Public Seminar – Indonesia’s Agenda in ASEAN Chairmanship 2023: Opportunities and Challenges

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Indonesia’s Chairmanship role in the midst of the dynamics of global issues that are always challenging at this time is driven by strong initiatives to build a regional region that has a stable, fast-growing, inclusive, and sustainable economy. Indonesia’s chairmanship of ASEAN in 2023 is an important momentum that needs to be utilized to create a peaceful region that upholds human and democratic values through policy alternatives oriented to the interests of the grassroots community.

On February 14, 2023, the ASEAN Studies Center and the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) successfully held a Public Seminar with the title “Indonesia’s Agenda in the 2023 ASEAN Chairmanship: Opportunities and Challenges”. This Public Seminar was divided into two-panel discussion sessions and had two purposes, namely first, as an arena to highlight priority agendas that are relevant to Indonesia’s Chair in ASEAN, as well as to become a means for academics and practitioners to identify policy gaps so that, further, formulate an agenda -agenda to be accomplished. Second, building networks and increasing the role of the academic community in Indonesia’s strategic policies is especially important in efforts to build Indonesia’s leadership projection in the region and the world.

In panel discussion 1, the topic was “Geopolitical Challenges and Democracy in the ASEAN Region,” which presented two speakers, namely H.E. Sidharto R. Suryodipuro (Director General for ASEAN Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and Dr. Amalinda Savirani (Lecturer of Department Political and Government, UGM), and was moderated by Dr. Luqman-nul Hakim (Lecturer of Department International Relations, UGM). Based on the presentation submitted by H.E. Sidharto R. Suryodipuro, the government is quite optimistic in terms of Chairmanship in ASEAN, considering this is not Indonesia’s first experience in ASEAN Chairmanship with an “at the crossroads” situation. The most important challenge is how to build a common identity as a new ASEAN political subject in the region and in the world, which will not be easy, both internally and externally. While Dr. Amalinda Savirani explained that, from an internal perspective, there are many divergent things in Southeast Asia, which makes it difficult for us to find a common ground. But at the same time, new issues such as environment, technology, and human trafficking inevitably force us to create a common ground and are expected to have a major impact on institutional maturity in ASEAN. The external challenge is that generally there are two collective identities, namely, a common ground inside or a common enemy outside. This is a matter of geopolitical turbulence, instead of being able to make ASEAN more unified, it actually has the potential to create the polarization.

For discussion panel 2 discussed the Opportunities for ASEAN as the Epicentrum of Growth and presented three speakers namely Ni Made Ayu Marthini (Deputy Marketing for the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy/Agency for Tourism and Creative Economy), Nella Sri Hendriyetty, Ph.D. (Head of Center for Regional and Bilateral Policy, Ministry of Finance), and Dr. Muhammad Rum (Senior Researcher of the ASEAN Studies Center, UGM), and moderated by Yulida Nuraini Santoso (Managing Director of the ASEAN Studies Center UGM). From the presentation of the three speakers in discussion panel 2, there are 3 things that can be concluded, namely, first, the fact that the existing economic deliverables are not a single issue, so they cannot be done alone or seen as a stand-alone part. And because of that we discussed at length about cooperation and the cross-pillar mechanism, perhaps it can be strengthened. Second, Indonesia has an extra challenge as Chair this year, because there is pressure to connect with the deliverables that existed last year when Indonesia became Chair of the G20, so this puts us in the spotlight. Third, it is our responsibility as Indonesian citizens to reconcile, and perhaps also to oversee efforts to achieve existing deliverables.

From discussion panels 1 and 2, it is hoped that there will be many insights that can be developed by the community or academics as both academic ideas and policy recommendations.

Institutional Visitation by H.E. Deng Xijun – Ambassador of Chinese Mission to ASEAN

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The Chinese Mission’s Ambassador to ASEAN, H.E. Deng Xijun, and colleagues paid a visit to the ASEAN Studies Center and the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of Universitas Gadjah Mada on Friday, November 18, 2022. This visit is intended to keep the Center and Chinese Mission to ASEAN engaged and working together, which has lasted for about 7 years and, hopefully, for many more. The Chinese Mission to ASEAN contributed a number of office equipment that are expected to increase the Center’s productivity in time for Indonesia’s ASEAN Chairmanship the following year as a way to highlight the collaboration between the two institutions.

