His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, has expressed his satisfaction with the prevailing peace and stability in the ASEAN region. However, the Monarch also voiced his concern about several problems occurring in the last 12 months especially about infectious diseases. His Majesty made the remarks Monday at the

eleventh ASEAN Summit being held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre. The summit was attended by heads of state and government of ASEAN member countries and was chaired by the Malaysian Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
 

His Majesty, in his statement in the plenary session of the summit said the last 12 months had been a difficult time especially with the problem posed by terrorism, natural disasters and epidemic diseases. Of particular concern to His Majesty were the emergence of avian flu and the outbreak of the infectious diseases. These presented serious threats, not only to the ASEAN economies but also the drastic impact they had on the well-being and security of the people and countries affected by them. His Majesty further stated that the people had a straight forward demand from the summit; that ASEAN was well-prepared and able to work efficiently together. The annual summit provided the chance to show that ASEAN can work together and efficiently, as well as to ensure the vision of an ASEAN community was realized. His Majesty also emphasized that cooperation in the transportation, communication and ASEAN Exchange Programme involving youth and culture would ensure realizing a sense of belonging to ASEAN community. Furthermore, His Majesty reiterated call on business communities to take advantage of the economic policies and measures introduced by ASEAN.

After the summit, His Majesty consented to join other ASEAN leaders in signing the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the Establishment of the ASEAN Charter. Present at the ceremony was His Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Bolkiah, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The Declaration states that the ASEAN Charter will among others serve as a legal and institutional framework of ASEAN to support the realization of its goals and objectives.

Later in the day, His Majesty attended the 9th ASEAN Plus Three Summit. The summit brings together Heads of State and Government of ASEAN with their counterparts from the Plus Three countries namely China, Japan and the Republic of Korea. The Heads of State and Government of the ASEAN Plus Three countries discussed issues of mutual interest including the progress of ASEAN Plus Three cooperation.
 

His Majesty in his speech emphasized the importance of dialogue and consultation for the peace and stability of the region as well as for the cooperation and development that people were seeking all over East Asia. His Majesty reaffirmed the relevance of the ASEAN Plus Three Summit in the regional architecture of East Asia even as the East Asia Summit which convince tomorrow. In this context, His Majesty was very pleased with the substantial body of cooperation that had been set up over the last eight years which helped in fostering friendship, mutual trust and practical ways of working together.

His Majesty urged that the geographical proximity of ASEAN Plus Three Partners not only made them natural trading partners but also served as good basis to forge closer economic ties. His Majesty was also pleased with the efforts to strengthen all aspects of cultural cooperation. In fostering a sense of identity with the East Asia Region, His Majesty suggested enhanced cooperation in communication, transportation, air linkages as well as information and communications technology as one practical way to achieve it. His Majesty encouraged ASEAN Plus Three to cooperate in a more comprehensive nature, especially in dealing with common challenges and called on establishing cooperation in the area of disaster management and to curb infectious diseases. His Majesty further stated that the ASEAN Plus Three cooperation played an important role as a prime mover to realize the East Asia Community. His Majesty therefore believed that it was essential for the ASEAN Plus Three process to continue to deepen its dialogue and cooperation activities in all areas in order to set the direction and pace for the East Asia community building.

His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam then consented to join the other ASEAN Plus Three Heads of State and Government to sign the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the ASEAN Plus Three Summit. His Royal Highness Prince Mohamad Bolkiah, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, was present at the signing ceremony.
 

The Declaration states that the ASEAN Plus Three Summit continues to encourage and support cooperation under the ASEAN Plus One process to complement the overall cooperation within the ASEAN Plus Three framework, speed up the implementation of the short-term and medium and long-term measures of the East Asia Study Group final report and enhance people-to-people exchange.

After the 9th ASEAN Plus Three Summit, His Majesty attended the 9th ASEAN-China Summit. At the meeting, His Majesty expressed his satisfaction on the progress of the ASEAN-China cooperation especially in the priority areas such as information and communication technology as well as human resource development. His Majesty also expressed the hope that more could still be

achieved in the economic area specifically in services and investment with a view to establish a comprehensive economic cooperation.

His Majesty was also pleased with the role played by China in the development of ASEAN’s sub-regions that would help to bridge the development gaps within ASEAN. His Majesty, particularly, was encouraged by China’s interest to assist in the BIMP-EAGA’s work programme. On the ASEAN-wide cooperation with China, His Majesty supported the idea of setting up as ASEAN-China Trade, Investment and Tourism Promotion Centre as well as ASEAN-China Youth Entrepreneurs Association which would bring together the people from China and ASEAN in those important areas.

Later in the evening, His Majesty attended the dinner session between ASEAN Heads of State and Government and the members of the Eminent Person’s Group, EPG, on the ASEAN Charter.
 

At the dinner, discussion revolved around issues such as the function of ASEAN, ways to improve the ASEAN process and the role of an ASEAN Charter. The Chairman of the EPG on the ASEAN Charter also informed the leaders on the outcome of the EPG’s First Meeting.

