Burma bid for early ASEAN admission

[moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Subject: Burma bid for early ASEAN admission seen stumbling 



 Burma bid for early ASEAN admission seen stumbling 
 04:12 a.m. May 28, 1997 Eastern 

 By Bill Tarrant 

 KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 (Reuter) - Burma's bid for early
 admission into the Association of South East Asian Nations
 (ASEAN) appeared doomed by concern over its human rights
 record and strife in Cambodia, officials said on Wednesday. 

 Foreign ministers of the ASEAN nations -- Brunei, Indonesia,
 Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam -- will
 meet in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday to decide when to admit its final
 three members. 

 ASEAN said last year it would admit all three together. 

 Malaysia, this year's ASEAN chairman, has been pressing for
 Burma, Laos and Cambodia to be inducted at ASEAN's annual
 ministerial meeting on July 24-25 in Kuala Lumpur. 

 Alternatively, the three could be admitted at an informal ASEAN
 summit in December, also in Malaysia. 

 ``I've been told the ambassadors of the three (Burma, Laos and
 Cambodia) have been asked to stand by for the press conference
 after Saturday's meeting,'' a Western diplomat said. 

 Malaysia's acting Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told reporters on
 Thursday that the admission of the three countries would take place
 by the end of the year. 

 ``Our decision has been rather consistent, that the admission should
 be the latest by the summit. Meaning, therefore, that the process can
 take some time, particularly because we have always adhered to the
 principle of consensus,'' Anwar said. 

 Diplomats said Malaysia preferred the July timeframe because it
 wants the December summit -- to which Japan, China and South
 Korea have also been invited -- to focus on Asia-wide issues. 

 A senior Cambodian official said on Tuesday that the admission of
 the three would have to be delayed because of Cambodia's political
 problems. 

 A tense feud between the leaders of Cambodia's coalition
 government has raised doubts about whether Phnom Penh could
 pass the necessary legislation by the July ministerial meeting. 

 Political analysts said the country's instability had also triggered
 concern over Cambodia's readiness to join. 

 Separately, the United States has asked ASEAN to delay Burma's
 entry because of its human rights record and the suppression of the
 democracy movement led by Aung San Suu Kyi. 

 A senior official in Thailand's foreign ministry said on Wednesday the
 combination of factors could result in a delay. 

 ``They may delay the decision, and most likely they would decide on
 the issue by the end of the year when the heads of government of
 ASEAN members meet,'' said the official, who declined to be
 named. 

 ``By now, Kuala Lumpur seems to realise the current situation is not
 appropriate to push too hard because of the internal and external
 factors,'' he told Reuters. 

 Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who is believed to be
 keen on early admission, could have used his prestige in the region to
 twist some arms over the issue, diplomats said. 

 But he is in London on a two-month leave. 

 An influential Malaysian Moslem group on Thursday urged that
 Burma's admission be deferred over its alleged harassment of the
 country's Moslem minority. 

 The Moslem Youth Movement of Malaysia, in a letter to Anwar and
 the foreign ministry, said 30 mosques have been destroyed since
 mid-March and held Burma's military rulers responsible. 

 Clashes between Buddhists and Moslems broke out in March in
 Burma's second city, Mandalay. Witnesses said mosques were
 ransacked and monks staged street protests. The unrest spread to
 other cities including the capital of Rangoon. 

 ASEAN members Indonesia, Brunei and Malaysia have Moslem
 majorities. 

 Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas said ASEAN would admit its
 new members this year, but did not say exactly when. 

 ``Our hope is we will reach a consensus that those three nations can
 become full members this year,'' Alatas said on Wednesday after
 meeting President Suharto. ^REUTER@