Myanmar To Retain ASEAN Membership
Komfie Manalo - All Headline News Foreign Correspondent Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (AHN) - Despite growing frustration over Myanmar's military regime, members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will not expel Yangon from the regional grouping. As it stands, ASEAN has no framework to expel any of its members once a nation joins the group. Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar told Bernama news agency, "At present, once you become a member of ASEAN, generally it is a membership for life. There is no procedure or mechanism for dismissing or asking a member country to be suspended or expelled from the organization." The foreign minister was chosen by the 10-member in December to visit Myanmar and convince its military rulers to introduce political reforms. He said, "By engaging them, we can try to persuade or influence them, although without much success at present. He adds ASEAN members are getting frustrated getting Myanmar's cooperation and expressed concern over the country's worsening human rights records. Syed Hamid said ASEAN members will stop providing defense for Myanmar it its leaders were not cooperative. During his visit to Yangon, Syed Hamid requested to see detained pro-democracy leader Aung Suu Kyo but was denied by the government.
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