The association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN): a galactic security community?

The term ‘security community’ refers to the development of a regional consensus of shunning war as a means of settling disputes among participant states. Assuming this basic premise of a security community, this article positions ASEAN as a unique security community by arguing that it is contingent upon the socio-cultural norms practiced in ASEAN member states’ societies. The conceptual framework of a traditional security community is inapplicable to ASEAN as it does not have any supra-national institutions which can bind its members to compliance towards regional norms. The societal norms of member states give ASEAN a regional identity consciousness that is based upon informality and a unique normative structure. The intention of this article is to deconstruct these societal or popular socio-cultural norms and examine how they influence decision making at the elite level.