Myanmar has far to go in summit preparations, ASEAN says

Feb 24, 2012, 9:39 GMT

Bangkok - Myanmar has much to do to prepare for hosting the Association of South-East Asian Nations' (ASEAN) in 2014, the head of the group's secretariat said Friday.

'If Myanmar is going to carry out its chairmanship successfully, many things need to happen within the next two years,' ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan said in Bangkok, following a five-day trip to Myanmar.

In November, ASEAN agreed to allow Myanmar to chair the group's annual summits and related meetings in 2014, for the first time since the once-pariah state joined the bloc in 1997.

Myanmar will need to invest in roads, telecommunications, hotels and internet systems to prepare itself for the 2014 ASEAN meetings, which promise to attract a score of national leaders and thousands of delegates and journalists, Surin said.

It will also need to reform its monetary system and improve the banking and financial system.

'You can't facilitate a major international meeting using cash only,' Surin told press conference.

Because of economic sanctions, credit cards are difficult to use in Myanmar and there are few automatic teller machines.

ASEAN's decision to pass Myanmar the chairmanship came in the wake of a host of initiatives taken by Myanmar's President Thein Sein over the past year to reform the country, which was under military dictatorships from 1962 until 2010.

Since coming into office in March, Thein Sein has opened a political dialogue with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, paving the way for her and her National League for Democracy party to contest a by-election on April 1.

He has also freed about 600 politcal prisoners, eased restrictions on the press and signed ceasefire agreements with six insurgencies.

While in Myanmar, Surin urged Thein Sein to allow ASEAN observers to monitor the April 1 polls, seen as an important benchmark in the country's reform process.

Thein Sein promised to give the offer his 'serious consideration,' Surin said.

ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

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