Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono praised the "maturity and wisdom" of ASEAN members on Monday for their delicate handling of controversy surrounding Myanmar's lagging progress on democratic reforms. Yudhoyono, in a speech at the ASEAN secretariat in Jakarta for the 38th anniversary of the regional grouping, pointed to its "recent decision to allow Myanmar to forego its turn as chairman" as evidence of what he called a maturity and "wisdom beyond its years". "This demonstrates ASEAN's fully developed capability to solve its own problems," Yudhoyono said in an opening speech of an anniversary ceremony attended by diplomats of ASEAN countries. "It shows a delicate sense of balance between non-interference in the affairs of a sovereign state and upholding human rights and fundamental freedoms," he said. ASEAN includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar.
