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The Philippine Army officer who died of malaria last
year while serving as a military observer with the United Nations
Mission in Sudan has been awarded the Dag Hammarskjold Medal in the
Service of Peace.
Ambassador Hilario Davide Jr.,
Philippine Permanent Representative to the UN, received the medal in
behalf of Lt. Col. Renerio Batalla during a ceremony at the
organization’s headquarters marking the 60th anniversary of UN
peacekeeping.
Batalla was among 90 fallen
peacekeepers from all over the world who were honored in ceremonies
in New York last week. He is the 16th Filipino peacekeeper to die
while serving in a UN mission.
“Serving far from home in
challenging and dangerous environments, these men and women
represent the best the international community has to offer; we pay
tribute to their sacrifice and dedication in pursuit of the noble
goals of the United Nations,” UN Undersecretary-General Guehenno
said.
The Philippines is among the top
30 UN-member states that have contributed police and military
personnel to support international peacekeeping operations. As of
the end of April 2008, the Philippines had 627 peacekeepers deployed
in various UN missions in Afghanistan, Cote d’ Ivoire, Darfur,
Georgia, Haiti, Kosovo, Liberia, Nepal, Sudan and Timor Leste.
Also at the UN, two Filipino
diplomats have been elected to positions to the 63rd Session of the
General Assembly.
In his report to Foreign Affairs
Secretary Alberto Romulo, Davide said Second Secretary Elmer Cato
and Second Secretary Patrick Chuasoto were elected Friday morning to
positions in two of the six main committees of the general assembly.
Cato was elected vice chairman of
the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) while
Chuasoto was elected rapporteur of the Fifth Committee
(Administrative and Budgetary).
The two diplomats were elected by
acclamation by the general assembly based on the endorsement of
their nominations by the Asian Group in the UN.
Former Minister Miguel d’
Escoto Brockmann of Nicaragua is president of the 63rd Session of
the General Assembly.
--Katrice R. Jalbuena
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