Myanmar Civil Societies Core Group on ASEAN: National Process Workshop

06/06/2016

Every year the ASEAN Civil Society Conference or ASEAN People Forum (ACSC / APF) takes place bringing together civil society organisations (CSOs) from all member states of ASEAN to discuss regional issues and policy developments on the ASEAN level. In 2016, the ACSC / APF will take place in Dili, East Timor.

Participants discussing during a group work session

HSF

The Hanns Seidel Foundation was one of the donors of the ACSC / APF 2014 when it was organized in for the first time in Myanmar. Continuing this support, HSF supported the Myanmar Civil Societies Core Group on ASEAN (MCSCGA) to conduct a national process including 14 mini-workshops in all states and regions of Myanmar in order to identify priority reform issues in Myanmar relevant for the regional context. These mini-workshops happened in May 2016 and representatives of CSOs in all states and regions of Myanmar came together in Yangon on 4th and 5th June 2016 in order to discuss their perspectives.

In a plenary discussion an endorsement was drafted pointing out the main policy issues on behalf of Myanmar’s civil society to be discussed at the ACSC / APF in Timor. HSF will also support two delegates to attend the ACSC / APF in Timor and represent Myanmar’s civil society’s perspectives on regional issues.

Participant presenting group work findings

HSF

During the workshop in Yangon there was also a dialogue between Myanmar’s CSOs in involved in ASEAN matters and a representative of the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Director-General for the Strategic Studies and Training Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs U Myint Thu visited the workshop and answered questions of the CSOs regarding MOFA’s standpoints on certain issues and developments on the ASEAN level.

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