Thailand postpones ASEAN Summit to late October

May 13, 2009

BANGKOK (Xinhua) - Thailand decided today to postpone the ASEAN Summit from earlier planned mid-June to late October, Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya told reporters.

The Thai Foreign Minister's statement was made to reporters after he participated in the weekly cabinet meeting.

The delay was made after it is discovered the ASEAN and dialogue partner countries' leaders will not have the same time to participate in the ASEAN Summit and Related Summits earlier planned mid-June, clarified Kasit.

Kasit also said that the postponement was not due to chaos, which was made by the Thai anti-government protesters during the ASEAN Summit and Related Summits in beach resort Pattaya in April.

The 10th ASEAN Summit, Plus Three, and Six Summit, and Related Summits were initially scheduled to be held on April 10-12 in a hotel in resort town of Pattaya, next to Bangkok, but on April 11 the Thai government announced the postponement of it after the red-shirted or anti-government protesters stormed into the venue.

This year Thailand is the rotating chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations or ASEAN, which consists of Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The other concerned countries include China, Japan, South Korea, India Australia, and New Zealand.

Thailand's government had previously proposed to the other ASEAN leaders and dialogue partner leaders to host the Summits during June 13-14 in Thailand's southern province of Phuket.

New [Thai] Foreign Minister readies for ASEAN Summit, Cambodia disputes

BANGKOK, Dec 21 (TNA) - Newly appointed Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said he is ready to work on two urgent priorities, preparation for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations leader meeting (ASEAN Summit) that Thailand will host early next year and the talks to provide a sustainable settlement of the border disputes with Cambodia.

During the ASEAN Foreign Minister's Meeting at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia, last Monday, the ministers tentatively agreed that the Summit would be held in Thailand by the end of February.

The meeting fixed the new dates of the 14th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits on February 24-26, 2008.

However, Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo reportedly said the delayed summit may need to be rescheduled as some leaders are unable to make it. He did not mention which leaders would be unable to attend, but said alternative dates being considered include late January and early February.

Thailand, which currently holds the rotating chairmanship of the 10-member bloc, was forced to delay the ASEAN summit from mid-December to March because of political circumstances, including the blockade of Bangkok's main airports -- Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang -- by anti-government protesters, which left hundreds of thousands of travellers stranded.

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

Mr. Kasit said apart from the ASEAN Summit preparation, the highest priority issue was the talks to solve the border disputes with Cambodia.

He said he believed the issue was likely to be solved as Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen was the first leader who sent congratulation message to Abhisit Vejjajeva after His Majesty the King had given his royal endorsement to the new Thai prime minister, which could be considered a good sign of the warm friendship between the two neighbouring countries.

As for the extradition of fugitive ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinwatra, Mr. Kasit said he would ask for more details from the ministry's officials when he starts working at the ministry on December 23.

As far as he knew, Mr. Kasit said, Mr. Thaksin's diplomatic passport had already been revoked and the procedure to revoke his normal passport was underway.

Mr. Thaksin jumped bail and fled into exile in August as corruption cases piled up against him, and he was sentenced on October 21 to two years in jail for breaching graft laws by helping his wife, Khunying Pojaman to buy state-owned land.

Mr. Kasit said he would like to see the details first and would decide how to bring ex-premier Thaksin back to be prosecuted in Thailand.

[ASEAN Charter:] Silence raises questions of relevance

Saturday December 13, 2008
ACHARA ASHAYAGACHAT
Bangkok Post

ASEAN CHARTER

The postponement of the 14th Asean summit, earlier scheduled for next week (Dec 15-17) in Thailand, raises questions about the relevance of the Asean charter to the current political, economic and security challenges the region faces.

The Asean foreign ministers therefore have to convene a special meeting on Monday to discuss the re-scheduling of the summit and other relevant matters, to shore up the waning confidence in this regional organisation and to celebrate the much-awaited charter at the Jakarta-based secretariat.

Within the region, there have been doubts that the Asean charter, to be spearheaded under the Thai chairmanship, would succeed in "revitalising a people-centred community and reinforcing human development and security for all the peoples of the region".

Even more doubtful is the prospect of the new organs envisaged by the charter, in particular the Asean human rights bodies - expected to be completed by the end of the Thai chairmanship next year. Critics fear that without substantive changes to the way Asean has been operating, the new organs would end up as decorative pieces put in the charter just to lure domestic and international attention.

Asean's relative silence towards the political bickering and airport siege in Thailand that spilled over to the point they could qualify as violations of human rights - apart from the fact that they caused the Asean summit to be postponed - indicates that the core policy of "non-interference" and "constructive engagement" is likely to be the order of the day.

Sunai Phasuk, coordinator of Human Rights Watch in Thailand, said Asean's silence on Thailand's case adds to the impression that the regional body is ineffective in dealing with human rights violations. Burma also would be a case in point.

"It is just a contradictory signal. Asean said the new Asean human rights mechanism will promote and protect the rights of the Asean peoples, but their bulwark non-interference principle certainly goes against the nature of these two human rights aspects, to begin with," said Mr Sunai.

Without any strong reaction from Asean, the grouping is seen as condoning such anti-democratic trends as the week-long takeover of Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports in Bangkok by protesters going under the banner of the People's Alliance for Democracy.

"Thailand and Burma are adequate test cases for the toothless Asean. The governments of Asean have preached what they cannot offer. But they need to show to the world that this region also has some effective mechanisms like what Africa has," he said.

Chulalongkorn University associate professor Thitinan Pongsudhirak shared a similar view. The Thai example and how Asean responded to it can be a precedent for countries like Burma, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, as well as Asean dialogue partners including China, to cite for a future slide along an undemocratic path.

