Asean Summit Could be Postponed: Thai FM

By THE IRRAWADDY

The longer the political standoff continues in Bangkok, the more likelihood the Asean summit planned for Chiang Mai on December 15-17 will be postponed, according to the Thai foreign minister.

Speaking from Frankfurt and unable to secure a flight back to Thailand because of the Thai capital’s international airport has been taken over by anti-government protesters, Foreign Minister Sompong Amornwiwat said that the Thai government was considering a suggestion from Asean members that Thailand postpone the group's upcoming summit due to the political unrest in the country.

Thailand holds the rotating chair for the regional grouping and plans to hold its summit in the northern city of Chiang Mai on December 15-17.

Government leaders from Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam wrote to the Asean headquarters in Jakarta asking Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan to consult the Thai government on the possibility of postponing the summit.

Surin, himself a previous Thai foreign minister, appealed for "maximum restraint on all sides for the sake of the country."

Several Asean nations expressed concern over the political chaos in Thailand and Singapore asked its citizens not to travel to Thailand.

Speaking to Channel News Asia, Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said, “We are very troubled by it. We hope that all groups in Thailand will have the political will to compromise and find a way out for the country. The tourism industry is badly affected. I worry that the Asean summit will be affected."

Thailand's English daily The Nation’s senior editor Kavi Chongkittavorn called for postponement of the summit, writing on Friday: “The summit's delay would be a better option for the country instead of insisting on with the scheduled meetings.

“At this moment, the government must have the courage to acknowledge that the country is in transition and would require some time to set its house in order.”

Chiang Mai is a base for many Burmese NGOs, civil society groups and dissidents, several of which say they will consider shutting their offices if the Asean meeting is held in the city. Thai security officials who monitor Burmese migrants in the city said that they are not concerned about the presence of Burmese who have lived here for decades, but they are concerned with the ongoing Thai political situation, the instability and the possibility of terrorists who may attack the summit.