[ it’s not always saluting the flag during Araw ng Kalayaan, awarding the MVPs, champions and Mythical Fives during Labour Day sportsfests, or pinning the sash on Binibining Pilipinas New Zealand for His / Her Excellency. May our new Ambassador live up to the expectations of kabayan! ]
AMBASSADORS, IN pursuing the interests of diplomacy and liberty, have been known to hide and protect potential hostages of terrorists and unfriendly states. They’ve also helped their nationals avoid certain imprisonment and torture. In fact under the surface of formality and tradition, ambassadors will do anything if it will help their citizens, while saving face for the countries they represent.
It may not always need to be that dramatic. Every now and then though, a change is needed.
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Every six years, coinciding with the change in administration back home, the Philippine Ambassador to New Zealand finishes his / her tour of duty and goes home back to base, and a new Ambassador is appointed to take his /her place. As a knee-jerk: Who will be our new Ambassador?
Before asking and answering the question above, the typical Pinoy in NZ should probably be thinking about the question: what kind of Ambassador will be good for the Pinoy community in New Zealand ?
This is how we see it: first, the Philippine Ambassador (“Amba”) on paper is supposed to represent the government of the Republic of the Philippines and its interests on New Zealand soil. Having a Pinoy representative in New Zealand is supposed to make things easier and to symbolize the formal relationship between the two nations. The amba, although a real person, is really a living symbol of friendship, history and the legal links between two countries.
In practical terms however, the Amba is much more than that.
Sya ang takbuhan twing may problema sa Pinoy community. Twing may sakuna, aksidente, nadisgrasya, ang Embassy ang hinihingian ng saklolo. Twing may funding o pondong kinakailangan para sa proyekto ng migrante or residente.
With this in mind, this is the job description that will hopefully live up to our kabayan’s collective dreams and aspirations:
an ambassador that will immediately articulate the interests of the Pinoy community in New Zealand. Sometimes, the interests of Filipinos are best expressed as a community: protection against crime, improvement of social services and government services, or improvement of basic programs that intentionally or not, target Filipinos as a group. Officially, the Philippine ambassador is hands-off on these matters, but in practice, he or she can make unofficial pronouncements regarding these matters, as mass media pay attention to anything he or she says.
Now, the party in power may or may not listen to what the Amba says, but because it becomes a public issue out in the open, Government will be forced to at least address the issue, or at least go through the motions. By merely making noise, the Ambassador can make a difference.
an ambassador that won’t tolerate any slight or insult or implication of racism against the Pinoy community in New Zealand. In fairness to the previous Amba, AmbaGary Domingo, he has on at least one occasion, spoken out strongly against what he (and many kabayan) perceived as a slight manifested against Filipinos in New Zealand. Unfortunately, since then the energy has recently shifted against Asians, specifically Southeast Asians like our kabayan, especially in the USA. If the anti-Asian mood finds its way here, the new Ambassador will have his/her hands full. One tip: no anti-Filipino speech or acts must be tolerated and the response must be swift and decisive.
In cases like these, the Amba’s acts can be official, but it’s limited to the releasing of official statements. But as mentioned above, it’s better than nothing.
an ambassador that will move at light speed to provide rescue and assistance to Pinoy victims of disaster, accident and all sorts of unexpected misfortune. There have been numerous instances of catastrophes that have befallen our kabayan, and not all of them have been purely because of nature. Sometimes, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, a misappreciation of the weather and its effects, or just plain rotten luck have caused fatal consequences. Add all these to victims of storms, floods, tsunamis or landslides. There are so many causes of serious injury and death, and each one of them requires a lot of help.
New Zealand’s public services are more than adequate for rescue and first aid, but caring and miscellaneous assistance after-the-fact will usually still be needed, and the Embassy through the Ambasador’s leadership is best suited to fill the gap.
The grim tasks of requesting for search for victims in the case of accidents in the wild or at sea, sending remains home in the case of deaths, and the provision of medical care when urgently needed are things only our Embassy can request our host nation, all the while speaking with bereaved families and the professional media in New Zealand and the Philippines. It’s not an easy job, but someone’s got to do it.
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One thing for sure: here in Aotearoa, the new Ambassador will find his / her plate full. All the time. But all our new Ambassador needs to be up to the job is one tiny job skill : Mahalin nya lang sana ang ating kababayan (just love our countrymen and women unconditionally).
It will be enough, Your Excellency.
What can I say??? Better keep it to myself and let their lives prosper. God is always awake.