THE government of Thailand last week announced yet another date
for the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations but
also said the meeting would be moved out of Bangkok to avoid disruptions
by anti-government protesters.
The state-owned Thai News Agency reported that the Thai cabinet
agreed to hold the meeting from February 27 to March 1, but also
decided to change the venue from Bangkok to the nearby beach resort
town of Hua Hin.
Thai Prime Minister Mr Abhisit Vejjajiva, whose country currently
holds the rotating chair of ASEAN, told reporters in Bangkok on
January 7 that the change of venue was aimed at avoiding a chaotic
situation for ASEAN leaders attending the annual talks. He said
protestors – supporters of former prime minister Mr Thaksin
Shinawatra who called themselves the United Front of Democracy
against Dictatorship and who were calling for fresh elections
– had said they were planning to disrupt the summit.
“The first section of the summit among 10 ASEAN leaders
would be held in Hua Hin on February 27, 28 and March 1, because
security officials have advised that it will be easier for security
issues,” Mr Abhisit was quoted as saying by AFP.
He gave assurances that the venue for the summit, which has
been changed three times, would not be changed again.
However, he said separate talks between the 10 ASEAN leaders
and their counterparts from “dialogue partners” –
China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand –
which are normally held concurrently with the summit would be
pushed back until April, with the venue yet to be decided.
The ASEAN leader’s summit was originally scheduled to
be held in Bangkok in December, but political turmoil in Thailand
forced the government there to move the summit to the northern
city of Chiang Mai.
However, the worsening situation in Thailand, which saw the
closure of the country’s main international airport for
a week starting in late November, forced the government to postpone
the summit until February.
The government of Mr Abhisit, who came to power in mid-December,
had earlier announced that the summit would be held in late February
in Bangkok.
Myanmar, which has been a member of ASEAN since 1997, is expected
to be represented at the summit by Prime Minister General Thein
Sein, along with senior government ministers including Foreign
Minister U Nyan Win.
Apart from Thailand and Myanmar, ASEAN also includes Malaysia,
Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos and
Cambodia.
Meanwhile, ASEAN announced on January 7 that Mr Neelakantan
Ravi, India’s former ambassador to Vietnam, would serve
as New Delhi’s envoy to the Jakarta-based ASEAN secretariat.
“ASEAN has enjoyed a close partnership with India since
1995 when it progressed from a sectoral dialogue partner to become
our full dialogue partner,” ASEAN secretary general Mr Surin
Pitsuwan said in a statement.
“I believe Mr N Ravi’s appointment will further
enhance the ASEAN-India strategic partnership that has since spanned
the political and security, economic and social dimensions.”
Other dialogue partners of the grouping – including the
United States, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and
China – have already named their envoys to ASEAN.
Among ASEAN members, Singapore has also named its ambassador
to ASEAN. All member states are required to do so by the end of
this month under the ASEAN charter launched last month, with the
aim of establishing a council of ambassadors who will boost efforts
to transform the regional grouping into a community by 2020.
