Ng Tze Yong, The Electric New Paper 19 Nov 07;
THE ASEAN DREAM: WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME?
As region pushes for integration, here's what it means for heartlanders
WHEN history is in the making, it isn't always wars and revolutions you see.
Sometimes, it's the boiling frustration of traffic jams and road closures.
That's how the average Singaporean is likely to experience the five days beginning today when more than 1,000delegates from 43 countries arrive here for the 13th annual Asean Summit.
Roads will be closed for security. Orchard Road, North Bridge Road and Empress Place will be affected.
The summit will see the inking of the Asean Charter, a document that will give Asean legal identity on the world stage.
The New Paper on Sunday asked Foreign Minister George Yeo earlier this week:
Without going into the philosophy, the history of Asean, and without using a diplomat's language, how would you explain to heartlanders why they should be excited about the Asean Charter?
'It will take time,' said Mr Yeo.
Look at Europe, he said. Long before it became what it is today, the European Union was just a construction of the elite.
'So step by step, deepening and enlarging...' said Mr Yeo.
'The challenge for us is how do we get our children to feel more Asean than we do.'
Nothing has done more in recent months to give a sense of relevance to Asean among ordinary Singaporeans than the situation in Myanmar, Mr Yeo pointed out.
'So maybe as we confront crises, as we will from time to time, it will help us define our common identity,' he said.
But what's in it for the ordinary Singaporean?
After all, it was Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong who threw down a challenge at policy-makers recently, during a dialogue with People's Action Party activists.
If a policy cannot be explained in five minutes, then it's too complicated, said Mr Lee.
Very well, we'll try to show you what the Asean Dream is like.
In, as PM Lee challenged, less than five minutes.
So if you find yourself stuck in traffic this week, take time to think about what Asean integration will mean for you - and your grandchildren.
LOWER TAXES?
Asean is aiming to become a single market by 2015.
And, as PM Lee said at the opening of the Asean Business and Investment Summit yesterday, this will benefit the people of Asean in many ways.
'They will enjoy cheaper and more easily accessible products. More jobs will be created as the region attracts new investments,' he added.
There will also be more opportunities for the lifting of tariffs, phasing out of barriers, streamlined customs clearance and free movement of professionals.
'And as the economy grows, taxes may fall,' said Asean expert Hiro Katsumata, a research fellow at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
Sports, too, may go the same as the workplace.
'The S-League may start looking like the English Premier League, with more foreign players from Asean arriving,' said former Asean secretary-general Rodolfo Severino.
Will it mean cheaper domestic help?
'It will be more expensive to attract domestic helpers here because their economies back home will be developing,' said Dr Katsumata.
PAY IN 'ASEANS'?
Would you be paying in 'Aseans' one day? After all, Europe pays in Euros.
Imagine going on a weekend trip to Johor Baru, doing some shopping at the Giant hypermarket and having a plate of maggi mee goreng for lunch - all without having to visit the money-changer.
But that day, if it comes, may still be years in the future.
'A single currency is possible but difficult because of the different stages of economic development in Asean,' said Dr Terence Chong, a fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
PASSPORT-LESS TRAVEL?
Imagine hopping onto the train at Tanjong Pagar and taking it all the way to Vietnam without having to show your passport.
It'll be like travelling on Europe's rail network.
As convenient as this sounds, there may be problems too.
'Will we see more illegal workers?' asked Dr Chong. 'The more developed countries may not benefit from this as much.'
LITTLE HANOI, LITTLE PHNOM PENH?
'We may start seeing Little Hanois and Little Phnom Penhs springing up,' said Dr Chong.
But with that will come more xenophobia, he added.
'You may hear more of the same grumbling from university students of the foreign students who come here and are scoring straight 'A's,' said Dr Chong.
'People may start asking for a 'Singaporeans First' policy.'
But Singapore is already cosmopolitan, pointed out Dr Katsumata.
'Other Asean countries may have more trouble dealing with this issue,' he said.
BYE BYE, HAZE?
When Asean integration comes, will the haze go?
After all, environmental protection is high on the list of issues Asean hopes to address.
'Now, the goal and method of stopping the haze is clear. But the will is lacking,' said Mr Severino.
'As Asean integrates, there will be greater commitment. The problem may end one day.'
FIGHT FOR ASEAN?
Would our NS boys have to serve in Asean's hotspots on peace-keeping missions one day?
'It's possible because we already do send out troops and we already do train overseas,' said Dr Chong.
'But you die for your homeland; you can never die for a region. I wouldn't die for a part of Indonesia, for a people whose language I don't speak.'
But doesn't the African Union (AU) have a joint peace-keeping force?
'The AU has more than 50 members; Asean has 10. It wouldn't work to have nine countries fighting against one,' said Mr Severino.
'Asean will continue to look to the UN for peace-keeping.'
NUKES AT OUR DOORSTEP?
As Asean integrates, as its economies develop, its demand for energy will go up, said Dr Katsumata.
Countries like Vietnam and Indonesia may start building nuclear power plants, he said.
'Singapore will not have the option because it's all urban,' said Dr Katsumata. 'But it'll be something at the back of Singaporeans' minds: What if an accident happens?"
