The Expectation-Reality Gap in ASEAN Enlargement

Paper Summary:

This essay attempts to show how much ASEAN's norms have undermined its ability to face the challenges posed by Myanmar membership in the Association and hence also reduce its ability to realize the stated objectives and expectations of the membership. This is even more interesting since there is a possibility that ASEAN, with its rhetoric of embracing Myanmar in order to "democratize" it, has actually perpetuated the repressive military junta. After all, the promotion of human rights and democracy has not been one of the Association's priority. To achieve this, political, economic and security expectations and real outcome are analyzed and compared.

Introduction
ASEAN?s Expectation in Engaging Myanmar
Reality after Membership
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Since 1998, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has finally become truly regional by including all ten states of the region in its membership. In 1992 it accepted Viet Nam s application, and in 1997 Laos and Myanmar joined in. Cambodia had to wait another year for membership but was finally admitted. This has been one of the vision set by its founders since its establishment in 1967 although at that time the Association was more a subregional alliance to contain the internal and external threat of communism for like-minded, anti-imperialist, anti-communist regimes, and to some extent to balance Viet Nam s power in the region."

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