THE United Nations emblem is instantly recognizable. The striking design features a world map drawn from the perspective of the North Pole, five concentric circles crossed with radiating spokes, and a wreath of olive branches. Somewhere on the left-hand side of the UN map sits a tiny dot. This dot represents the Philippines. To the original designers of the emblem, incorporating the Philippines into the central map motif seemed rather pointless. The dot is barely discernible. But Carlos Peña Romulo, the Filipino statesman and diplomat, is said to have insisted on its inclusion. “I want that dot!” Romulo demanded.

It was the spring of 1945 and much of the world had been ravaged by war and lay in ruins. The United States had emerged as the indisputable leader of the free world and the Philippines had not yet gained independence. Romulo was gripped by patriotic fervor. He was resident commissioner of the Philippine Commonwealth in Washington, DC, and had just been appointed head of the Philippine delegation to the most important conference of the year.

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