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ASEAN summit closes with signing declaration on charter
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-12-12 15:32
The 11th ASEAN Summit closed on Monday at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center
with the signing of the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the Establishment of the
ASEAN Charter.
In a statement at the ASEAN Summit meeting, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah
Ahmad Badawi said the decision to draft the ASEAN Charter is not only a historic
and significant step, adding that it is the 10-member grouping's reaffirmation
of their belief and confidence in ASEAN.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
ASEAN leaders stand after signing the
declaration on the Establishment of the ASEAN Charter during the 11th
ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur December 12, 2005. ASEAN leaders on Monday
kicked off a summit to discuss a range of sensitive issues from oil prices
and trade to air pollution and bird flu. L-R: Brunei's Sultan Hassanal
Bolkiah, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen, Indonesia's President Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono, Laos' Prime Minister Bounnyang Vorachit, Malaysia's
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Philippines' President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo, Myanmar's Prime Minister Lieutenant-General Soe Win,
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Thailand's Prime Minister
Thaksin Shinawatra. [Reuters] | He said the
signing of the ASEAN Charter will mark a new milestone in ASEAN's development
into a mature regional organization.
The ASEAN Charter will give the grouping a legal standing and provide the
ASEAN Secretary-General and the Asean Secretariat in Jakarta more clout in
decision-making.
The ASEAN Charter stresses, among others, democratic institutions,
transparency and good governance, ASEAN's adherence to the principle of
non-interference in the internal affairs of member states, and the need to
uphold non-discrimination of any of the ASEAN countries in the group's external
relations.
The charter points towards the ASEAN countries continuing to prefer
non-aggression and exclusive reliance on peaceful means to settle differences or
disputes.
ASEAN leaders wave as they arrive for the
Plenary Session during the 11th ASEAN Summit at the Kuala Lumpur
Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur December 12, 2005. From left: Brunei's
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong,
Philippines' President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Indonesia's President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi,
Thailand's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and Laos' Prime Minister
Bounnhang Vorachith. [Reuters] | Badawi said that
ASEAN is at a crucial juncture since its creation in 1967. "Internally we need
to take concrete and determined steps to guide ASEAN towards the realization of
an ASEAN Community. ASEAN's credibility depends on how it manages to shape this
Community", said Badawi.
The prime minister said: "Externally, ASEAN is faced with the challenge of
seeking ways and means to promote peace and stability in East Asia. There is
also great expectation on the part of the international community for ASEAN to
play a greater role in the affairs of the region".
The official theme of the 11th ASEAN Summit is "One Vision, One Identity, One
Community".
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