The Executive Director, Faculty Dean, and H.E. Deng Xijun discussed ways to improve the relationship between the Center, Faculty, and Mission in the near future. Several members of the ASEAN Studies Center UGM staff and researchers have recently obtained scholarships and mobility opportunities from the Chinese government.

H.E. Deng Xijun believes that with the existing engagement and the development of the China-ASEAN Partnership, additional collaboration can be enlisted to promote scientific research and collaboration. Additionally, His Excellency is willing to hear ideas and support with the initiative. H.E. Deng Xijun expects the collaboration could arise several policy recommendations, particularly in terms of the Myanmar Resolution, and support the initial stages of research projects in terms of the studies on decision making during the ASEAN Summit as His Excellency concerned with the situation of Myanmar for the Indonesia ASEAN Chairmanship next year.

To wrap up the visit, H.E. Deng Xijun and the staffs were invited to visit the Center’s office in FISIPOL BC Building 2nd Floor Suites 208 and 209. In the office, H.E. Deng Xijun, Dr. Dafri Agussalim, Mrs. Yulida Nuraini Santoso, and others had a brief discussion about future institutional collaboration.

#ASEAN #SoutheastAsia #ASC #ASEANStudiesCenter #PSA#UGM #ChineseMissionToASEAN #China #Chinese#ChineseMission #Visitation #FISIPOL #FISIPOLUGM#BRINGINGASEANCLOSERTOYOU

 

Report by
Syukron Subkhi
Media and Communication Officer

Welcoming our new partner, Korean Institute for ASEAN Studies – Busan University of Foreign Affairs

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Republic of Korea is one of ASEAN’s earliest dialogue partners, having agreed in November 1989 to establish sectoral dialogue relations. ASEAN granted the ROK full Dialogue Partner status at the 24th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM) in Kuala Lumpur in July 1991. In 1997, the partnership was elevated to the Summit level in Kuala Lumpur.

As a research-based institution, ASEAN Studies Center (ASC) Universitas Gadjah Mada is well aware of the significance of expanding our institutional outreach and communications in order to generate a more critical and academic approach to the partnership between ASEAN and its dialogue partners. Accordingly, the ASEAN Studies Center UGM welcomed the Korean Institute for ASEAN Studies (KIAS), Busan University of Foreign Affairs (BUFS) to the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences UGM on Friday, July 22, 2022. Dr. Wawan Mas’udi (Dean of FISIPOL UGM) and Prof. Dong-Yeob Kim (Director of KIAS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish cooperation between UGM and BUFS. Dr. Wawan, in his remarks, introduced an overview of the history of FISIPOL UGM and elucidated how this collaboration will benefit the future of the faculty, ASC, and KIAS. Prof. Dong-Yeob Kim also expresses his appreciation for the warm welcome and his hope that the collaboration will not only produce results in the scope of mutual interest but also provide future benefits to the people of ASEAN and ROK. The MoU signing ceremony between the two institutions was facilitated by Global Engagement Office (GEO) FISIPOL in the Faculty’s Auditorium.

The ASEAN Studies Center UGM will be the implementing partner for future programmatic events and research projects between the two institutions as a result of this collaboration. In his speech, Dr. Dafri Agussalim, Executive Director of the ASEAN Studies Center at UGM, emphasized the significance of the established cooperation to further develop innovative measures through a critical and academic approach in order to strengthen the relationships between ASEAN and the Republic of Korea. In addition, Dr. Dafri hopes that this cooperation will serve as a forum or platform for officers, students, and researchers from the two institutions to exchange their knowledge and expertise on ASEAN and ROK-related issues.

After the signing of the MoU, Dr. Dafri invited Prof. Dong-Yeob Kim and his colleagues (Prof. Gu Bo Kyung, Prof. Zulfikar Rakhmat, and Ms. Moonsun Park) to visit the ASEAN Studies Center UGM Office in BC Building 2nd Floor suite 208 – 208 and meet several staffs and officer to have a small discussion and easy talk to get to know both institutions better.

