Asean Agrees To Set Up Humanitarian Assistance Coordinating Centre

NUSA DUA (BALI), Nov 18 (Bernama) -- The 19th Asean Summit ended here on Thursday with the signing of three documents including on the propoed setting up of the Asean Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre). The two other documents are the Declaration on Asean Unity in Cultural Diversity and the Bali Declaration on Asean Community in a Global Community of Nations, also known as Bali Concord III. Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said the proposed establishment of the AHA coordinating centre was to deal with major natural disasters experienced by Asean countries. "This is aimed at enhancing response in assisting and rescuing victims and sending humanitarian aid when disasters happen, sometimes, due to climate change. "It is clear that Asean countries too do not escape the adverse effects of climate change as what is happenning now like the major floods in Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam," he told Malaysian journalists at the end of the summit, here, Thursday night. The prime minister said the agreement on cultural diversity was a recognition of the element as a strength for Asean in fostering greater understanding between people of the region. On the Bali Concord III, Najib said it determined how Asean as a community could play a bigger role in the global community. "The document outlines several commitments and actions that can be taken, including strengthening the internal conditions of each country, besides stressing the importance of Asean countries moving forward together towards the creation of the Asean Economic Community by 2015. "As Asean community within the global community, Asean is also 'open regionalism', enabling it to collaborate with other mechanisms like Apec and G20," he said. Najib said the summit also noted the progress made by the regional grouping towards the creation of the Asean Economic Community, including the question of the existence of non-tariff barriers which should be given attention although much had been achieved in removing tariffs. He said much more also had to be done in liberalising the services sector. "We also discussed the geo-political aspect, whereby the summit stressed that in our approach, Asean must be the core to any mechanism; Asean as the centre, and from here it expands into Asean +1, Asean +3, East Asia Summit, and other mechanisms like the Asean Regional Forum." He said with such an approach, the centralisation of Asean could be further strengthened. On Timor Leste's application to be a member of Asean, Najib said the summit decided that the process of accepting Timor Leste as the grouping's 11th member be commenced so that its entry would benefit the country and the people. The summit also agreed on Myanmar to chair Asean in 2014, taking into consideration the positive developments in that country like the release of political detainees and allowing more freedom and human rights. The summit also hoped that Myanmar would continue with measures in an open manner towards greater democracy in that country. -- BERNAMA Malaysia