WHAT COUNTS AS PROGRESS?
Against this backdrop, the 5PC remains important even if progress on implementing it has been limited.
The point is not to expect all five elements to be fully achieved before ASEAN can move forward, but to retain a common benchmark against which progress can be assessed. As Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan put it, the 5PC “was and remains valid”, but ASEAN needs to see “demonstrable progress”.
The more difficult question is what demonstrable progress looks like. He identified three areas: an end to violence against civilians, the release of political detainees including ex-leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and humanitarian assistance reaching people across the country regardless of political allegiance.
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