Report by
Syukron Subkhi
Media and Publication Officer
ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah Mada

#ASEAN #SoutheastAsia #ROK #RepublicOfKorea#ASEAN_ROK #ASC #UGM #ASEANStudiesCenter

NACT Working Group Meeting 2022 | ASEAN-China Partnership: Mainstreaming the ASEAN Blue Economy to Accelerate Post-pandemic Recovery

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In light of the difficulties in setting up a strong and fair legal framework, ocean exploitation is likely inevitable. ASEAN and China must build on the platform’s long-term potential and unlock the platform’s capabilities that are still underdeveloped for regions that rely heavily on the marine ecosystem. The partnership between the two parties was established at the ASEAN Summit in October 2021 in order to respond to this issue. The ASEAN Leaders’ Blue Economy Declaration is a manifestation of the ASEAN-China Partnership on Blue Economy. This shows a strong commitment to promoting sustainable development, particularly in the marine economy, as well as an effort to strengthen multilateral cooperation.

To generate a broader critical measure on this issue, the Network of ASEAN-China Think-Tanks held o Working Group Meeting on the mainstreaming of the ASEAN Blue Economy to Accelerate Post-Pandemic Recovery. Co-hosted by NACT China which is represented by the China Foreign Affairs University and NACT Indonesia which is represented by ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah Mada, the working group meeting took place on Tuesday, June 7, 2022, through an online platform meeting in light of the current Covid-19 pandemic.

A representative of the blue economy expert from each of the 10 ASEAN member states and China represented by the NACT country coordinators have been invited to attend the meeting. Meeting participants are expected to gain an understanding of the Blue Economy and what it means for ASEAN member states and China, as well as identify best practices from each NACT representative, the main goals of this working group meeting. There are a few other objectives for the meeting, which include identifying possible strategic plans that ASEAN and China can use as the foundation for mutually beneficial cooperation.

The meeting was opened by the welcoming remarks from the Executive Director of ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah Mada (Dr. Dafri Agussalim) as the country coordinator for NACT Indonesia. In his remarks, Dr. Dafri highlighted

“The importance of this meeting to be conducted is not only to gather and exchange constructive ideas, but also functioned as a platform to generate long term solutions on some critical issues surrounding the region, and most importantly on the cooperation with one of ASEAN dialogue partner, China”

To facilitate each representative and manage the discussion is conducted with a constructive and effective flow, the meeting was separated into three-panel sessions in accordance with the three pillars of ASEAN Community Vision 2025. The first-panel session raised the theme of “The Politics and Security of the Sea under the Blue Economy” under the Political and Economic Cooperation pillar. Moderated by Dr. Yang Yue, a Deputy Director of the Institute of Asian Studies, China Foreign Affairs University, the session was managed to feature a representative from NACT Lao PDR, represented by Ms. Haknilan Inthalath that delivered a presentation entitled “ASEAN-China Partnership in Blue Economy Development to Accelerate Post-pandemic Recovery”. Continued by a presentation from Prof. Su Hao, a representative of NACT China. He delivered a presentation entitled “Deepening the China-ASEAN Partnership on Blue Economy by Increasing Political Conditions and Consolidating Security Foundation”.

During the discussion, both presentations elicited strong reactions from the audience in terms of politics and maritime security in the context of blue economy cooperation. Mr. Than Tun, the representative of the NACT Myanmar from the Institute of Sciences and International Security Myanmar observed and respond to the issue by recalling the ASEAN-China pledges to promote the economic growth, in this matter, the political and security approach should be determined as the important aspects to support this implementation. The first panel of the meeting was closed with the discussion and concluded with the need for ASEAN and China to take joint action for those challenges (piracy, illegal fishing, and pollution), not only individual actions by certain countries.

