Heyy, it’s that dove that does not
have a say in how it ought to be seen, and is eternally stuck in acting as a symbol
of hope for mere humanity, and is totally fine with it.
I skipped entire chapters about this
in Sejarah, and I have no regrets given that the probability of this coming out
in exams is close to none. I understand that’s not an excuse to ignore this, so
here I am googling what is ASEAN.
It actually stands for something: Association
of Southeast Asian Nations.
There are 11 Southeast Asian countries,
only 10 are members:
- Brunei
- Cambodia
- Indonesia
- Laos
- Malaysia
- Myanmar
- Philippines
- Singapore
- Thailand
- Vietnam
East Timor is not in because ASEAN was formed in 1967, and they gained independence in 2002. As of 2022 they had reached observer status, turns out your country needs to be stable enough to contribute first before becoming a member.
ASEAN rotates chairmanship in
alphabetical order, this year is Malaysia’s turn, so next year is Myanmar’s
turn. There’s usually 3 agendas to focus on: Politic, Economic, and
People-oriented.
The logo design is interesting,
personally Malaysia’s logo looks the best. As for the emblem, that yellow goblet
thing is supposed to be stalks of paddy, in that abstract sense.
The topics that keep coming up and are still being addressed for years are ceasefire, South China Sea and sustainability/ digital economy issues.
To bring it up and talk in an international conference takes
some guts, and that’s the least that can be done: talk.
It gives a uniform and united front to the giants that hold power over the world, even in the 3 agendas that ASEAN takes pride in discussing and forming strategic collaboration (whatever that means) during their conferences.
Again, not an easy feat to coordinate among so many parties
that have their own principles and people to answer to.
There is power in hosting? And there is power in forcing countries to help each member in need? Where else would enforcement be possible? UN? It is indeed doubful to expect swift actions taken when comparing devastating genocides to Southeast Asia troubles presented at a global scale of 193 countries, hence a platform close to home in a group of 10 members ought to do their due diligence.
Voicing out on issues that may (or may not) be under your power to change is, and I still stand by it, courageous.
I applaud the gesture, but majority would not see this as a win.
There are opportunities to change the landscape, or burn a few bridges and painstakingly build new ones, if not for the sake of the country, then for your future generation.
Some things must be done sooner or later, like how the Sun must rise from the East, and how the pigeon must pretend its best to be a dove for peace.