HONOLULU — The Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) has, in commemoration of its 40th anniversary, adopted its first formal charter, thus conferring "legal personality" upon this intergovernmental organization, complete with its own flag, emblem, anthem (to be written), and motto: One Vision, One Identity, One Community.
Now it is time to choose an official flower and an ASEAN bird. Might I suggest the shrinking violet and the ostrich, in keeping with ASEAN's continuing tendencies to shrink away from dealing with sensitive issues while burying its head in the sand and pretending that regional problems will somehow go away?
These tendencies were clearly in evidence at last week's ASEAN Summit in Singapore, when the "landmark" Charter was adopted. The Singaporean hosts had invited U.N. Special Envoy Ibrahim Gambari to address the assembled leaders to discuss his mission to Myanmar, but he had to be uninvited after several members objected: "We don't want to come across as being too confrontational in a situation like this," said outgoing ASEAN Secretary General Ong Keng Yong. Talk about censuring the ruling junta for its horrific crackdown on peaceful demonstrators earlier this fall was quickly set aside in keeping with its principle of "noninterference in the internal affairs of ASEAN Member States," as embodied in the new charter, along with a redundant principle calling for "respect for the right of every Member State to lead its national existence free from external interference, subversion, or coercion," in case anyone missed the first point.