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One of the achievements of the forum was the drafting of an ASEAN Charter which will be finalized this year. The draft Charter affirms the group's adherence to democracy by rejecting unconstitutional means of changing governments. It also includes a provision for the creation of a Human Rights Commission in the region.
Some analysts described the draft Charter as 'toothless' since member countries can choose to ignore some of the democratic commitments contained in the document. ASEAN will continue to forge decisions and resolutions through consensus and not through voting. A government official argued that consensus-building is the "ASEAN way of doing things."
This means ASEAN will still be unable to discipline its own ranks since a recalcitrant member nation can easily prevent the building of consensus. An example of this failure, which remains a controversial issue within the group, is its inability to sanction Myanmar over its dismal human rights record.
The United States, while praising ASEAN's commitment to uphold democratic values, also expressed disappointment over the failure of Myanmar's ruling military junta to respect and protect human rights. Other nations have similar appeals, saying Myanmar should hasten democratic reforms.
Indeed, Myanmar's government is guilty of committing human rights violations. But Myanmar is not the only human rights violator in the region. It may be ASEAN's problem child, but governments of other member countries are also notorious bullies and human rights offenders.
If Myanmar were asked to explain the continued detention of pro-democracy leaders, it can always retort by inquiring about the torture of suspects in Indonesia, the crackdown on bloggers in Malaysia, censorship in Thailand and killings with impunity in the Philippines.
Let me highlight the case of the Philippines, since it is the main proponent for the creation of a Human Rights Commission. The Philippine government, which is part of the United Nations Human Rights Council, is accused of abetting human rights violations. Various local and international bodies have pinpointed the involvement of soldiers and police forces in extrajudicial killings, abductions and the harassment of local activists, journalists and other critics of the government. The Philippines is among the most dangerous countries for journalists. The Arroyo government has surpassed the Marcos dictatorship in terms of human rights abuses. There may be no military junta in the Philippines but the unpopular Arroyo government has shown its subservience to military generals in order to remain in power.
ASEAN member countries have lost the moral ascendancy to preach respect for human rights. This is the legacy of ASEAN, forty years after it was created.
Myanmar may even accuse the United States when it comes to failure to protect civil and political liberties, citing torture and other abuses inside the Guantanamo prison. The United States is also guilty of violating the rights of the Iraq people to secure their own freedom.
Yes, Myanmar deserves to be punished for the rampant human rights violations committed by the junta. ASEAN and the rest of the world should demand immediate democratic reforms. But we should send the same message to other member nations. Myanmar does not have a monopoly on violating human rights. It can always reply to its pretentious neighbours: "We are all part of the same hypocrisy."
Analysts have derided ASEAN for its insufficient efforts to promote political and civil liberties in the region, which the ASEAN Regional Forum has attempted to address. But economic and socio-cultural rights violations should be discussed as well. Southeast Asia has been hailed as one of the world's vibrant economic regions. Yet the majority of people living in this region are languishing in poverty. There is a huge income gap between rich and poor in the region. ASEAN member countries should account for the millions of people who lack such basic necessities as food, shelter and education.
Perhaps the best example of ASEAN's unwillingness to admit widespread violations of economic and socio-cultural rights was the attempt of the Manila government to hide slum communities and informal vendors from the sight of visiting dignitaries. Old houses were prettified, rooftops were painted, sidewalks were adorned with flowers, walls were erected to conceal squatter colonies and small vendors were ejected near the venue of the ASEAN forum. This seems to be the "ASEAN way of doing things" -- to obscure the embarrassing poverty in the region.
It appears that all those big statements about upholding human rights, economic prosperity and commitment to democracy were all empty rhetoric.
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(Mong Palatino, 27, is a Filipino youth activist, correspondent for Global Voices and news editor of Yehey!, a Philippine-based web portal He can be reached at mongpalatino@gmail.com. His website is www.mongpalatino.motime.com. ©Mong Palatino.)
