By NINIEK KARMINI / AP WRITER | JAKARTA — The Association of Southeast Asian Nations moved to forge an EU-style community Monday, signing a charter that makes the bloc a legal entity for the first time and could pave the way for creating a single market within seven years.
 From left to right, Lotian Deputy Foreign Minister Bounkeut Sangsomsak, Malaysia's Foreign Minister Rais Yatim, Burma's Foreign Minister Nyan Win, Philippines' Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo, Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Thai Information Minister Mun Patanotai, Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem, Brunei's Foreign Minister Mohammad Bolkiah, Cambodia's Foreign Minister Kao Kim Hourn, Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda and Asean Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan hold hands during the opening ceremony of Special Asean Foreign Ministers Meeting in Jakarta. (Photo: AP) |
The charter seeks to establish a single market by 2015 for the vast and diverse region of 500 million people, though the deepening global financial crisis and political instability in several member states could derail those plans.
Asean already has been developing a free-trade zone since the 1990s, but progress has been spotty.
The most controversial part of the charter is a proposed human rights body, the details of which will be hammered out for approval at a summit of Asean leaders in Thailand, now scheduled for late February.
The new body will have no power to impose sanctions or expulsion in cases of serious breaches by members. The regional bloc has drawn criticism over the years for failing to take action against abuses in military-ruled Burma.
Asean was founded during the Cold War as an anti-communist political coalition, later evolving into a trade bloc. It consists of Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
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