|
|
Change Your Life! |
U.S. urges Asia to tackle cronyism for economic stability |
|
News
|
|
|
July 29, 2000
BANGKOK (AP) - United States urged action Friday against cronyism and corruption in Southeast Asia, while China criticized inequalities in the world economy at an Asian security conference Friday. U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright praised Southeast Asian countries for recovering from financial turmoil that struck in 1997, but said future stability would depend on strengthening the rule of law. But China's Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan railed against the "unequal international economic order" that he said is manifested by rich countries' preoccupation with human rights. They made the remarks at an annual gathering of the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and other countries with interests in Asia. The conference gives countries a chance to exchange views on everything from politics and the economy to regional security. ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Albright noted that ASEAN was moving into its second year of economic recovery following the devastation of a regional financial crisis in 1997 and 1998. "The hard decisions that some ASEAN nations had the courage to make on banking reform and privatization are paying off," Albright said. To grow further, countries needed to adapt to globalization by keeping an eye on market fundamentals, e-commerce and education, she said. "A critical component of this effort will be strengthening the rule of law and curbing official corruption and cronyism," Albright said said. The economic crisis has variously been blamed on lax financial regulations and governance, but also on the swiftness with which Western banks bailed out when financial turmoil struck. China's Tang said that "economic globalization is a double-edged sword," leaving Asian economies vulnerable to the "disorderly flow of short-term capital." A more reasonable economic order, allowing shared prosperity, required developed countries to fulfill world trading agreements to open up markets to the products of poor countries, he said. Tang linked the economic gap to "erroneous theories such as human rights overriding sovereignty," which had eroded the norms governing international relations, Tang said. Albright said that the United States supported improving market access to the world's poorest countries relaxing certain deadlines on some World Trade Organization requirements. The recent U.S.-Vietnam bilateral trade agreement - a landmark in relations between the former enemies reached - would yield "significant dividends" to both countries, Albright said. |