ASEAN Hopes for Inclusive Solution to Thai Crisis: Yudhoyono

Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar (Antara) - The members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) hope for an inclusive solution to the crisis in Thailand, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stated here on Monday before leaving for Jakarta. "We don't interfere in the domestic matters of each other, but as a family, we do care about what is happening to our family members," Yudhoyono noted after previously attending the 24th ASEAN Summit held in May 11-12, in Nay Pyi Taw. Yudhoyono explained that the leaders of ASEAN during the Nay Pyi Taw summit had expressed hope that the related parties in Thailand will peacefully solve the political conflict. "And we all wish that the peace process will be an inclusive one because if the situation gets worse in Thailand, it will likely disturb the economic sector not only in the country but also in the ASEAN countries," Yudhoyono remarked. Earlier, during the ASEAN Summit in Nay Pyi Taw, ASEAN's foreign ministers were optimistic that the Thai people will be able to overcome the conflict in their country. The ASEAN member states had also reiterated their readiness to assist Thailand based on the ASEAN Charter principle in solving its domestic problem. The political situation in Thailand remains unstable, despite Thailand's Constitutional Court's ruling on May 7 that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra must step down for abusing her power in a personnel transfer in 2011. According to a report by the Xinhua news agency, the Thai court stated that Yingluck had a hidden agenda in the transfer that was intended to benefit a relative, and she had committed a conflict of interest. As a result, the transfer was illegitimate, unconstitutional, and unethical. Niwatthamrong Boonsongpaisan, the former acting deputy premier and commerce minister in Yingluck's cabinet, has been appointed as the new caretaker prime minister. On May 9, Thailand's anti-government protesters headed to various locations in the capital, Bangkok, as the beginning of a promised "final battle" to oust the caretaker government and usher in reforms before an election. (*) Reporting by GNC Aryani