Thailand 'seeks delay' in Asean Summit next year

ASEAN+ November 14, 2018 01:00

By SUPALAK GANJANAKHUNDEE 
THE NATION, SINGAPORE

 

A group photo at the opening ceremony during the 33rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Singapore on November 13, 2018. // AFP PHOTO

 

Request of the next chairperson seen tied to the possibility of election being postponed.

 

Thailand's Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha delivers his speech during the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit on the sidelines of the 33rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related meetings in Singapore, 13 November 2018. Singapore is hosting the 33rd ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings under the theme 'Resilient and Innovative' this year. // EPA-EFE PHOTO

 

THAILAND has proposed to host the first Asean Summit of the year in June instead of April when Bangkok chairs the group in 2019, as the country is worried about a delay in the next general election, sources said yesterday. 

 

It is an obligation of the chair country to host two summit meetings of its leaders, one limited only to 10 members early in the year and another one with partners later in the year.

 

While the Thai Election Commission has denied the possibility of delaying the election tentatively scheduled for February 24, there is the possibility of the poll being held any time between February and May.

 

People take pictures with Thailand's Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha (C-R) during the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit on the sidelines of the 33rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related meetings in Singapore, 13 November 2018. Singapore is hosting the 33rd ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings under the theme 'Resilient and Innovative' this year. // EPA-EFE PHOTO

 

Timing the first Asean Summit during the Thai chairmanship for June would be rational in case the election was delayed until May. That would leave sufficient time for the new government after taking office, an official said on condition of anonymity.

 

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who has made a commitment to the international community to hold an election almost every time he has travelled abroad, avoided any mention of the election while delivering his speech at the Asean business forum in Singapore. “It is a great honour for Thailand to assume the chairmanship of Asean in 2019 after Singapore,” he said in his keynote speech in Thai on the second and final day of the Asean Business and Investment Summit.

 

“I give you my word that Thailand will continue to push for connectivity among Asean members in both the public and private sectors in order to strengthen businesses and investments in Asean, making Asean an outstanding destination for trade and investment for the global business community,” he added.

 

Leaders of 10 Asean members, together with counterparts from Asia and the Pacific, gathered in the city-state to discuss a wide range of regional and global issues, including the Rakhine crisis, the South China Sea conflict, the situation in the Korean Peninsula as well as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) regional integration scheme.

 

The leaders of the group yesterday explored the possibilities of their involvement in the repatriation of Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh to the strife-torn Rakhine state, but as of press time there remained no clear solution on the matter.

 

Under the agreement reached at the end of October between Bangladesh and Myanmar, 485 Rohingya families – a total of 2,260 people – are to be returned to Myanmar starting on November 15. Myanmar has said that it will process 150 returnees per day.

 

The Asean members stressed the need to have voluntary repatriation and wanted Myanmar – a bloc member – to address the root cause of the issue. The group wanted to have a mechanism to deal with the Rakhine crisis with participation of past, current and future chairs of the group, as well as other concerned countries.

 

Unless the group can reach a consensus on the solution, Thailand as the next chair must carry on the mission, an Asean official close to the matter said.

 

Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi delivers her keynote speech at the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit on the sidelines of the 33rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related meetings at  in Singapore, 12 November 2018. Singapore is hosting the 33rd ASEAN Summit and Related Meetings under the theme 'Resilient and Innovative' this year. // EPA-EFE PHOTO

 

Myanmar’s de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who was in Singapore for the summit, made no public statements on the Asean proposal, but a source said Myanmar badly needed an Asean hand to cope with the Rakhine crisis.

 

“We need to solve the problem within the regional framework, before it can be brought to the United Nations Security Council,” an Asean official said.

 

More than 700,000 Muslim Rohingya have fled from violence in Rakhine since August last year when militant groups attacked security outposts, prompting a disproportionate reaction framed as a “clearance operation” by the Myanmar military.

 

Investigations conducted by the United Nations and many others including NGOs and media found signs of ethnic cleansing and atrocities against Rohingya, and the UN human rights body called for referring the case of “genocide” to the Internal Criminal Court or other international tribunals.

 

As the next chair, Thailand will need to carry on negotiations on the RCEP as Asean and the six partners from China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand are unlikely to reach substantial conclusions on various disputed issues, including chapters on competitive policy, during the summit this week.

