Source - Bangkok Post Website (Eng)
May 16, 2006


EILEEN NG
Manila
Southeast Asian trade ministers opened talks yesterday on ways to speed up economic integration and turn the region into a single market by 2015, five years earlier than planned.

The two-day brainstorming session among ministers of the 10-member As sociation of Southeast Asian Nations was moved from an island resort to the capital, Manila, after a real storm lashed the Philippines at the weekend, killing at least 37 people.

The talks will explore the possibility of pushing forward the creation of an Asean Economic Community, or AEC, which was originally proposed by 2020. The AEC will allow the free flow of goods, services and people across the region that proponents say will boost trade and investment. The plans do not call for a single currency.

The ministers are to meet South Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong and European Union trade chief Peter Mandel son today to discuss proposals for free trade pacts. But Mandelson told reporters that Burma's poor human rights records could be an obstacle.
The proposal to accelerate the formation of the AEC was made by the bloc's leaders at their summit in December.

"The ministers will be addressing many of the issues that led to the perception that we are not moving in terms of economic integration," Asean Secretary General Ong Keng Yong told reporters.

"The idea is to see how we can operationalise many of the initiatives and schemes for economic integration... There is not enough momentum."

Asean nations have already lowered tariffs for most products among themselves under a regional free trade pact, but the pace of liberalisation in services trade remains sluggish, and a number of nontariff barriers are hindering growth in the region, which has a market of 530 million people but accounts for only 6% of global exports.

Philippine Trade Secretary Peter Favila said they would evaluate recommendations from the Asean Secretariat to strengthen institutional arrangements and to shift from Asean's policy of making decisions based on consensus to achieve the AEC.

They will also evaluate proposals for "strong doses of liberalisation and trade facilitation" for 11 priority sectors-automotives, tourism, electronics, health-care, air travel, agriculture, technology, wood based products, fisheries, textiles and rubber-based products, he added.

Mandelson separately told reporters that the "lack of democracy and abuse of human rights" in military-ruled Burma could hinder plans to forge an Asean-EU free trade area but he pledged not to let talks to be derailed.

"We need to find a way through these problems that enables us to negotiate for the benefit of many, rather than to be held hostage by one country. I will be discussing that in due course with my counterparts in Asean," he said.

Ministers from Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam could not attend the meeting due to other commitments, officials said. The three countries are represented by senior officials, The other members include Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos and Singapore. AP

 

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