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CHANCE FOR ASEAN TO CIRCUMVENT PREE



Subject: CHANCE FOR ASEAN TO CIRCUMVENT PREESURE OVER BURMA  REUTER 10/7

Chance for Asean to circumvent pressure over
     Myanmar: Analyst 



                                      

     KUALA LUMPUR -- The Cambodian crisis could be a blessing in disguise for
     Asean as it now had a way of "circumventing the pressure" against admitting
     Myanmar into the regional grouping, said an analyst. 

     "Asean now has a way of circumventing the pressure over Myanmar," said
Mr Abdul
     Razak Baginda, head of the Malaysian Strategic Research Centre, as the
grouping's
     foreign ministers prepared to meet in Malaysia today to defer Cambodia's
     membership. 

     "Asean has no choice but to delay the whole process. It (admitting
Cambodia to
     Asean) would be a de facto recognition of Hun Sen's coup d'etat. Asean
would look
     very bad," the analyst said of the Cambodian crisis. Other analysts
said the decision
     to induct Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia as a group was a way of deflecting an
     international outcry over admitting Myanmar, whose military rulers have
been
     accused of widespread human-rights abuses in cracking down on a democracy
     movement. 

     Asean had argued strenuously that it was admitting countries, not
governments, and
     that in any case the grouping could exert more influence on rogue
rulers from within
     the family fold as part of its policy of "constructive engagement". 

     It had long maintained that it could not interfere with the domestic
concerns of its
     members. 

     Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas said yesterday Asean had not
ruled out the
     possibility of postponing Cambodia's entry into the seven-member grouping. 

     "If that is the desired consensus of Asean foreign ministers, then, of
course," he told
     reporters. 

     Malaysia is this year's chairman of Asean, which also groups Brunei,
Indonesia, the
     Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. 

     As host of Asean's annual meeting from July 21-29, Kuala Lumpur was
probably the
     keenest to induct the new members on schedule, diplomats and analysts
said. 

     Malaysia's Acting Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, told
reporters on
     Tuesday that Asean was sticking to its original schedule for Cambodia's
admission. 

     But, he added: "We're asking our Foreign Ministry to discuss with other
Asean
     foreign ministries the possibility of a change." 

     Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines are thought to be leaning
towards deferring
     the whole issue, at least till the end of the year, when Asean will be
holding an
     informal summit in Kuala Lumpur, diplomats said. -- Reuter.