Asia of Citizens beyond Asia of States: Regional Community Building in East Asia

Recent security challenges in East Asia have provided an opportunity to realize the need for community building as a way of detouring military deadlock. This paper suggests two principles of community building in East Asia: (1) identity balanced by interest, and (2) an Asia of citizens beyond an Asia of states. These principles can be applied to the community building sub-areas of politico-economic, security, and sociocultural cooperation. The author examines the following topics accordingly: (a) an invalid concept of the “Asian paradox” and the statement made by Japan’s prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the politico-economic area; (b) the Helsinki Accord and the EU Global strategy with their implication for East Asia in the security area; and (c) the Campus Asia program and the Asian Human Rights Court as a means to encourage sociocultural cooperation. With its complicated history of animosity and low levels of intraregional trade, fostering a shared identity and finding common interests in East Asia is no easy task. If some identities are given and others are chosen, it is important to manage the negative effects of identity and encourage the positive influence of its chosen dimensions.