CF Pages

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

The ASEAN Peace Corps

Regional citizenship is the vision.
Regional development is the mission.

Peace is through strength. In ages past, particularly the age we are about to leave behind, peace was through war. War was thought to be strength. What errors this kind of thinking produced is obvious in our world today.

Peace is through strength of the human spirit.

We can never lose our individual identities through peace work. We could only gain a better appreciation of the diversity embraced by the ideals that underpin the fostering unity of our ASEAN by learning about each other.

Peace is a journey of directions. 

If in the recent past, the horizon for our world and in particular, our region seem endlessly dark, it may be thought that our world was wandering in search of a way out of the long night.

We are many in ASEAN but all of us, with the rest of the nations of our world, long for a new day.

Integration is next year. Our governments alone can not fully consolidate the region. We must engage the civic consciousness of the region and provide it a channel into deeper waters.

As such, this shall be a civic organization. It shall operate under the aegis of ASEAN, the auspices of our member States, and the common good will of our peoples.

It shall be a volunteer regional organization with the stated aim -

To strengthen the spirit of human citizenship in our region in Asia through peace work (vision) and - To support of the vision of one ASEAN through regional development (mission).

It will allow our peoples not only the gain of a knowledge of the region and an understanding of its unique heritage of living cultures and experiences, it shall also provide for them, from nations across our region, a meaningful way to gain broader expertise in professions and specialties from the many fields of human endeavor as gifts they may take home with them to their home Countries.

This translates to a capability for evenness in regional development and a broader peace for ASEAN.
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Personal Thoughts 

Five of each ASEAN member States are mainland (Mainland) and maritime (Seaward). Of the mainland States, I believe Cambodia and Laos need the most assistance.

Personally, I envision a railroad that will connect the five mainland nations and serve their logistical needs as well as develop their tourism potential.

Here in the Philippines, it is a further grounding on our the principles of our national economy that I believe most necessary.