Proposed Asean sanctions dropped

Southeast Asian foreign ministers have rejected calls to consider sanctions – including expulsion from their regional bloc – against erring governments in a proposed charter, a Philippine diplomat said yesterday.

The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations has been urged by an advisory group to deal more sternly with serious breaches of its principles by suspending or even expelling members.

ASEAN foreign ministers, however, turned down the proposed sanctions during an annual retreat in Cambodia early this month, fearing they would spark confrontations within the bloc, Philippine diplomat Rosario Manalo said.

"It is divisive, confrontational and we don’t want any provision that would embarrass any member state," Manalo told The Associated Press in an interview.

ASEAN heads of state also failed to reach a consensus on those proposals during their annual summit in the Philippines in January, she said.

A confidential draft outline of the charter, seen by The AP, crossed out a provision titled "Failure in Membership Obligations."

Even without provisions for penalties, ASEAN members were expected to follow the charter because it would be legally binding, Manalo said.

Manalo heads an ASEAN task force that was to begin drafting the charter in Manila on Tuesday. ASEAN leaders are expected to sign the charter in November during the bloc’s 40th anniversary in Singapore.

Southeast Asian citizens’ groups urged the task force Tuesday to ensure guarantees for human rights and civil liberties. Manalo told them those principles would be enshrined in the charter.

Augusto Miclat, a leader of a Philippine-based group that promotes dialogue to solve conflicts, said ASEAN should find ways to make members accountable for breaches of any accord, even without resorting to heavy sanctions like expulsion. – AP