Malaysia plays the ASEAN card

ASEAN Writers invited by the Malaysian ministry of tourim. Photos: Supplied

THE motto of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, is “One vision, one identity, one community”. But some in ASEAN are more part of the single community than others.

Myanmar tourists are free to come and go without visas in all ASEAN countries; all but Malaysia.

“We experience some difficulties when organising trips to Malaysia,” says May Zune Win, the owner of a travel agency. “Visa requests are problematic.”

Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, the Malaysian minister for tourism and culture only found out about the visa issue earlier this month when visiting Myanmar. He says this is a glitch.

“I was very upset when I was told Myanmar people have to apply for visa. This is not our government’s line, it doesn’t promote togetherness and it is certainly not true to the spirit of the ASEAN,” he fumed.

He vowed to take action and see that all ASEAN countries are treated equally.

Visa or no visa, a lot of Myanmar already visit Malaysia and often stay there.

According to local organisations of Myanmar residents living in Malaysia, between 500,000 and 700,000 migrant workers from Myanmar live in Malaysia.

The minister claims the glitch was a clerical error, but it is not the first time that Malaysia and Myanmar are a at loggerhead over visas.

In December 2016, public condemnation from Kuala Lumpur over the treatment of Muslims in Rakhine led to a restriction on freedom of movement between the two countries. 

Before that 3000 to 4000 Burmese migrants were crossing the border every month.

Bureaucrats and politicians in Nay Pyi Taw and Kuala Lumpur may not always agree, but I found myself at ease in Malaysia with other ASEAN colleagues.

Not only did I find very similar traits in all of us, but I also saw how we could learn from each other.

One community, one pot of money

One thing that struck me was how cleverly Malaysia promoted its tourism industry.

This year, Malaysia will host the Southeast Asian Games – the biennal multi-sport event. 

To make sure that the whole ASEAN region talks about it, the Malaysian ministry of tourism organised a visit trip for bloggers and journalists. Fortunately, Weekend was part of that gig.

Over 50 writers from different ASEAN countries took part in what the ministry had dubbed “Malaysia on wheels”, a rather playful treasure hunt all over the country. Journalists and bloggers were invited not only to admire the culture but also the infrastructure of Malaysia – posting pictures of our experience on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram was not compulsory but highly recommended.

I must admit that there as a lot to post about.

The trip included several stops in different Malaysian cities. We took part in a clay pot workshop in Kraf Sazila, we visited an animation studio in Perak, and we wandered the Silicon Valley-ish headquarters of Air Asia in Putrajaya, where employees have meeting sitting on the floors and can play video games during their breaks.

Either the trip did the trick or Malaysia and I had something in common but I found a slew of similarities between Malaysia and Myanmar.

When visiting Independence square in Kuala Lumpur, I was reminded that just like Myanmar, the Malaysians were subjected to British rule.

In the Batu caves, I found the very same monkeys I once encountered in Mount Popa.

The traditional food in Perak reminded me of the Burmese snacks made of coconut and banana called Mote Oo Nout and Nghat Pyaw Kyaw.

Most of all, the many games organised with my fellow ASEAN writers and colleagues made me feel like I was part of a big family. We might, after all, be one community.

If I could feel the ASEAN effect emotionally, it can also be felt economically.

The largest chunk of tourists coming to Malaysia was from the 10 other ASEAN countries. In 2016, 75.8 percent of the people visiting to Malaysia were ASEAN tourists – approximately 20.3 million visitors in a year, bringing about US$13 billion (K1.4 trillion).

Malaysia has certainly understood how to reap the benefits of belonging to the ASEAN community. Myanmar should try to make the best out of its membership too.

*This article was modified on July 24 at 12:00pm, The Myanmar Times originally reported that Malaysia imposed a ban on migrant workers from Myanmar in December 2016. Restrictions on freedom of movement originated from the Myanmar government.