Asian nations are ignoring human rights issues to focus on trade and investment, some experts say. They say this is causing problems for Western countries that want to increase trade but also protect human rights.

The fastest-growing economies are in Asia. About 4.5 billion people live on the continent. Asian leaders rarely criticize other Asian governments for situations within their own borders. Such situations include the campaign against illegal drugs in the Philippines and the conflict between Myanmar’s leaders and ethnic Rohingya.

Recently in Manila, members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations met with representatives of eight governments, including the United States and China. The delegates did not talk about domestic problems in any of the countries. Human rights groups had urged the delegates for such discussion.

Daniel Chua is the deputy head of graduate studies at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. He says he thinks Asian countries do not mix economic projects with domestic issues or human rights.