Brunei Darussalam and Japan has agreed to launch scoping consultation early next year with a view to starting negotiations for a bilateral Economic Partnership Agreement, EPA. The decision was reach in a bilateral meeting Monday between His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam and the Prime Minister of Japan,

His Excellency Junichiro Koizumi. The meeting was held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, KLCC in Malaysia. At the meeting, His Majesty and Prime Minister Koizumi also exchanged views on the ways to further strengthen Brunei Darussalam-Japan economic relations. Both His Majesty and His Excellency expressed satisfaction with the excellent relations that exist between Brunei Darussalam and Japan.

Present at the meeting was His Royal Highness Prince Mohammad Bolkiah, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Also present were the Minister of Energy in the Prime Minister’s Office, Pehin Dato Seri Paduka Haji Yahya, the Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Pehin Dato Seri Paduka Lim Jock Seng, the Brunei Darussalam High Commissioner to Malaysia, His Excellency Dato Seri Setia Dr. Haji Mohammad Amin and the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Pengiran Dato Paduka Osman.

English plays a pivotal role in communication between nations, in industry and even across cultures. In Brunei Darussalam, English is widely used and Bruneians from all walks of life speak the language. For 20 years now, the country has followed a bilingual education system, and as a result, it might be expected to see school leavers who are proficient in both Malay and English. The Minister of Education laid the emphasis when he opened the 10th Conference on “English in South-East Asia - A Decade of Growth” Monday.

Pehin Dato Seri Setia Haji Abdul Rahman, however, voiced his concern that the English Language ‘O’ Level results remain much to be desired. This brings to question whether Bruneians know enough to realise their full potential, whether if school pupils are able to follow their lessons in English, or are they disadvantaged having to study in a second language. The three-day conference was of interest to members of the public as well as professionals concerned with the role of English in Brunei and South-East Asia generally, and current topics in English Language education in particular. The conference took place at the Chancellor Hall of Universiti Brunei Darussalam and supported by the British Council and Royal Brunei Airlines.

Several ministries held doa selamat in honour of their officers and staff going on the haj this year. The Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources held such a function Monday for its employees.

There was a religious talk delivered by a lecturer from the Islamic Dakwah Centre, Haji Ismail bin Muhammad Arif. He among other things reminded pilgrims on haj affairs and to uphold their faith in accordance to the teachings of Hadith and Al-Quran.

The Minister of Industry and Primary Resources, Pehin Dato Seri Setia Doctor Haji Ahmad then presented souvenirs to nine intending pilgrims from the ministry. Among them will be the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources, Dato Paduka Haji Mohd. Hamid bin Haji Mohd. Jaafar.

Doa selamat was also held for ten officers and staff of the Ministry of Communications and departments under it. An officer of Mosque Affairs of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Awang Azrin bin Haji Damit read the doa.

The Minister of Communications, Pehin Dato Seri Setia Haji Abu Bakar and his deputy, Dato Paduka Haji Yusof bin Haji Abdul Hamid as well as the Permanent Secretary at the ministry, Dato Paduka Haji Mohamad Yusof bin Haji Hassan were among those present at the function that took place at the ministry in Jalan Menteri Besar.

The Government of His Majesty has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Microsoft Corporation, aimed at bringing closer collaboration in the e-government and education sectors. The signing of the MOU took place Monday at the Ministry of Finance, in the presence of the Permanent Secretary at the ministry, Dato Paduka Haji Ali bin Apong. Signing on behalf of His Majesty’s Government was the Director of Information Technology and State Stores, Awang Haji Mahmud bin Haji Mohamad Daud, whilst Microsoft Corporation was represented by its General Manager of Microsoft Southeast Asia New Markets, Mr. Faycal Bouchlaghem.

Under the MOU, both parties will immediately negotiate potential scope of cooperation in the area of ICT, ongoing collaboration discussions and other areas of possible collaborations in the local ICT ecosystems such as e-government, education, software localization programme, solution market place, human resources capacity building and up to date security best practices in the cyber environments. The Director of Information Technology and State Stores, Awang Haji Mahmud told RTB that the partnership is a significant milestone for the country’s operational and development purposes

Twenty-three Bruneian athletes to the 3rd ASEAN Para Games to be held in Manila left the country for the Philippine capital, Monday. Present at the Brunei International Airport to bid them farewell was the Director of Community Development, Datin Hajah Adina. Prior to their departure, Datin Hajah Adina spoke to the athletes urging them to demonstrate a true sporting spirit at all times as well as to promote friendship and solidarity among all members of the ASEAN Para Games.

The games will take place from the 14th until the 20th of this month. Brunei Darussalam will take part in 21 athletic events, as well as in swimming and chess competitions. Also in the country’s contingent are sixteen officers including the Chef De Mission, Haji Rosmadee bin Haji Daud. In the 2nd ASEAN Para Games in Hanoi Vietnam 2003, Brunei Darussalam won three gold, six silver and three bronze medals.