Haystack | Countryhumans ASEAN

30 years [🌾] (part one)

the translations in this chapter (except the filipino ones) are probably inaccurate. please, if you come from those countries or know the language, correct me. enjoy!

[edited: june 30 ;; corrected translation errors at 17 dec 2022]
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Welcome to 1997, the year that would mark a new era for ASEAN.

Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia all joined the organization ever since Brunei's registration and the Cold War. One more country to go-Timor Leste-and they basically have the entire sub-continent. Although, that country didn't pass the requirements for entering yet, he was still accepted as an observer state, just like Papua New Guinea.

Tracing back, it was October.

As per tradition and routine, Philippines was invited to go to a beer festival, at Germany's. This was pretty normal due to him attending and hosting a lot of festivals himself, he would usually get drunk once he gets home to his apartment. It's been 7 years since he came back and fourth to that place, ASEAN was the one dropping Philippines to Germany's place after all. He kind of did didn't drop him off one time though, it was when he wasn't in a great mood to pick him up 3 years back.

For once more, he couldn't drop Philippines back there today, despite his really worried expression. He needed to observe some things around Vietnam, due to its recovery and it's ideology being different to the rest of southeast Asia. This leads him until now.

He was walking around a rice field, signing some papers here and there, but overall just observing every Vietnamese farmer at work. It was late afternoon, so the population of farmers around the area started decreasing, as everyone started going back to their homes, or their huts.

By that thought, he came close to a big rock nearby and decided to sit on it.

The sunset from behind the field looked amazing, it had the perfect transition of yellow-orange-blue colors. The sky basically looked like a painting. There was literally nothing but high, stratus clouds have been around the sky. The birds were starting to get quiet and the small buildings around him started to light up.

The temperature became colder than usual, an indication that it's becoming dark. He didn't know where to go yet, there are still some farmers on the field, doing some finishing touches. The farmers were just there, cleaning up the field as fast as possible. He would go and help, but his purpose was to sign papers at that point.

Agriculture was one of the purpose of his existence, his logo itself even represents strands of wheat. Now he jumped into the thought of his logo, his head went a few months back into an argument within the entire organization.

The colors.

It felt so... wrong?

Light blue and bright yellow doesn't fit together. He's fine with the symbolism and everything... but why those colors? Who knows why the founding five chose them. He hated it.

Crap, he also hated the fact that he needed to live with golden wings and somehow ring. It was normal for organizations, sure. EU literally has them as well. He just didn't think that his colors was ever good with his color combination. He didn't choose the color for his wings, he was technically made to have it and can't choose, the founding five also can't change it.

But why gold?

His argument isn't only the colors, it was also the fact that his icon itself needed a change. It felt outdated now.

The countries kept arguing about it back at June. ASEAN couldn't be apart of the argument, although he did have a side that he wanted to change the logo so badly. Myanmar, Laos and Malaysia had his side of the debate though, he can't just speak out to change everything. That wasn't the first argument about it though, there was one back at summer of 1981 which escalated to a friendly meeting quick.