The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Charter is the legal and institutional framework for ASEAN. It codifies the rules and principles for ASEAN members, outlines the organisational structure of the grouping, and sets out the purposes of ASEAN.[1] Some of the key purposes include preserving the peace and stability in the ASEAN region; enhancing greater political, security, economic and socio-cultural cooperation among ASEAN members; and narrowing the development gap within ASEAN through mutual assistance and cooperation.[2]
The ASEAN Charter is a significant document as it transformed ASEAN from a loosely organised regional body to a rule-governed international organisation.[3] Since its formation on 8 August 1967, ASEAN had operated with little formality; its secretariat was established only in 1975. However, with the advent of new global issues ranging from fiercer economic competition to terrorism to health and environmental concerns, it became clear that ASEAN needed a charter to streamline its organisational structure, legalise and strengthen its decision-making process, and review existing institutions such as the ASEAN Summit so that the grouping would be in a better position to address these emerging global issues.[4]
The idea for having an ASEAN Charter was first proposed by Malaysia’s then Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi in 2004. An Eminent Persons Group (EPG) comprising senior officials from each ASEAN member state was subsequently appointed in December 2005 to draw up the framework for the ASEAN Charter.[5] Then Deputy Prime Minister S. Jayakumar was chosen to represent Singapore in the EPG.[6] Based on a recommendation by the EPG, a High Level Task Force, which included Ambassador-at-Large Tommy Koh, was formed to draft the charter.[7] Although the draft was completed in October 2007, it would take another year before the charter came into effect on 15 December 2008.[8]
References
1. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). (2007, December).The ASEAN Charter. Retrieved April 23, 2014, from ASEAN website: http://www.asean.org/asean/asean-charter/asean-charter.
2. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Dec 2007.
3. Buenas, D. (2007, January 6). Asean must reinvent itself to stay relevant says Jaya. The Straits Times, p. 8; Salim Osman (2006, April 18). Asean officials get to work on draft charter. The Straits Times, p. 13. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
4. Severino, R. C. (2005, December 5). Why Asean should have a charter. The Straits Times, p. 25; Khin, N. (2005, December 13). Time for Asean to strengthen itself: PM Lee. The Straits Times, p. 1. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
5. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). (2004, August 7). Address of His Excellency Dato’ Seir Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, “Towards an ASEAN Community” at the National Colloquium on ASEAN. Retrieved 23 April, 2014, from ASEAN website: http://www.asean.org/news/item/address-of-his-excellency-dato-seri-abdullah-bin-haji-ahmad-badawi-the-prime-minister-of-malaysia-towards-an-asean-community-at-the-national-colloquium-on-asean; Roberts, C. (2005, September 9). The model decision. The Straits Times, p. 26; Li, X. (2005, December 13). Work on Asean charter gets rolling. The Straits Times, p. 1. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
6. Zakir Hussain. (2005, August 8). Jaya picked to join senior leaders on Asean charter panel. The Straits Times, p. 3. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
7. Buenas, D. (2007, January 13). Leaders endorse charter recommendations. The Straits Times, p. 2. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
8. Li, X. (2007, October 23). Asean charter: Draft completed. The Straits Times, p. 34; Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja. (2008, December 16). Cheer as Asean member countries adopt charter. The Straits Times, p. 11. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
The information in this article is valid as at 2014 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.