The second panel of the meeting raised a theme on the pillar of Economic Cooperation, entitled “Economic Development and Technological Advancement”, and was moderated by Ms. Yulida Nuraini Santoso, M.Sc, a Managing Director of ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah Mada. The second-panel session started with the presentation from Dr. Li Feng the other representative of NACT China, who delivered a presentation entitled “Blue Economy to Boom Economy”. Continued by Dr. I Made Andi Arsana the representative of NACT Indonesia presented his thoughts on “Geospatial Clarity towards Blue Economy: Challenges in Maritime Zone and Boundary Definition for Effective Utilization of Ocean Resources”. Dr. Lim Tai Wei from NACT Singapore as the next panelist explained his research on Singaporeans’ perspective on the economic development and technological advancement in the blue economy cooperation. Next, NACT Thailand was represented by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Thamasak Yeemin from Ramkamhaeng University presented the perspective of Thailand regarding the technological advancement for the blue economy development. Representatives from NACT Vietnam, Dr. Le Trung Kien, and NACT Cambodia, Amb. Pou Sothirak, and the Cambodia Institute for Cooperation and Peace’s Dr. Henry Chan, continued the discussion by explaining their points of view and perspectives.

Last but not least, Dr. Falikul Isbakh from the University of Gadjah Mada’s Department of Sociology moderated the final panel discussion. In the context of blue economy cooperation, the third-panel session addressed the socio-cultural issue of “Maintaining Environmental Conservation.” “Enhancing ASEAN-China Cooperation on Marine Environmental Protection: A Perspective from the Philippines” was delivered by NACT Philippines representative Mr.  Edcel John Ibara, followed by Prof. Li Xia, the third NACT China representative. “Committing Science to Sustainable Resource Management” was the final presentation given by Prof. Dato’ Noraieni Mokhtar of the NACT Malaysia at this NACT Working Group Meeting 2022. There was a productive discussion between the panelists about the opportunities for ASEAN and China in the context of blue economy cooperation before concluding the panel session.

Professor Guo Yanjun, Director of the Institute of Asian Studies at the China Foreign Affairs University, delivered the closing remarks to the NACT Working Group Meeting 2022. According to Professor Guo Yanjun, ASEAN and China are taking advantage of the many opportunities to develop and collaborate on an economic partnership in the blue economy as a way to speed up the post-pandemic recovery process. Professor Guo Yanjun hopes that ASEAN-China cooperation on the blue economy will be one of the most vigorous and promising cooperations in ASEAN Community Vision 2025’s three pillars.

 

Report by
Syukron Subkhi
Media and Publication Officer

Country Coordinator’s Meeting Network of ASEAN-China Think Tanks 2022

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On Thursday, 7 April 2022 ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah joined to Network of ASEAN China Think-Tanks Country Coordinators’ Meeting through online platform. This Meeting was held annually with the purpose to discuss the general theme, sustainable development, and working group proposals for the upcoming NACT Working Group meetings.

The co-host for these meetings was NACT Cambodia. As the focal point for Indonesia, the ASEAN Studies Center was represented by Executive Director, Dr. Dafri Agussalim and Managing Director, Yulida Nuraini Santoso. After considering several themes proposed by the country coordinators, the meeting concluded that the general theme of the 2022 NACT Working Group (NACT WG) meeting will focus on ASEAN-China Partnership: Mainstreaming the ASEAN Blue Economy to Accelerate Post-pandemic Recovery, this theme was proposed by ASEAN Studies Center UGM as the representative of NACT Indonesia.

The “Blue Economy” has become a popular concept that is adopted in policymaking with an emerging focus on coasts and oceans as an essential driver for economic growth. Despite the impact of the pandemic, ASEAN continued to maintain its position as China’s largest trading partner. The establishment of the ASEAN-China partnership on Blue Economy was set during the ASEAN Summit, October 2021. The Blue Economy initiative is expected to prosper ASEAN- China relations while supporting SDG 14: Life Below Water and the Targets of the Paris Agreement.

The NACT Working Group Meeting will be held in the mid-year on 7th June 2022 through an online platform and will be coordinated by NACT Indonesia represented by ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah Mada.

