ASEAN Psychiatry: past, present, and future

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) was formed in 1971, and 10 years later the ASEAN Federation for Psychiatry and Mental Health (AFPMH) was formally launched. This article reviews the objectives, structure, membership, and the principles of rotational participation and responsibility of the AFPMH, which has just celebrated its jubilee anniversary last year. Twenty-six years have passed, and the AFPMH has achieved many successes, including the congress, which is currently held every two years, and the ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry, which may be the oldest regional journal in the Asian continent. The bright future of ASEAN psychiatry is expected but relies heavily on the unity and commitment of all individual psychiatric associations within the ASEAN