"What happened in Thailand has also affected the spirit of Asean, its efforts in creating a rule of law within the region. China considers our case a lesson. And it may be justified if it chooses to withhold a democratisation process for fear of political turbulence," said Mr Thitinan.

Other regional human rights bodies such as the Asia Human Rights Commission have also called for greater global attention to the political tension in Thailand, which has gone on for several months without any discernible reaction from domestic human rights bodies.

"Having vacillated on the 2006 coup, the international community cannot afford to let things go on without some meaningful intervention this time. If Thailand slips further backwards it will be to the detriment not only of its own but the entire region's. At a time that repressive anti-democratic forces are either making a comeback or strengthening their positions almost everywhere, Thailand cannot afford to be lost," the Hong Kong-based AHRC stated.

Members of the Asean civil society consider the charter a state-centric tool, being written by government officials without genuine, broad consultations with civic groups. The charter provides no institutionalised mechanisms, such as the NGO Consultative Status to the UN, in which a civil society can contribute to or comment on the decision-making process.

Pokpong Lawansiri, from Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (Forum-Asia), said that to Asean leaders, the civil society's role is to be informed about decisions that are made, not to play any role in their making.

He added, however, that the regional body should take note that there has been increasing interest among civil society groups in seeing the association become more relevant and capable of handling issues that concern the peoples of the member countries - migrant workers and human trafficking, among others.

Pairoj Polphet, president of the Union of Civil Liberties, said the new government of Thailand must put the organisation of the Asean summit at the top of its priority list.

"As chairman of Asean under the new context of the charter, our ability to host the summit as soon as possible is a key message to not only the regional bloc but the international community that our political stability has been recovered."

Mr Pairoj added that civil society would not go against Asean cooperation projects but would like to have a say in regional affairs as they would affect people's lifestyles and well-being.

It is now in the hands of Asean officials and governments whether to shape the Asean human rights body (whose official name has yet to be created) to the high expectations people have of it.

ASEAN summit postponed until March '09

Its decided: Asean summit postponed

3 December 2008
AFP

BANGKOK: Crisis-hit Thailand has postponed a summit of the Southeast Asian bloc Asean scheduled for mid-December to March, a government spokesman said Tuesday.

News of the delay came shortly after the countrys Constitutional Court dissolved Thailands ruling party and barred Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat from politics for five years.

The Asean summit has been postponed to March next year, government spokesman Nattawut Saikaur said after Somchais final Cabinet meeting in the northern city of Chiang Mai.

The summit had been scheduled for December 15 to 18, also in Chiang Mai. It had already been moved out of Bangkok because of the turmoil, which has seen protesters occupy both of the capitals airports.

Protesters said later Tuesday they would lift the airport siege, which has cost Thailand economically and in terms of its international image both as a tourist haven and a beacon of stability in the region.

The Asean charter, which commits the blocs 10 member-nations to promote democracy and human rights and was expected to be signed at the summit, will now be adopted in Indonesia.

The Cabinet agreed to the foreign ministrys proposal to declare the Asean charter in Jakarta and the ministry will write a letter to inform group members, Nattawut said.

Surin Pitsuwan, secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and a former Thai foreign minister, said he had not yet been informed of the decision.

I am not yet aware of it. I am still waiting for the decision, he told Agence France-Presse by telephone from Hong Kong. But so far I am aware there is no government in Thailand now, therefore the foreign ministry must handle this issue.

Thailand holds the rotating chairmanship of the association.

Asean guests

Asean leaders had been set to be joined at the summit by heads of government from East Asia as well as the heads of organizations, such as the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization.

Surin said Sunday that time was running short for Thailand to hold the summit, adding that a delay would enable better preparations.

The statement said Surin had reassured Thai authorities that a postponement will not negatively affect Asean work plans too much.

Member-nations Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam had called for a postponement while others had expressed concerns over the situation in Thailand.

In 2006, the Philippines rescheduled a December summit for the following month after two powerful storms threatened to batter its central region, although some sources said it was linked to security threats.

Asean groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Thailand to decide on ASEAN Summit by December 2

BANGKOK, Nov 28 (TNA) - Thailand will decide whether to postpone next month's summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) by December 2 after several member countries expressed concern over the protest that has closed the kingdom's two main airports, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The PAD seized the Government House compound in late August and stepped up its pressure by occupying Suvaranbhumi International Airport on Tuesday and storming Don Meaung domestic airport Wednesday, which virtually paralysed air traffic in the kingdom.

ASEAN Affairs Department director-general Vitthawat Srivihok told reporters that there would be a clearer picture by December 1-2 on whether Thailand could host the key regional meeting of ASEAN leaders next month.

Thailand is scheduled to host the 14th ASEAN Summit December 13-18 in the northern city of Chiang Mai.

Mr. Vitthawat admitted that the closure of Suvarnabhumi Airport was a major obstacle for the leaders of member countries to come to the kingdom.

Security measures for the leaders and other participants would not be easy under the circumstances, he said.

He added that the ministry was preparing two options. Either Thailand would procede with the original schedule in hosting the summit, or the government would delay the event after evaluations indicate that the summit could not run as smoothly as planned.

When the postponed summit might be rescheduled, he said, depended on the situation and the schedules of the 16 leaders of ASEAN and its dialogue partners who are to participate.

Mr. Vitthawat said that until now there was no ASEAN government inquiry about the readiness of Thailand to host the summit, but he believed they are monitoring the situation at their respective countries.