SOUTHEAST ASIAN LEADERS SIGN HUMAN
RIGHTS DECLARATION
Southeast Asian
leaders in Phnom Penh, Cambodia endorsed a controversial human rights pact on November 18, 2012 during an annual summit in which they also
focussed on bruising territorial rows and deadly unrest in Myanmar.
Heads of
the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) hailed their
declaration on human rights as a landmark agreement that would help protect the
region's 600 million people.
"It's
a legacy for our children, "Philippine foreign secretary
Albert-del-Rosario told reporters after the signing ceremony.
But
critics said it allowed too many loopholes for ASEAN, which groups together a
diverse range of political systems, from authoritarian regimes in Laos and
Vietnam to freewheeling democracies such as in the Philippines.
"Our
worst fears in this process have now come to pass," said' Human Rights
Watch deputy Asia director Phil Robertson.
On the day
the pact was signed, leaders had to discuss the ethnic violence in ASEAN member
Myanmar, where clashes in Rakhine state between Muslims and Buddhists have left
180 people dead since June.
ASEAN
secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said that the violence was disturbing and
risked destabilising the region.
ASEAN leaders
discussed the bloodshed and included a statement referring to it in their
end-of-summit communiqué.
The ASEAN
event was expanded into a two-day East Asia Summit starting on November 19 that
includes the leaders of the United States, China, Japan, India, South Korea,
Australia, New Zealand and Russia.
Another
point of contention during the three days of top level diplomacy in Phnom Penh
was the territorial rows over the South China Sea.
ASEAN
members Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei, also have sometimes
overlapping claims to the sea.
The ASEAN
pushes for India's pro-active role. It feels that it will help contain a
rampaging China and keep the group cohesive and relevant.
Philippines
say no Unity over China Row : Philippines
at the Summit vowed to keep speaking out on the global stage over its tense
territorial row with China, as an effort by Southeast Asian nations to forge
unity crumbled.
Cambodia
said all 10 members of the bloc had agreed at the leaders' Summit earlier not
to internationalise their disputes over rival claims to the South China Sea.
The
apparent deal would have been a victory for China, which has long insisted that
countries such as the Philippines should not seek support from the US.
But
Philippine President Benigno Aquino insisted he had not agreed and that
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen should not have promoted the alleged ASEAN
'consensus'.
"While
Philippines was for ASEAN unity, it has the right to defend its national
interests when deemed necessary", foreign secretary Albert del Rosario
told reporters. Del Rosario said the Philippine had sent a letter to all ASEAN
leaders to emphasise that there was no consensus.
ASEAN
members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have claims to parts of
the sea, which is home to some of the world's most important shipping lanes and
believed to be rich in fossil fuels. But China insists it has sovereign rights
to virtually all of the sea.
ASEAN
Summit and India:
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh responded to the urging of Association of South
East Asian Nations by promising to finalise the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in
services and investment.
Although
Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma rolled out figures to assert that
trade with ASEAN was growing by leaps and bounds, the fact remains that the $
75 billion in bilateral trade clocked last year was only 2.9 per cent of this
block's total trade. The FTA in goods also covers only 80 per cent of tariff
lines compared with 90 per cent found in ASEAN's FTAs with other countries.
"India
is prepared to conclude the agreement on trade in services and investment
promotion before the commemorative summit in Delhi in December. This will be a
strong signal of our deepening economic engagement, and will allow for rapid
expansion in trade and investment flows in both directions," Dr. Singh
said in his opening remarks at the India-ASEAN
Summit on November 19. During his response statement later, he felt a
comprehensive FTA would be the 'springboard' for rapid expansion in economic
relations with ASEAN.
With the
US backing the initiative, Dr. Singh said the India-Myanmar-Thailand highway
would be operational by 2016, thus opening North East India to South East Asia.
He also
spoke about another alternative route through central or north Myanmar to
connect Guwahati to Hanoi.
PM
at East Asian Summit: The
Indian Prime Minister on November 20th, was at the East Asia Summit
in Phnom Penh. The PM met here US President Barack Obama and congratulated him
on his re-election. It may be mentioned that Barack Obama was also attending
the East Asia Summit which was an extended affair of the ASEAN Summit. It is
understood that a second term in Oval office is unlikely to change US President
Obama's positive approach to the bilateral relations with India. Obama said
that India is a big part of his plans.
Indian
PM, Wen Meet, Talk about Need to Balance Trade Relations on the Sidelines of
the Summit: The
occasion was laced with nostalgia, a sense of achievement while managing a
complex relationship and an assurance that the new regime in Beijing is
convinced that ties with India are 'important', as Manmohan Singh met with his
counterpart Wen Jiabao for around 40 minutes and bade the outgoing premier
farewell.
Premier
Wen Jiabao recalled that it was the 14th time the two leaders are meeting in
the past eight years and it could well be their last. The two leaders fondly
talked about the distance they covered and the distrust they tried to address
in the relationship marked by cooperation and competition
The
Premier, who is also an economic visionary like Prime Minister Singh, under the
Chinese system is not so much tasked with dealing with complex political
issues. However, the two leaders charted out ways to take the relationship
forward despite the strains arising out of border issues and other matters of
mutual suspicion.
They
famously shared the view that there is enough space in the world for the two
countries to grow peacefully and didn't let other issues hamper the growing
trade ties.
Singh also
talked about the need for a balanced trade and reiterating greater market
access for Indian goods and services.
