Advancing Community Building for ASEAN

Abstract

This is a policy paper supporting the vision of ASEAN leaders in the project of ASEAN Community building. However, it goes beyond their declarations to argue for a more thorough going adoption of the norms of the United Nations and to promote more people-to-people activities and ASEAN consciousness among the people. ASEA N was established in 1967 with the aim to strengthen regional cooperation to deal with the geopolitical challenges of the Cold War. It has scored successes in the realm of economy. Driven by the dynamics of globalization, ASEAN has aspired to become a full-fledged community of nations. It aims to widen its scope to include social and cultural dimensions, social justice, and human rights. The most progressive manifestation of this is the ASEAN Charter. To advance the project of the ASEAN Community, this paper makes suggestions at two levels, namely the level of ideas and the level of activities, with some reflections on nation building. A nation at peace with itself based on social justice and human rights contributes to regional community building. If and when it does come about, the ASEAN Community will represent a new ASEAN identity, with a new moral and political order, and it will be able to articulate global issues in international forums with moral authority and moral coherence.

English and regional identity in ASEAN

“…Notably, many of these features are constantly invoked in the context of English for ASEAN. Heng (2015) brings our attention to the commonalities between ASEAN's 'regional community-building' and 'nation-building' , adding that ASEAN was established using concepts related to 'state-formation and nation-building' .…”

“…Acharya (1997) used imagined communities to explain regionalism in ASEAN, involving a social construction of generative and self-reinforcing attitudes and behaviours that may gradually lead to the definition and realisation of a common identity. For instance, ASEAN is trying to create an awareness of a regional identity by introducing the notion of ASEAN into the primary education curriculum (Heng, 2015). With reference to Anderson's print capitalism (1991), commercial printing made it possible to spread the idea of the nation and the ideology of imagined communities.…”

“…Similar to Indonesia, ASEAN's leaders have imagined a regional community and identity, grounded in 'unity in diversity' principles. This principle is incorporated into the ASEAN Charter, though its role in community building is not clearly articulated (Heng, 2015). In the context of ASEAN, although the English language has emerged as one of the few possible means towards regional identity formation as a way of forging unity in diversity, English remains predominantly a pragmatic, link language with instrumental value, and not an emotive common language that necessarily reflects the identity or ethnicity of the people.…”

“…A closer analysis of the ASEAN Workplan in Education 2011-2015(ASEAN Secretariat, 2012 reveals some of the initiatives planned. The 'Language aspects' in ASEAN Five-Year Work Plan on Education (2011-2015 are listed as follows:…”

Handling Covid-19 Related to Regional Security According to ASEAN Political-Security Community

“…Effective regional cooperation. 18 One of the most upheld principles by APSC while carrying out its actions is the principle of non-intervention. Amitav Acharya stated "ASEAN considers a pluralistic security community, where each of its members retains its sovereignty".…”