Report by:

Syukron Subkhi | Media and Publication Officer
#ASC #ASEANStudiesCenter #UGM #SoutheastAsia#BringingASEANCloserToYou #NACT#NetworkOfASEANChinaThinkTanks

Ambassadorial Lecture “Improving the Implementation of ASEAN Charter” with H.E. Amb. Noel Servigon

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This year remarks the 15 years of implementation of the ASEAN Charter that was adopted at the 13th ASEAN Summit in November 2007. In fact, the draft of the ASEAN Charter as the constituent instrument of the association had been formally proposed in 2005 at the 11th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Until now, the ASEAN Charter remains strongly considered as the basic instrument for ASEAN and member countries informing policies and decisions on the regional contexts and issues.

ASEAN Studies Center UGM in cooperation with the Permanent Mission of the Philippines to ASEAN successfully held an Ambassadorial Lecture on Friday, 21st January 2022, entitled “Improving the Implementation of the ASEAN Charter”. The lecture was moderated by Ms. Yulida Nuraini Santoso, the Managing Director of the Center, and invited H.E. Ambassador Noel Servigon as the Permanent Representative of the Philippines to ASEAN to deliver the lecture as the main speaker.

In his speech and presentation, Ambassador Noel addressed, through the years the ASEAN Charter has guided the association in various activities. On its implementation, there were several attempts to review the implementation and the provisions of the ASEAN Charter and amend certain portions of the charter back in 2017 in Philippine ASEAN Chairmanship and 2020 in Vietnam ASEAN Chairmanship. Ambassador Noel stated that ASEAN Charter is a living document that must continuously be improved, both in its context as well as in its implementation.

Based on his experience, Ambassador Noel pointed out certain provisions of the charter that needs to be implemented further, he highlighted several provisions on ASEAN Summit, ASEAN Coordinating Council, ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting, ASEAN Community Councils, ASEAN Sectoral Ministerial Bodies, ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting, ASEAN Committee of Permanent Representatives, ASEAN Secretary-General and the ASEAN Secretariat, and lastly is ASEAN Chairman.

The lecture was continued with the Q&A session with the participant and was moderated by Ms. Yulida. The session collected several questions to be addressed by Ambassador Noel, including the question from H.E. Ambassador Will Nankervis, the Ambassador of Australia to ASEAN.

At the end of the lecture, Ambassador Noel addressed the closing speech that he hopes through this kind of webinar and public lecture, ASEAN able to be brought closer to the people in ASEAN Member Countries. These kinds of events managed to raise the awareness and deeper understanding of ASEAN and its charter so that the ASEAN as a regional organization could fulfill the goal of behaving in a rules-based community.

 

Report by: 

  • Syukron Subkhi Media and Publication Officer

The 38th and 39th ASEAN Summits | “We Care, We Prepare, We Prosper”

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The 38th and 39th ASEAN Summits were held on 26th – 28th October 2021, under the chairmanship of Brunei Darussalam. The Summits were chaired by Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah. The summits raised the theme of “We Care, We Prepare, We Prosper” in accordance to the theme of Brunei Darussalam Chairmanship on ASEAN this year. The summits aims to maintain the dialogue among ASEAN Member States and focuses on harnessing the caring nature of ASEAN to build a harmonious and resilient Community with the people at its centre; ensuring that ASEAN remains relevant through preparing and adapting for the future where its peoples can seize new opportunities, as well as overcoming existing and future challenges; and creating opportunities for people to benefit through initiatives that enhance the sustainable prosperity of the region. (Chairman’s Statement of the 38th and 39th ASEAN summits)

The 38th ASEAN Summit discussed three main agendas on the ASEAN’s vision and program development which are ASEAN’s work in realising ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and addressing the Covid-19 pandemic; The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP); and an Inclusive and Sustainable Recovery. The dialogue highlighted several important points on vaccine distribution among ASEAN Member States to ensure the equitable of the vaccine access and the importance of the cooperation among the states. It also emphasized the importance of expediting the ratification process of RCEP to its entry by 2022, and the digital transformation on economic affairs to support the sustainable and inclusive regional recovery.

