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I AM OVERWHELMED BY THIS
EXTRAORDINARY HONOR YOU HAVE
ACCORDED ME WITH THE LAUNCHING OF
THE HELENA Z BENITEZ SCHOOL OF
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND
DIPLOMACY. AND I LOOK FORWARD
TO SEEING THE SCHOOL CONTRIBUTE TO
THE BETTERMENT OF INTERNATIONAL
RELATIONS AND DIPLOMACY AT BOTH
GOVERNMENT AND CIVIL SOCIETY LEVELS.
AS YOU KNOW, MY WHOLE CAREER IS AND
HAS BEEN DEVOTED TO BEING AN
EDUCATOR. IN ALL MY OTHER
INVOLVEMENTS – LEGISLATOR, ADVOCATE
OF GENDER-JUSTICE AND HOME AND
FAMILY LIFE, OF OUR CULTURAL
HERITAGE, OF ENVIRONMENT AND
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, AND YES
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND
DIPLOMACY – I HAVE BROUGHT MY
TRAINING, ORIENTATION AND MISSION AS
EDUCATOR AS PRIMORDIAL GUIDING
PRINCIPLE. IN EVERYTHING I HAVE
DONE AND CONTINUE TO DO, THE
EDUCATOR IN ME DICTATES THAT I
SHOULD CONTRIBUTE TO CHANGING THINGS
FOR THE BETTER BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT
EDUCAION IS MEANT TO DO – MAKE THIS
A BETTER WORLD.
AT THIS TIME AND IN KEEPING WITH
THIS COMMITMENT TO HELP BRING ABOUT
CHANGE FOR THE BETTER, I AM
INVESTING THE HELENA Z BENITEZ
SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
AND DIPLOMACY WITH ITS FIRST – AND
VERY PRACTICAL – TASK: HELP
ORGANIZE THE THIRD HELENA Z BENITEZ
GLOBAL FORUM ON WOMEN, POWER AND
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AT THE
UNITED NATIONS THIS COMING MAY,
BARELY THREE MONTHS AWAY AS I SPEAK.
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO MAY NOT BE
AWARE OF IT, THERE IS IN THE UNITED
NATIONS AN OFFICIALLY ACCREDITED AND
RECOGNIZED HELENA Z BENITEZ
GLOBAL FORUM ON WOMEN, POWER AND
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.
AMBASSADOR LAURO BAJA, OUR ESTEEMED
KEYNOTE SPEAKER TODAY, IS WELL AWARE
OF THIS BECAUSE HE WHOLEHEARTEDLY
SUPPORTED THE ENTERPRISE AND
PRESIDED AT BOTH ITS ORGANIZATIONAL
SESSION IN 2004 AND THE SECOND
SESSION IN 2006 AT THE UN IN NEW
YORK.
THE HZB GLOBAL FORUM IS A
CIVIL SOCIETY INITIATIVE WHICH HAS
EARNED AND MERITED SUPPORT AND
RECOGNITION BY OUR GOVERNMENT AS
WELL AS BY THE UNITED NATIONS
THROUGH THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
COUNCIL OR ECOSOC. IT IS HELD AS A
SIDE-EVENT TO THE OFFICIAL SESSIONS
OF THE UN COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT AND OF THE UN COMMISSION
ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN. IT IS
ATTENDED BY CIVIL SOCIETY
ORGANIZATIONS TO ARTICULATE THE
WOMEN’S PERSPECTIVE RELATIVE AND
PARALLEL TO MATTERS TAKEN UP AT THE
INTER-GOVERNMENTAL UNCSD MEETING.
THE PHILIPPINE WOMEN’S UNIVERSITY,
WHICH IS ACCREDITED WITH ECOSOC,
CO-ORGANIZES THE FORUM IN
PARTNERSHIP WITH THE ASIAN WOMEN’S
NETWORK ON GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT.
THE PHILIPPINE MISSION TO THE UN
HEADED BY FORMER CHIEF JUSTICE AND
NOW AMBASSADOR TO THE UN HILARIO
DAVIDE CONTINUES TO SUPPORT THE
FORUM.
THIS YEAR, IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITS
ROTATING AGENDA, THE UN COMMISSION
ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT WILL
DISCUSS RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND
AGRICULTURE IN SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT IN ITS SESSION FROM MAY
5 TO 16 AT THE UN HEADQUARTERS IN
NEW YORK. IN KEEPING WITH THE
OFFICIAL UNCSD AGENDA, THE HZB
GLOBAL FORUM WILL DISCUSS THE MATTER
FROM THE GENDER PERSPECTIVE. THUS
THE FORUM HAS LINED UP TWO SUBJECTS
TO BE TAKEN UP IN ITS TWO SESSIONS,
NAMELY:
GENDER JUSTICE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT
ON MAY
14
GENDER JUSTICE AND CLIMATE CHANGE ON
MAY 15
TO PREPARE AND GATHER INPUTS THAT
WILL BE PART OF THE POSITION THAT
THE PHILIPPINE PARTICIPANTS WILL
PRESENT IN THE NEW YORK SESSION, WE
ARE CONVENING ON THURSDAY, MARCH
6, 2008, HERE AT PWU A ONE-DAY
ROUNDTABLE CONFERENCE FOR THIS
PURPOSE. WE ARE INVITING
ORGANIZATIONS AND LEADERS INVOLVED
IN WOMEN’S ADVOCACY, LOCAL AND RURAL
GOVERNANCE, AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT TO THE
ONE-DAY MEETING. AS OF YESTERDAY,
FIFTEEN PHILIPPINE ORGANIZATIONS
HAVE SIGNIFIED THEIR INTENTION TO
PARTICIPATE IN THE ROUND-TABLE
DISCUSSION. WE EXPECT THAT MANY
MORE ORGANIZATIONS, EVEN IF THEY
CANNOT GO TO NEW YORK, WILL
PARTICIPATE SO THAT THEIR POSITIONS
AND CONCERNS CAN BE ARTICULATED IN
THE UNITED NATIONS.
AS ITS FIRST OPERATIONAL ACTIVITY,
THEREFORE, I AM TASKING THE
HELENA Z BENITEZ SCHOOL OF
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND
DIPLOMACY TO BE A CO-ORGANIZER
TOGETHER WITH THE EXISTING PWU
SECRETARIAT FOR THE FORUM AND OUR
PARTNER ASIAN WOMEN’S NETWORK ON
GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE MARCH
6TH ROUND-TABLE SESSION
HERE AT PWU.
AS IT EVOLVES, I EXPECT THAT THE HZB
SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
AND DIPLOMACY WILL IN TIME TAKE-OVER
AND ESSENTIALLY MANAGE AND
COORDINATE PWU’S MANY INTERNATIONAL
INVOLVEMENTS AND INITIATIVES. AND
AS THE UNIVERSITY MARKS OUR
CENTENNIAL ELEVEN YEARS FROM TODAY,
I ENVISION THAT THIS SCHOOL, LIKE
OUR OTHER UNIVERSITY UNITS, WOULD
HAVE ATTAINED MATURITY AND TAKEN ITS
JUST PLACE IN THE EDUCATIONAL MILIEU
OF OUR COUNTRY AND MADE VALID
CONTRIBUTION TO EDUCATION’S TASK OF
CHANGING THINGS FOR THE BETTER.
IN CLOSING, LET ME AGAIN THANK YOU
FOR THE SIGNAL HONOR YOU HAVE
ACCORDED ME WITH THE LAUNCHING OF
THIS SCHOOL.
GOD BLESS US ALL AND MABUHAY! |
