Cha-am, Thailand 20 October – Activists expressed their deep disappointment over the absence of ASEAN officials during the final day of the 2nd ASEAN Peoples’ Forum (APF) in Cha-am, Thailand. In addition, civil society representatives singled out Burma for its systematic human rights violations and called for the release of all political prisoners including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and for genuine political dialogue between democracy groups, ethnic nationalities, and the regime.

After the reporters summarised yesterday’s discussions on ASEAN’s four pillars, the steering committee passed out copies of the draft conference statement, which will be presented to the ASEAN heads of state at the 15th ASEAN Summit in Hua Hin, Thailand, this weekend. After a vigorous debate over the content of statement, the steering committee began incorporating proposed amendments to the statement. The morning plenary concluded with a press conference that was broadcast to international media over the Internet.

Suntaree Saeng-ging from the Thai NGO, Coordinating Committee on Development (COD), opened the press conference with a statement that expressed civil society’s disappointment with ASEAN member governments and the ASEAN Secretariat because they failed to attend the APF after making initial commitments to participate. ASEAN’s lack of cooperation severely undermined ongoing dialogue processes between civil society organisations and ASEAN officials, she said. The draft statement reiterated civil society’s disappointment over ASEAN officials’ decision not to attend the Forum.

During the press conference, the venerable Ashin Sopaka, a Burmese monk, said that the “governments of ASEAN neglect the people of ASEAN”, referring to its failure to address the situation in Burma. Calling ASEAN’s policy of non-interference “out of date”, he pressed for the release of all political prisoners throughout ASEAN and for governments to protect peoples’ rights to freedom of assembly and expression.

During the press conference, ASEAN youth representatives called on ASEAN to promote community-based education. Pointing to their role as the next generation of leaders, they called for initiatives that promote appreciation, cooperation, and understanding of human rights, cultural sensitivity and environmental awareness

The initial draft conference statement also reaffirmed civil societies’ commitment to strengthen dialogue and solidarity among the peoples of ASEAN to realize a people-centred ASEAN, and called on the Vietnamese government to further strengthen the channels for dialogue and engagement when it hosts the APF and ASEAN Summit next year.