Thailand ensures no anti-government protest in ASEAN Summit venues: Senior official

BANGKOK (Xinhua) - As leaders from nine other ASEAN countries and six dialogue partner countries have signaled they will participate in the ASEAN Summit, Thailand has ensured on Monday that anti-government protestors will not be allowed to get inside the ASEAN Summit's venues.

Thailand, which is the 2009 chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), will host the 15th ASEAN Summit and related meetings during Oct. 23-25 in central beach resort town Cha-am and Hua Hin.

"We are pretty sure that this time nothing will disturb the meeting," said Vitavas Srivihok, Director-General of ASEAN Affairs Department at Thailand's Foreign Ministry.

In mid-April the ASEAN Summit and related meetings in central resort town Pattaya were canceled due to violent protests by thousands of members of the anti-government United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD).

After protesting and dispersing peacefully on Saturday midnight, it is reportedly said the UDD core leaders have been instructed by ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra to "save the energy and funds" for a large protest during the 15th ASEAN Summit.However, Vitavas said "nobody (no leader) indicates any difficulty to participate. Right now, it is OK, so we assume that all 15 leaders will participate."

Vitavas further explained that "because usually if any leader has any difficulty, they are going to indicate to the host country, but right now we did not receive any indication that they are not going to participate."

Asked if the ASEAN Affairs Department will suggest the government implement the Internal Security Act or emergency law at the Summit's venues, Vitavas said it will depend on the Thai cabinet.

"I think, the cabinet is going to put the (Internal) Security Act as last time in Phuket," he said.

Thailand hosted the ASEAN ministerial meeting and related meetings in southern resort island Phuket successfully amid the enforcement of the Internal Security Act.

So it is going to be the same preventive measures for all of the delegates and leaders, the ASEAN Director-General said.

The upcoming ASEAN Summit will focus on pushing further the implementation of the ASEAN Charter, promoting the ASEAN Community, and the people-oriented issues, for example food and energy security, financial crisis, and natural disaster or pandemic, said Vitavas.

And, in particular for the upcoming Summit the issue of education will be promoted a means for the ASEAN Community, he said,adding that Summit will also discuss the process to establish the ASEAN-China Center.

The ASEAN group, which includes Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Brunei, has focused on economic integration since the 1990s.

In 2003, it set the goal of forging the "ASEAN Community" by 2020 as the ASEAN Community consists of three pillars - the economic community, the security community, and the social and cultural community.

Posted in: Khmer News