Philippine immigration authorities freed four East Timor delegates after holding them for 12 hours at Manila airport in a security clampdown ahead of the ASEAN and East Asia Summit next week. The four East Timorese were allowed into the Philippines but authorities kept their passports until a formal order is issued clearing their entry, said Rhoda Viajar, media relations of the ASEAN Civil Society Conference/ASEAN People's Forum.
Immigration authorities said the four were held upon arrival on Saturday morning because they could not explain the purpose of their travel and were "not able to establish financial capacity for the visit". "The civil society conference organizers understand the more stringent security measures being implemented due to the upcoming ASEAN summit," Viajar said. She said they "remain concerned about the possibility of similar incidents upon the arrival of many more participants from other countries".
Since 2005, ASEAN leaders have held a dialogue with the region's top civil society groups to listen to development concerns and address critical issues such as poverty, health and education. Philippines security forces are deploying nearly 60,000 army and police personnel during the November 10-14 ASEAN and East Asia Summit to ensure the safety of 19 world leaders and thousands of delegates from 10 Southeast Asian nations and 10 other dialogue partners, including US President Donald Trump.