IN his autobiography, the late Lee Kuan Yew reflected on “Asean – Unpromising Start, Promising future”. The history of regional community building in South-East Asia dates back half a century. The region was then fraught with confrontation, internal insecurity and the threat of communist infiltration.
Nonetheless, spirits were high in proclaiming their will to “bind themselves together in friendship and cooperation and, through joint efforts and sacrifices, secure for their peoples and for posterity the blessings of peace, freedom and prosperity.”