| by Swadesh
Roy reporting from Bangkok
(November 8,
2012, Bangkok, Sri Lanka Guardian) 10th Asia- Europe finance
ministers’ meeting (ASEM) was held in Bangkok on 14 and 15 October this year.
For the first time Bangladesh joined in that meeting. Finance minister of
Bangladesh Mr. Abul Mal Abdul Muhith was the delegate chief of the meeting.
Here it is to mention that, Bangladesh has not got the membership yet.
Bangladesh will get the membership on 1st week of November in the Cambodian
summit. The Prime Minister of Bangladesh will represent the delegate chief of
that summit. However, in Bangkok Siam
Kaminski hotel, the 10th ASEM was a huge crowd; 46 finance ministers, the vice
chairman of European commission (EC), chairman of Asian Development Bank (ADB),
member of the executive board of the European central bank, the representative
of the IMF and World Bank joined there. The meeting was maintained by the THI
authority perfectly. The performance of the liaison and the volunteer boys and
girls were very well. Besides that, there is a culture in Asia that they give a
cultural festival environment to any type of occasion. We have seen the annul
summit of World Bank and IMF in Washington. They do it purely as an economical
program. But the annual summit of the World Bank and IMF of this year in Tokyo
was different. They added many cultural events and many people joined and it
turned to be a festival. The 10th ASEM summit in Thailand also did the same.
Opening ceremony of this occasion was marvelous. Dances and songs of the THI
performers amused all the delegates. So, when the world is suffering from
economic crisis, all the finance ministers and the chief of the all monetary
organizations have forgotten to laugh in that situation it has been a great
relief for them.
 |
| Delegates attend the 10th Asia-Europe (ASEM) Finance Ministers' Meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, Oct. 15, 2012. The 10th Asia-Europe Finance Ministers' Meeting opened here Monday to discuss the dynamic growth and cooperation between the two regions. (Xinhua/Rachen Sageamsak) |
However, the
main event was in the second day. All the finance ministers and the
representatives of t all the monetary organizations joined in a day long
discussion. Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand Mr. H.E Kittiratt Na-Ranong gave
the welcome address. In his address he maintained the key words of this
meeting; he told that, ‘the goal of this organization is mainly about the
co-operation of the two regions. It is a mechanism that works as a
transcontinental.’ Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand also mentioned that, the
goal of ASEM is of cooperation between the two regions but the questions is how
it would be possible. That was the main point of the meeting. Finance minister
of Bangladesh raised the vital point of the co-operation. He told that, now the
place of the production has shifted but not the market. So, now Asia needs its
domestic market to expand.
It is to be
admitted that, to save the Asian economy, every Asian country needs a powerful
domestic market. With out powerful domestic market Asia might be fall into
economic crisis like that of euro zone. So, it is the first question, how Asian
countries will build a domestic market? It is impossible to make a powerful
domestic market without new job creation. To create domestic market, to create
new job opportunity and to save the economy of Asia, there is the need of an
economical unity among the Asian countries. The deputy Prime Minister and the
finance minister of Malaysia are very much optimistic. What he told in the
meeting was out of our normal thinking. He gave the proposal that; Asia has to
make one economy and one currency like European Union. The chairman of ADB and
the representative of the World Bank also supported it. But the finance
minister of Indonesia opposed it
vehemently, he told that it is not pragmatic; rather Asia can build up a
monetary organization like IMF. The finance minister of India also opposed it
technically. He said that, it would bring profit for six or seven rich
countries like, Japan, China, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and India.
Finance
ministers of Indonesia and of India are very much pragmatic, The history of
civilization and the history of economy tells that dreams and optimism open a
new door to the future. On the other hand pragmatic mind is very much useful for
overcoming day to day situation. So there is no real ground to throw out the
idea of the Malaysian deputy Prime Minister rather we have to think based on
his thinking. A lot of thinking can give a fine tune of it, but there is no way
to ignore it. We could remember that, the European countries had fought against
each other for hundreds of years but now they have made European Union, and in
this ASEM meeting the finance minister of Italy told, ‘what is happening in the
EU, it never means that we are thinking of dissolving EU; rather EU will get
stronger in future.’ They want not only a strong EU but they also want to shift
the barrier of trade between Asia and EU. In the ASEM summit the ministers of
Asia and EU came to this point that partnership for inter- regional investment
and trade will be strengthen through the market economy, open multilateral
trading systems, non discriminatory liberalization and open regionalism.
To strengthen
the intercontinental economical relation, two regions must be united in its own
area. To do this EU has to be stronger while Asia has to make a unified
economey. The finance minister of China told in that meeting that China is
doing more for the Euro crisis and also doing for the Asian economy. Asian
economy is not in a big crisis at this moment but it is also in a crisis. The
GDP indicator is slowing down. So it is expressing that, Asia may fall in an
economic crisis in near future. So, Asia has to be cautious from now on. Japan,
China and Korea are going to float a bond market. In spite of that, they can
think of an Asian bond market. Besides that, Asia needs more microeconomic
management and more independent banking system. But before that, Asia has to
build up an economical unity. In the context of this unity ADB president said
in this meeting that, it would be a long way to go. It is good to have an Asian
economical unity and Japan, China and Korea can start it.
Not only the Asian economical unity have to go
a long way but also the ASEM has to go a
long way and it is the only way to survive and to go forward for a better
economy.
Swadesh Roy,
writer and Journalist, he can be reached at swadeshroy@gmail.com
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