‘ASEAN shamed by Myanmar aid crisis’

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Monday , May 12, 2008 at 1038 hrs ASEAN has again been shamed by its failure to bring member state Myanmar into line, this time over demands it open its doors to a full-scale cyclone relief effort, critics said on Monday.

The aid crisis, which is imperilling the lives of 1.5 million desperate survivors of the disaster, makes a mockery of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' efforts to exert more influence on members, they said.

"This reflects dismally on all ASEAN leaders and governments. They can definitely do more," said Lim Kit Siang, from the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Caucus, which was formed in 2004 to push for democratic reform in Myanmar.

The crisis has erupted a year after the 10-nation bloc signed a landmark charter committing it to human rights and democratic ideals and setting out principles and rules for members.

"It makes a total mockery of the charter which is now utterly meaningless. All ASEAN foreign ministers should convene an emergency meeting on this issue," said Lim, a leading figure in Malaysia's opposition.

"With Myanmar as a member, ASEAN should have set the lead and persuaded the military junta to open up or face censure and possibly suspension," he said, adding that the affair cast doubt over ASEAN's entire existence.

"The whole question of its utility, its relevance, its pertinence is critical after years of failure to act on the Myanmar issue," he added.