ASEAN: Communicate! Now!

The last week of February saw SEA’s information ministers gathering in Kuala Lumpur. The resulting media statement includes the following:

“The Chairman in his opening statement highlighted that ASEAN should leverage on the popularity of social media that would keep it current and relevant as a disseminator of information. He expressed his view that the Information Ministers should re-look their engagement through new media and the social network, especially with the younger generation, otherwise they may not be able to play an effective role in promoting ASEAN awareness or building the ASEAN Community… Appreciating the need to implement a comprehensive communications plan to meet the vision of One ASEAN Community by 2015, the Ministers directed a technical working group to study the immediate communications need and recommend an effective communications plan, using media channels that are available in Member States. It is envisioned that this plan will promote a clearer understanding on what One ASEAN Community means for the entire region and its peoples… [emphasis mine]”

It would be hard to overemphasize the importance of this task. Last week in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, I had the opportunity to meet a number of academics, and discuss these issues with three classes of students, undergraduate and postgraduate.

Time after time from the academics came the complaint that ASEAN is still – despite all its efforts – far too remote from the ordinary people of SEA.

Many of the region’s citizens have too much of a struggle with daily needs to have time to acquaint themselves with an esoteric topic such as ASEAN.

But even the middle classes know too little about it, and about what it means for them. As one academic put it, it is Tony Fernandes who has done most for the idea of an ASEAN community. AirAsia’s facilitation of cheap flights makes the rest of SEA more accessible – at least for some. It therefore represents a very palpable bridging of gaps.

But while the regional vision is clear and bright for the high flyers in the ASEAN Business Club, it still needs to percolate down to the small businesses who struggle to understand what an ASEAN Economic Community might have to offer them.

As an economics researcher in Singapore told me, generalities are not enough – people in the shoe industry (for example) need to know precisely how Community plans will affect shoes and the components that go into shoes. A monumental information campaign is necessary if people are to start to see what community-building offers them and their businesses.

The ASEAN Secretariat also reported last week on a youth seminar in Indonesia. Addressing the event, ASEAN Deputy Secretary-General Bagas Hapsoro noted the importance of such events, as they provided platforms for young people “to play a leading role in realising the ASEAN Community by 2015”. He went on to say that young people “need to unite to create a strong network with other young people from all aspects of life so they can consequently reach mutual understanding and boost regional cooperation... [and] suggested that enhancing policy advocacy activities would lay the foundation for the youth’s voices to be heard by their governments, parliaments, and business people.” 

Truly, the moment is now. Interestingly, the Indonesian undergraduates I talked to were still largely open to ASEAN, and still prepared to give it a chance. The postgraduates, on the other hand, had already learnt to be much more sceptical. Youth enthusiasm can very quickly turn to disappointment if elements of real progress (or at least good reasons why that progress is elusive) are not very clearly communicated to them.

Young people need not only to know more about what they can realistically expect from ASEAN and what ASEAN is actually doing – because I find there are still a lot of misconceptions and knowledge gaps out there – but also to know how they can learn and contribute.

One undergraduate asked me, “What do we have to do to communicate with ASEAN?” I reeled off a few web addresses – regional civil society organizations (which, incidentally, have produced some excellent training programmes on how to deal with ASEAN), the ASEAN Secretariat, the ASEAN Foundation – but I’m hard pressed to cite a one-stop shop that can link up young people interested in learning about ASEAN’s regional vision.

I would love to know that such a thing is out there, and I’ve just missed it – so if you know of good “ways in” to ASEAN for young people, please get in contact.

I truly think this is a pivotal moment for ASEAN publicity, outreach, and youth engagement. If we can’t draw in educated young people and small businesses now, the ASEAN Community that is projected for 2015 will really struggle to get airborne.