"ASEAN respects the integrity and sovereignty of each member country, and will not interfere in their internal affairs," stressed ASEAN spokesman M.C. Abad in Phnom Penh Monday.
Abad made this statement when asked if ASEAN foreign ministers, who are attending the 36th Ministerial Meeting here, would give prominence to the recent development on the political scene of Myanmar in their discussions.
On May 30, the Myanmar government put Aung San Suu Sky, a political party leader, in "custody."
"We will not interfere in the internal affairs of member countries," he added, "We hope there will be national reconciliation and the situation will return to normal soon in Myanmar."
On Sunday, he said Myanmar had agreed to an ASEAN discussion on the Myanmar issue. "Notwithstanding its domestic nature, the foreign ministers would express their common view on this subject in their joint communiqui," he noted. This was the first time for them to do so on a domestic issue of a member country, he stressed.
Under the theme "Towards an ASEAN Economic Community -- Integrated and Outward-Looking," the 36th Ministerial Meeting was opened this morning.
In his keynote speech at the opening ceremony, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said, "Our meeting will be addressing a number of developments unfolding in the world that have critical implications for the long-term security of our region and of the world."
ASEAN was established on August 8, 1967, with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration, also known as the Bangkok Declaration, by foreign ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
It was later expanded to include Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia. Papua New Guinea became its observer in 1995.
(Xinhua News Agency June 17, 2003)
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