Myanmar to chair ASEAN in 2014

By Ahmad Pathoni Nov 17, 2011, 12:07 GMT

Nusa Dua, Indonesia - Leaders of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Thursday endorsed Myanmar's request to chair the group in 2014, citing the country's progress towards reform.

The move is likely to draw criticism from human rights groups, which insist that Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has a lot still to do on human rights issues.

The United States said last week that 'many questions' remained over Myanmar's future, such as the fate of political prisoners and whether reforms would include reconciliation with ethnic minorities.

'I can confirm that the leaders of ASEAN ... have formally expressed their views and reached consensus that designates Myanmar as chairman of ASEAN in 2014,' Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said at the end of an ASEAN summit in Bali, Indonesia.

Natalegawa said the leaders recognized 'significant progress' made by Myanmar towards democratization.

'But most of all, it is not about the past, it is about the future,' he said.

'What the leaders are doing by confirming Myanmar's designation as chair of ASEAN in 2014 is they're trying to ensure that the process of change continues,' he added.

The chair is rotated every year in an alphabetical order, but Myanmar was skipped in 2006 because of pressure over its poor human rights record.

But the military junta in 2010 held its first election in 20 years and released opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi after years of house arrest. The country's new government released more than 316 political prisoners in May and October.

However, New York-based Human Rights Watch said Myanmar did not deserve any reward yet, pointing out that an estimated 1,669 political prisoners remain behind bars in the country.

'ASEAN should tell the Burmese government to stop using political prisoners as bargaining chips to deflect international pressure,' the rights group said.

Economic integration and ASEAN's aim to enhance its global role were also high on the agenda at the summit. But the dispute over the South China Sea has taken centre stage.

China claims the entire South China Sea. Taiwan and four ASEAN members - the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam - also have overlapping claims to the territory.

Natalegawa said negotiation was the only option for countries in the dispute.

'We are in a far better state than we were this time last year,' he said, noting that discussions on a binding code of conduct in the sea had just started.

'There's increased confidence on the part of the parties concerned to solve the problem through negotiations and through dialogue,' he said.

Tensions have risen between China and the Philippines, which has called for a united ASEAN front against Beijing's increased assertiveness in the sea, a key shipping lane that is also believed to be rich in oil and mineral resources.

The United States has weighed in on the dispute, saying it has a national interest in freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.

On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton urged countries in the dispute not to resort to intimidation, while vowing to provide greater defence support for the Philippines, with which the United States has a defence treaty.

China insists the dispute be resolved with each of the claimants bilaterally, and has urged the US not to interfere.

US President Barack Obama arrived in Bali Thursday to attend the East Asia Summit, a gathering of the 10 ASEAN countries plus eight other nations, including Russia, Australia and New Zealand, scheduled for Saturday.

Analysts said Obama's attendance, the first by a US president, signals an attempt to strengthen US engagement with Asia.

In a move seen as an attempt to counter China's growing assertiveness, the United States said Wednesday it would place 250 marines in Australia's northern city of Darwin in 2012, with numbers rising to 2,500 within five years.

Natalegawa said that Indonesia did not see the US-Australia deal as 'inimically threatening.'

'Countries will have all kinds of agreements, this is a fact of life,' he said. 'What's needed is, despite all these developments, we have some kind of basic minimum type of conduct.'

Philippine Communications Minister Ricky Carandang welcomed the move, saying increased US presence in Asia would serve as 'a stabilizing force.'