 

Launched in 2012, the RCEP negotiations have faced slow progress due to the differences in the stages of economic development of the members.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/politics/30358492

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-11-14

"...Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who has made a commitment to the international community to hold an election almost every time he has travelled abroad, avoided any mention of the election while delivering his speech at the Asean business forum in Singapore..."

 

Hey Nation! You just pointed out that Prayut has lied to world leaders repeatedly.

 

Subtle. And nice

 

It is a bit worrisome that he has not repeated his usual... er... ahem... "assertions" this time.

 

Is the realization setting in, perhaps from his mis-guided attempt to use Facebook, that the Thai people don't like him and won't support him?

 

Tune in next week; same Bat time, same Bat channel.

 

 

Edited November 13, 20187 yr by Samui Bodoh

2 hours ago, webfact said:

THAILAND has proposed to host the first Asean Summit of the year in June instead of April

let the delays begin

No reason to delay due to possible election. Or maybe Jesus returning, whichever comes first. Military will still have power. Just send one of them in less militant outfit and yer good to go.

3 hours ago, webfact said:

“We need to solve the problem within the regional framework, before it can be brought to the United Nations Security Council,” an Asean official said.

Wot? The UNSC likes to collect solved problems?

4 hours ago, webfact said:

“I give you my word....."

Uncle Tuu said, and we all know that is worth Jack shit.

Because of Thailand's ongoing election date nonsense the rest of the ASEAN membership should agree just forget about Thailand's coming turn to be chair and move on and appoint the next country in sequence. That would solve PM Prayut's dilemma which has come about all by his own making. 

All this bunch do is delay, delay, delay - how can anyone at all in the whole wide world possibly take them seriously? Answer: They don't! 

5 hours ago, webfact said:

he said in his keynote speech in Thai

It's to be hoped that more words made sense than in a Prayuth press meeting. And good that he can speak in Thai, too, as well as rhetoriculogook.

5 hours ago, webfact said:

“I give you my word that Thailand will continue to push for connectivity . . . "

I'll bet there was much smirking and shrugging of shoulders at that point . . . MY WORD, indeed! If only Prayuth understood the irony in his use of these two little words.

Edited November 14, 20187 yr by Ossy
clarity

1 hour ago, Eligius said:

All this bunch do is delay, delay, delay - how can anyone at all in the whole wide world possibly take them seriously? Answer: They don't! 

That is of no consequence to them because no wide world exists outside the centre of the universe called Thailand.

This mindless creep's latest request, of nine other nation leaders, for next year's ASEAN summit to be postponed because of his own broken election date promises, is just about the last straw when it comes to me wanting to feel at ease, living in 'his' beautiful nation. There is evidently no limit as to what this man might say or do in the coming few months, especially should he start to see the possibility of being prised out of the big chair.

I open T-V each day, only to feel more disgusted than I did the day before, so tomorrow, I'm going to try just to get on with my other stuff. Other stuff, like cycling, cleaning the pool's bottom, watching the combines harvest the rice, baking the day's bread and listening to the deepest and darkest mixes in this week's Mixcloud offering, until some masochistic urge makes me click on that pathetic new logo that looks like a rice grain for some obscure reason and the wincing and head-shaking starts all over again. And to think, I came half the way round the FFFFing planet to get amongst all this . . . crazy or what?

 

 

 

 

I will bet my bank account that a certain event will not happen in Feb 2019. The man is already on record explaining why it will not. But that news is reported only outside the kingdom.

So......

What exactly are the positive properties and benefits of an ASEAN Summit? 

 

 

[the inquiry is rhetorical]

12 hours ago, Cadbury said:

Because of Thailand's ongoing election date nonsense the rest of the ASEAN membership should agree just forget about Thailand's coming turn to be chair and move on and appoint the next country in sequence. That would solve PM Prayut's dilemma which has come about all by his own making. 

Your onto something! This junta has lied so often it is time to move on. Maybe by the next round when Thailand is scheduled to host the political situation will have worked itself out....but if not maybe the best that can be hoped for is that it will be more stable.

Edited November 14, 20187 yr by chama
Incomplete thought

7 hours ago, timendres said:

I will bet my bank account that a certain event will not happen in Feb 2019. The man is already on record explaining why it will not. But that news is reported only outside the kingdom.

Which is unfortunate, as most don't imbibe independent and alternative media sources.