A CONVOY of several vehicles traveling in Taunggyi township in eastern Myanmar’s Shan State was reported last Monday to have been attacked by an unknown armed group.
The convoy was carrying diplomats from the embassies of Indonesia and Singapore, along with other officials who are coordinating humanitarian relief from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional bloc. The group got lucky because no casualty resulted from the strafing.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo confirmed that the shooting incident happened, and expressed hope that Myanmar, a member of ASEAN, would sort out its political problems and start a new chapter of peaceful existence. The country has been in turmoil since a military coup deposed Aung San Suu Kyi’s government in February 2021.
‘We are not sure if the Myanmar problem will be discussed by these leaders, and what position the Philippines has on the issue, considering that the diplomats of Indonesia and Singapore were fired upon in Myanmar.’
The ASEAN has not been remiss in leading diplomatic efforts to resolve the bloody crisis, but the regional bloc has failed. Agence France-Presse (AFP) which reported the attack noted that ASEAN leaders’ peace initiatives have “stalled as the junta ignores international criticism and refuses to engage with its opponents, which include ousted lawmakers, anti-coup People’s Defense Forces and ethnic minority armed groups.” In its reporting, the AFP cited that ASEAN was “long slammed by critics as a toothless talking shop.”
Well, this toothless talking shop will again open another deliberative session called the 42nd Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit in Jakarta with Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in attendance.
Aside from a photo session and the usual welcome dinner hosted by Widodo, the leaders of the regional bloc will take part in two interfaces, one with representatives of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) and the other with representatives of ASEAN Youth.
Marcos will also participate in the ASEAN Leaders’ interface with the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC), and another meeting with the High-Level Task Force on ASEAN Community’s Post-2025 Vision (HLTF-ACV).
On May 11, President Marcos will participate in the 42nd ASEAN Summit Retreat Session, followed by the 15th Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT) Summit. This will be followed by the 15th Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) Summit.
We are not sure if the Myanmar problem will be discussed by these leaders, and what position the Philippines has on the issue, considering that the diplomats of Indonesia and Singapore were fired upon in Myanmar. We were told, though, that the Chief Executive is expected to advance the Philippines’ priorities in the regional bloc through regional and multilateral cooperation in various areas. He will also stress the importance of demonstrating ASEAN’s centrality in the region amid geopolitical issues.
As can be gleaned from this schedule, these activities provide only platforms for airing plans and ideas, and so the critics’ perception of ASEAN as a toothless talking shop is close to the truth.
