The Asia News Network’s (ANN) Asia Dialogue is a platform to discuss various regional and global issues, according to ANN members.

Star Media Group (SMG) chief content officer Datin Paduka Esther Ng said the Asia Dialogue would serve as a great avenue for discourses, especially with journalists spearheading it.

“The dialogue is very important, especially as it was set up by journalists not only from Malaysia but also from the entire region. We are a very powerful alliance.

“We’re setting up this dialogue because we know what the issues at hand are,” the incoming ANN chairman said during the panel discussion on the Inauguration of Asia Dialogue.

Other panel members are The Daily Star editor-in-chief and ANN chairman Mahfuz Anam, Bernama chairman and SMG adviser Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai, Sin Chew Daily executive editor-in-chief Chan Aun Kuang. The session was hosted by The Statesman editor Ravindra Kumar.

Wong echoed Ng’s sentiment, saying that the introduction of the dialogue organised by journalists has added more reliability and credibility.

“The Asia Dialogue is a meaningful platform. It is credible and trustworthy.

“With over 25 organisations coming together, I think we can create an impact,” he said.

He also suggested that the dialogue include business-minded individuals such as chief executive officers of companies so that the media industry could learn from them.

“I really hope that the ANN will take a step further, perhaps by expanding the dialogue to involve CEOs and various members of the public as well,” Wong added.

In conjunction with the organisation’s 25th anniversary, the summit also unveiled the ANN’s Hidden Heritage Treasure Project.

During the session, Zaffar Abbas, editor-in-chief of Pakistan the Dawn daily, emphasised the media’s crucial role in raising awareness of heritage sites.

“There’s a conscious effort by many media houses in Pakistan that whenever there is a new discovery, we campaign about it.

“When something is being destroyed, you campaign about it, and the same goes for fortune hunters who come and smuggle them out,” he said.

He also noted that the preservation of heritage sites can promote tourism, leading to positive economic effects.

“There will be a realisation that history needs to be preserved,” he said.

Viet Nam News editor-in-chief Minh Nguyen highlighted that efforts to promote and protect heritage sites are being made not only by the Vietnamese government but also by the people.

“We have to preserve them in a way that benefits the surrounding communities as well,” he said.

The session showcased various heritage sites, including Sabah’s Danum Valley, as part of the project. Other featured sites include Angkor Wat in Cambodia and Songkhla Old Town in Thailand, among others.

The compilation aims to bring forward lesser-known yet historically rich sites and share them with readers.