The idea of a permanent Asean Commission for the Management of the South China Sea Disputes would be feasible if the dispute were within Asean, but not when it is between a member and an outside country.
From
Bernard Sim Kheng Joo
Published: 4:00 AM, November 9, 2016
The Association of South-east Asian Nations’ consensus principle has been unchanged since its inception, and members who have joined later know this too (“Can Asean overcome its deadlock over S China Sea?”; Nov 1).
Asean states agree also not to interfere in one another’s politics. And obviously, political events outside this region are beyond Asean’s control.
A member attempting to coerce others to issue a joint statement in support of its position would be violating the Asean spirit.
Any state attempting to turn Asean into a platform to pursue its own agenda would ultimately jeopardise Asean unity and centrality. To bend the consensus principle would lead to Asean disintegration.
So the suggestion of supplementary mechanisms is a compromise to be avoided. Another is the adoption of majority-vote decisions. Such deviations would have consequences for parties not involved in the South China Sea disputes.
The idea of a permanent Asean Commission for the Management of the South China Sea Disputes would be feasible if the dispute were within Asean, but not when it is between a member and an outside country.
Through such a commission, claimant states could exploit Asean to confront China, which is what Vietnam may want.
Finally, caucuses are merely loose talk that, with participants from the West, could enflame the region, as in the Middle East.