During the 39th ASEAN Summit, the dialogue highlighted the ASEAN position and dialogue with its external partners. ASEAN still upholds its principle of Centrality and unity between its member states and the external partners to address the common challenges the region faces. During this Summit, ASEAN also welcomed the United Kingdom as the first new dialogue partner of ASEAN since China and the Russian Federation in 1996. With UK as a new dialogue partner after 25 years, ASEAN is currently engaged with 11 dialogue partners.

Beside the 38th and 39th Summits which were held during the same occasion this year, ASEAN also held several meetings with dialogue partners namely the 24th ASEAN-China Summit, and 22nd ASEAN-Republic of Korea Summit. The Summits between ASEAN and dialogue partners discussed various topics, namely sustainable recovery in economic development, vaccine distribution and procurement for the ASEAN member states,  capacity building and ICT digital transformation on economy, e-commerce, green growth, public health, and access on education.

Due to the recent developments, Myanmar was not invited to the meetings.

 

Report by:

Syukron Subkhi
Media and Publication Officer at ASEAN Studies Center UGM

Public Lecture on ASEAN Women and Children Protection through Civil Society and Academic Participation

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The ASEAN Studies Center of Universitas Gadjah Mada, with the sipport of the Netherlands Embassy in Jakarta has conducted a series of discussions regarding the ASEAN Commission on the Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) to map possible engagement efforts with the aim of strengthening the promotion and protection of women and children in the region. The series of discussions have commenced since October 2020 following the commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the ACWC.

On Monday, 30 August 2021 a Public Lecture titled “ASEAN Women and Children Protection through Civil Society and Academic Participation” was held to further map potential roles that CSOs and think tanks can play to further advocate for the of women and children. The Lecture was officially opened by the opening remarks from Dr. Dafri Agussalim as the Executive Director of ASEAN Studies Center UGM, and H.E. Amb. Lambert Grijns as the Ambassador of the Kingdom of The Netherlands to Indonesia, Timor-Leste, and ASEAN.

This Public Lecture was attended by approximately 60 participants from across ASEAN members. Moderated by Ms. Yuyum Fhahni Paryani, former Indonesian Representative for the ACWC on Children’s Rights, the discussion invited four panelists namely Dato Paduka Dr Haji Junaidi bin Haji Abd. Rahman as the ACWC Chair and Brunei Darussalam’s Representative for Children’s Rights, Ms. Yanti Kusumawardhani, Indonesia’s Representative to the ACWC for Children’s Rights, Ms. Santi Kusumaningrum, Director of PUSKAPA – Center on Child Protection and Wellbeing at the University of Indonesia, and Ms. Rachel Tan, as Program Officer and focal point for the Women Gender and Diversity Working Group of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN).

The discussion highlighted a number of issues including the role of CSOs and the academic community which is to support the State in undertaking the obligation as duty bearer in fulfilling the rights of Children, to contribute to CRC Alternative Report CRC in order to support the government efforts on implementing CRC including ensuring child participation, to undertake research on the situation and well-being of women and children, and contribute on implementing Concluding Observation of CRC beneficial as foundation works on measures to child rights realizations.

The academic community can also come together by directing the government towards three main areas of support for women and children: social protection, family support and specialized protection. These points are to be included in policy briefs/suggestions to inform policy makers of an added layer of vulnerability and risk experienced by children due to miscalculated policies.

The importance of participatory approaches was also highlighted during the discussion, especially on issues concerning refugee women and children. The ACWC can play a strategic role in engaging and consolidating the many different fronts and actors to prevent miscalculated policies from being found.

The discussion also invited discussants, namely H.E. Yuyun Wahyuningrum, the Representative of Indonesia to AICHR, Mr. Ali Aulia Ramly, Child Protection Specialist of UNICEF Indonesia, and Ms. Audrey Lee, Senior Program Manager at International Women’s Right Action Watch Asia-Pacific (IWRAW-AP).

The discussion was closed by Ms. Yuyum Fhani Paryani as the moderator with a summary of the discussion which was carried out.

Bincang ASEAN “Myanmar Protests and Unrest: A Test of ASEAN Diplomacy”

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On Friday, 23 April 2021, ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah Mada held a Webinar Series titled “Myanmar Protests and Unrest: A Test of ASEAN Diplomacy” which was led by Managing Director, Yulida Nuraini Santoso. The discussion highlighted the campaign of #FreeSawLin and diplomatic efforts by ASEAN member states during this crucial time, especially as the member states were scheduled to gather at the ASEAN Leader’s Meeting on Saturday, 24 April 2021.

