ASEM and NGOs

High-ranking government officials from Asia and Europe participating in the Third Asia-Europe Meeting sat down with the representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from across the world taking part in the ASEM 2000 People¡¯s Forum Wednesday night.

The official meeting held at the Vivace Room of the Seoul Inter-Continental Hotel was attended by vice-ministerial level officials from Britain, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and the European Union and NGO representatives from Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, the Netherlands, France and the European Union.

From the Korean government was Choi Young-Jin, chief of the diplomatic policy office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and also on hand from the Korean NGO side were Ms. Chung Kang-Ja, chairwoman of the planning and publicity committee of the ASEM 2000 People¡¯s Forum, and Prof. Cho Hyo-Je, chairman of the international cooperation committee.

During the meeting, the NGO representatives expressed regrets that their demands for the establishment of a citizens¡¯ social forum in the official process of ASEM was not accepted, noting that they had asked for this since May. They requested the officials to set up the forum in the fourth ASEM.

NGOs of the world have been asking since the London summit two years ago that the citizens¡¯ social forum be set up officially under the wing of ASEM as a channel to reflect the request of civil society like the business forum participated in by businessmen of each country.

The People¡¯s Forum organizers also said that they would adopt a draft of the ``People¡¯s Vision¡¯¡¯ in the closing session of the forum on Oct. 19, and asked the ASEM to reflect the draft in its official session.

Criticizing the ASEM for only dealing with economic cooperation and free trade, the NGO representatives were apparently asking the Seoul ASEM summit to become a forum to discuss social reform tasks such as writing-off the debts of poor countries, social justice, poverty, famine, women¡¯s rights and peace.