The success story of the EU taught a lesson to the world to be
united and achieve an economic goal, African Union and MERCURS were founded in the
Africa and in South America respectively, Arab nations were created in the Middle East and North Africa, but they were unsuccessful to bring all the
member nations on the same page due to lack of unity and integrity among them.
OIC is another failed political alliance of Islamic countries. SAARC is proved
to be a futile block in south Asia.
Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) was created in
1980’s to achieve the common economic and political goal by the member nations,
ASEAN is an economic and political block of 10 nations of East Asia, it covers
whole Indochina peninsula which starts from Myanmar in the west to Vietnam in
the extreme east, it borders China in the north and Indonesia in the Indian
Ocean and Philippines in the south pacific.
Economically ASEAN is meeting every expectation but on the
political front it looks irrelevant, it failed to address the South China Sea
disputes, Human right violation in the Philippines while drug abuser crackdown by
Deutre administration, ISIS insurgent in Philippines and Rohingya crisis in
Myanmar. Democracy is deepening the root in the region but the military
establishments are always on the alert to suffocate and arrest it, the
one-party rule in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos are an example of major democratic
deficit.
The South China Sea dispute can turn into a major military
conflict anytime in the future, China claims almost all of it, almost five
member nations are overlapping its claim on the Islands and resource-rich
maritime water along with China. Global player involvement has further
complicated the disputes, USA, Europe, Australia, India Japan and other global
players have been calling for free navigation in the international water of the South China Sea.
Rohingya crisis has created major disagreement among the
member nation, it is considered as the capital human right violation by the
international bodies. The immigration policy of Malaysia has heightened tension
with Indonesia in recent years.
The region sits on an important strategic location, so it is
necessary for the block to be on the same page for the greater political role,
the block is one of the vital and the stronger economic block, it can play an important role in the Indian ocean and pacific for stable political agenda, they
have a bigger challenge to check the Chinese expansionist behavior in the region,
and it can only happen through internal political integration and cooperation.
ASEAN should first solve their differences through constructive and
meaningful dialogue, as soon as they find the resolution, they will become more
relevant politically and become more influential in the global economic arena.
