Aris Heru Utomo's Blog

With the support from the  Directorate General for ASEAN Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs , I took an initiative to hold  ”Seminars and Dissemination Implementation of the ASEAN Charter and the establishment of the ASEAN Community in 2015? in Hotel Inna Simpang on 22 May 2010.  I invited Ambassador Hazairin Pohan,  dr. Raden Ajeng Purwaningsih (Ajengkol) and Abdul Ghofur (Gempur) as speakers at this event. While the participants were bloggers from Surabaya (tugupahlawan.com), Bangkalan, Mojokerto, Malang, and Gresik.

As reflected from the theme of the event. I would like to inform the development of ASEAN cooperation, especially after the signing of the ASEAN Charter on 15 December 2010 to the public through bloggers. In my view, people should know ”the new ASEAN” as an organization  with clear legal rules and have legal personality. Pueople should also aware that ASEAN continues to move toward the establishment of an ASEAN Community in 2015 with motto “one  vision, one identity, one community” .

The opening of the ASEAN Charter explicitly mentions public commitment (We, the Peoples) of the ASEAN member countries to accelerate the establishment of the ASEAN Community based on three pillars, namely political and security cooperation, economic cooperation, and socio-cultural cooperation. Those commitment is once again reinforce the ASEAN Declaration Concord II (Bali Concord II) generated during the 9th ASEAN Summit in Bali, in October 2003, when Indonesia became the Chairman of ASEAN.

To realize an ASEAN Community in 2015, there are many things we need to integrate ASEAN intensively, especially in the early implementation of the ASEAN Charter which are still to be formulated together related to Rules and Regulations

Through the ASEAN Charter, ASEAN countries are trying to grow a sense of friendship and began to develop a sense of us. However, at the same time, ASEAN faced with challenges resulting from global environmental changes and internal dynamics of ASEAN.

In that context, it is deemed necessary to promote the development of ASEAN to the people from all ASEAN member countries so that they are not only involved in the ‘ASEAN decision-making process’, but also attractive and feel the benefits of implementing the charter referred to in the future.

Currently, there is a perception that ASEAN is an organization that tends to be exclusive and elitist orientation. To remove such a view is required the steps planned to be measured and these perceptions are not ‘persist’. The community must be an understanding that the society that will ultimately benefit from ASEAN cooperation programs now and in the future.

In line with efforts to increase awareness of ASEAN, bloggers have an important role, both as a personal as well as community members in using the blog medium to disseminate information effectively on various matters related to ASEAN’s development through the blog as a “new media”.

Any news and information delivered via the blog will be a valuable reference, not only limited to the concerned blog readers but also for society as a whole. news and information provided may be a reference means for the next action plan. By preaching the things happening around us, writing on blogs and social networking media, make blogs and social media as a “new voice” with an egalitarian spirit in it that provide a useful contribution to society.

In this regard, I really apreciated the support from the Directorate General of ASEAN, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in oraganizing event with Blogger Community in order to enhance the community’s commitment in Indonesia. I also appreciated the respond of Bloggers Community and believes that bloggers can act through socio-cultural pillars, especially regarding the Promoting of ASEAN awareness and sense of community. In this regard, bloggers can serve as a shaper of public opinion and mass mover in addressing the problems of intra-regional. Blogger has a strategic role and can act as an “ambassador-ambassador” in cyberspace.

From the implementation of seminars and socializing, it appears that the attention of bloggers on ASEAN’s development is quite high. Hence the initiative’s Foreign Ministry, in this case Directorate General of ASEAN cooperation need to be implemented on an ongoing basis to various communities of other bloggers in various areas. In addition, needs to consider the need for the establishment of an ASEAN Community Blogger, where the Foreign Ministry can act as a facilitator.