Nicolas Jude Martinez, a representative of the #FreeSawLin campaign from the Global Campus Coalition for Human Rights (GCCHR) explained that the campaign was launched to bring together people from all regions to fight for equality, restorative justice, and democracy, especially in education. The arbitrary arrest of Saw Lin Htet, a citizen of Myanmar, who happened to be studying human rights is just one out of the many cases of people who had been affected by the restriction of freedom to education by the military Junta. Education is the gateway to livelihood and this in turn helps to create an economic safety net which is much needed for communities at risk.

From a regional point of view, Dr. Rizal Sukma, Central for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Indonesia, and former Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia for UK, Ireland, and IMO explained that if any change were to happen, this would greatly depend on the Leaders Meeting and the negotiation package put forward by ASEAN member states. Despite the large criticism of member states acknowledging the military Junta by welcoming them at the Leaders meeting, he argues that this is in fact necessary for a meaningful dialogue to take place and serves a greater chance for killings and fatalities to come to an end.

The discussion also discussed the coup being a momentum for revisiting the ASEAN Charter which had for a long time been critiqued by the international community for excluding meaningful notions of responding towards human rights above Centrality and the mandate that the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights can play in a situation as such. Dr Rizal states that, “we need more than just sanctions, we need the support of the international community. But for now, what is most important is how to stop the killings and how ASEAN can come together to assist in order to create a safe environment for a meaningful dialogue.”

The full webinar discussion can be accessed on our YouTube Channel, titled Bincang ASEAN “Myanmar Protests and Unrest: A Test of ASEAN Diplomacy” by following the link below:

ugm.id/youtubeascugm

#ASEAN #SoutheastAsia #Myanmar #Coup #CSIS #GlobalCampusCoalitionForHumanRights #WhatIsHappeningInMyanmar #FreeSawlin #ASEANStudiesCenter #ASC #UGM

Network on ASEAN-China Think Tanks (NACT) Annual Meeting 2021

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The 2021 NACT Annual Meeting, which also marks the 30th anniversary of the ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations, was held on March 19, 2021. In his opening remarks, President of China Foreign Affairs University (CFAU), Xu Jian, stated that in times of difficulties where the COVID-19 pandemic challenges multilateralism, it is the region’s ultimate fight to curb the virus’s spread while at the same time strengthen the commitment in regional partnership in coping with the adverse impacts on the social and economic sector.

On a similar note, Dr. Nguyen Hung Son, the Vice President of Diplomatic Academy of Viet Nam (DAV), acknowledged that the forum could be a platform to discuss and comprehend each view on the Southeast Asia region’s development. On this occasion, the panel is expected to promote good relationships and bring prosperity to the parties. As an essential dialogue partner, a substantive partnership among NACT members is needed in order to construct ideal regional architecture. In regards to current challenges, the foundation of the cooperation must be based on responsibility and responsiveness.

The moderated discussion was attended by nine keynote speakers from each of NACT members and was parted into two panels; (1) Economy and Sustainable Development in ASEAN – China Relations, moderated by Dr. To Minh Tu (DAV), and (2) Economy and Sustainable Development in ASEAN – China Relations, moderated by Prof. Guo Yanjun (CFAU). NACT Indonesia was represented by Mrs. Yulida Nuraini Santoso (Managing Director of ASEAN Studies Center, Universitas Gadjah Mada) with a research paper titled “Achieving Sustainable Development Goals by 2030: Reducing the Gap of Inequality through ASEAN-China Trade Relations.” In her statement, Mrs. Yulida proposed ways forward in eradicating inequality, such as strengthening the partnership between China and ASEAN, which is based on mutual benefits and exchanging innovation among international organizations.

The meeting was concluded with a hope to enhance mutual trust and understanding between China and ASEAN member states, as well as exchanging knowledge and perspective to ensure stability, resilience, and development in the region.