MIRIAM SUMMONS “300 SPARTANS” FOR ASEAN CHARTER CONCURRENCE

Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago, chair of the Senate Committee of Foreign Relations, urged her colleagues yesterday to concur with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Charter.

“Just like the 300 Spartans of King Leonidas who battled thousands of Persians in 480 BC, ASEAN could similarly form a phalanx vis-a-vis the rampaging onslaught of the dark side of globalization, and reap the dividends from it—freedom, peace, stability, and economic progress,” Santiago said in her speech in the Senate.

According to Santiago , the Philippines will benefit from ASEAN Charter’s concurrence because the Charter encourages increased trade and investment and binds ASEAN states to implement all ASEAN decisions and agreements in a timely manner.

“This means agreements such as the ASEAN Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers and its subsequent agreements would have to be enforced,” she said.

The Charter also creates the ASEAN Human Rights Body that seeks to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in the region, and aims to contribute to the world a regional perspective on human rights.

Santiago also emphasized the benefits of the ASEAN Charter in the maintenance of peace and order, and the promotion of democracy, good governance, and the rule of law in the region. As the ASEAN Charter streamlines its organizational structure, it maintains the inter-governmental nature of cooperation among its members and provides for a more systematic in the settlement of disputes between its members.

“The ASEAN needs to transform itself from a loosely-organized regional body into a more rules-based grouping with a legal personality of its own,” she said.

Transcript of Sen. Santiago's interview

After the Senate Committee of Foreign Relations hearing on the ASEAN Charter

The Committee on foreign affairs has decided to circulate a committee report for signature by the members recommending Senate concurrence for the ratification of the ASEAN Charter. Today, we heard several criticisms mostly based on the fact that Burma has not released Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and therefore any ASEAN Charter should contain provisions that are stronger than what are contained in it at present. At present, there is a human rights body but the charter confines itself to its creation and its provision than its terms of reference, that means its implementing rules and regulations shall follow. At this point, there is no clear definition on what the human rights body is authorized to do. This human rights body was the initiative of the Philippines and therefore, on the part of the Philippines, there could be no accusation that the charter will be a paper tiger because the Philippines fought very bravely to include this provision in the charter. It is incumbent now on these ASEAN members to establish this human rights body and go after the Myanmar issue.

The second is related to the first. The main objection was why does the ASEAN Charter enshrine the policy of non-intervention in internal affairs? That’s a very simple question to answer. The UN charter began when it was formally submitted with a clause concerning domestic jurisdiction, in effect, the provision of non-intervention in the proposed ASEAN Charter is simply an echo of that provision in the UN charter. Non-intervention is a logical outcome of state sovereignty. No state will allow in any document to which it is a party to, to allow any certain foreign entity to interfere with how it runs its own government.

Basically, the objections are in the nature of idealism versus reality. We wish it were a more perfect document, but because of the variated cultures of our region, it is very difficult to get a consensus on a document that will govern with legal force the affairs of these member governments. That’s the best we could do at this moment.

Ambassador Rosario Manalo of the ASEAN Charter Task Force: The ASEAN Charter provides the Association with a legal basis--a legal personality--which means that one, we can sue and be sued if it is internationally recognized, and secondly, that state parties will have the obligation to comply with whatever agreements or decisions are taken.

We think that this is a move forward from the loose association into this rules-based organization. The purpose of the Charter is to have the organization set up an ASEAN community which will be more effective in addressing the challenges and the risks confronting the region and the globalized world.

The Charter by itself is just a framework. It is envisioned that there will be subsequent protocols to flesh out the provisions of the charter. It is not an all-cure for certain, but it is certainly a base to build and strengthen further the region of the member states of Southeast Asia.

Commissioner Quisimbing of the Commission on Human Rights on why the Philippines supports the charter: The CHR welcomes the hearing on the Committee on Foreign Relations as well as your just announced intent to recommend the ratification to the committee members.

The criticism of the charter is that it sets up an ASEAN human rights mechanism but is vague on what its powers are going to be and what its mandate is going to be. However, this is the first time in history that an ASEAN body is even thinking of having a human rights body. Asia is the only region in the world that does not have a human rights body. We see this as a very important step and welcome the fact that the Philippines is the one that championed putting this into the charter and convinced countries like Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam, which are less democratic, to even let it be put in this important charter for ASEAN. We do not expect that something as specific as the power of who will be members of an ASEAN mechanism, will be put in this. We can look at the Charter as a constitution, and as Ambassador Manalo said, the details of such a mechanism can be put down in future documents.

We in the Philippines, with our human rights orientation and our pledge to the UN to champion regional human rights cooperation and protection, will work for a strong mechanism, not one that’s just going to be advisory, all of that is still open for discussion. But the fact is all ten countries of ASEAN have agreed to at least take this very important step.

The ASEAN Charter is a legally binding document that is why we are pushing for it. Today, there is no such document or understanding that could provide the legal power to enable the rest of ASEAN to see to it that Myanmar complies with human rights laws. All the ten member states will comply if the ASEAN makes a declaration or issues a decision to take a certain course of action.

MIRIAM: SENATE TO CONCUR WITH ASEAN CHARTER

Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, chair of the Senate foreign relations committee, said that she will submit by next month her committee report recommending Senate concurrence with the Asean charter, and expects Senate concurrence before the end of the year.

“If all ten member states ratify the charter by December, it will enter into force in 2009. Thus, Asean will ratify its constitution even ahead of the European Union, whose charter was rejected by two countries,” the senator said.

Of the ten Asean members, seven have already ratified the charter, while three countries including the Philippines are engaged in the process of ratification.

The ten Asean members are: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia , Indonesia , Laos , Myanmar , Malaysia , the Philippines , Singapore , Thailand , and Vietnam .

“It was the Philippines that first proposed the Asean charter in the 1970s. To be consistent, the Senate should concur. The Asean charter is a treaty and is therefore binding,” she said.

Santiago said that although the Asean charter includes the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of member states, it will speak out on humanitarian or self-defense events, such as the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar .

“It was also the Philippines who took the initiative in providing for an Asean human rights body, now part of the charter. If Myanmar ratifies the charter, it will be obliged to comply with its provisions and all other Asean agreements,” she said.

Santiago said the Asean Human Rights Body will enable Asean to stop depending on foreign human rights monitors, and instead manifest to the world Southeast Asian regional perspectives on human rights.

“The charter also enshrines the so-called Asean Way of settling differences, meaning consultation and consensus. This is the basic decision-making principle in Asean,” she said.

“The main tangible result of the charter will be the creation of an Asean Economic Community. This means the creation of a single market and product base. In the Asean Economic Community, there will be free flow of goods, services, investments, and capital. It will also facilitate movement of business persons, professionals, talents, and labor,” Santiago said.

The charter provision for the creation of an Asean Economic Community is a direct result of the Asean Economic Community blueprint signed in Cebu last year, when President Arroyo presided at the Asean Summit.

“The emergence of China and India as economic powers has created new realities for Asean. The Asean Economic Community will keep the Philippines competitive alongside these two Asian giants. The Asean Economic Community will be established by 2015,” Santiago said.