Embassy of the Philippines, Santiago
Pasuguan ng Pilipinas sa Santiago
Embajada de Filipinas en Santiago
LocationSantiago
AddressCalle Félix de Amesti 367, Las Condes, Santiago Province
Coordinates33°25′00.0″S 70°34′51.4″W / 33.416667°S 70.580944°W / -33.416667; -70.580944
AmbassadorCeleste S. Vinzon-Balatbat
Websitehttp://santiagope.dfa.gov.ph

The Embassy of the Philippines in Santiago is the diplomatic mission of the Republic of the Philippines to the Republic of Chile. Opened in 1981, it is currently located at Calle Félix de Amesti 367, northeast of Santiago proper in the city of Las Condes, Santiago Province.

History

The Philippines did not initially open a resident mission in Chile when diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1947 — the first Southeast Asian country to do so.[1] While Chile opened its embassy in Manila in December 1967,[2][3] the Philippine Embassy in Buenos Aires initially represented the Philippines in Chile, with Ambassador Luis Moreno Salcedo being accredited to Chile on March 23, 1963.[4]

A resident Philippine embassy in Santiago would not be opened until 1981, during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos, when Rodolfo A. Arizala was appointed the Philippines' first resident ambassador to Chile. Notably, when Arizala arrived in Santiago on August 21, 1981 to assume his post, he was initially billeted at the Hotel Carrera by the central Plaza de la Constitución, which today houses the offices of Chile's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while scouting locations for the chancery and ambassadorial residence. The hotel manager, a retired general who in his youth had played basketball against Ambrosio Padilla during the 1936 Summer Olympics as part of its men's basketball team and who had since befriended him, offered the hotel as his residence for the duration of his tenure at a significant discount.[5]

In 2016, a number of groups led by the Fundación Daya organized a protest outside the Embassy against the policies of President Rodrigo Duterte and the Philippine Drug War,[6] which they also organized again the following year as part of a worldwide campaign to reform global drug policy.[7]

Staff and activities

The Philippine Embassy in Santiago is currently headed by Ambassador Celeste S. Vinzon-Balatbat, who was appointed to the position by President Bongbong Marcos on November 2, 2022.[8] Prior to becoming Ambassador, Balatbat, a career diplomat, served as Consul General at the Philippine Consulate General in Nagoya.[9] Her appointment was confirmed by the Commission on Appointments on December 7, 2022,[10] and she presented her credentials to Chilean President Gabriel Boric on April 25, 2023.[11] The Santiago mission is one of the Philippines' smaller diplomatic missions, with only seven staff members.[12]

Many of the Embassy's activities center around promoting Filipino interests and strengthening cultural and economic ties between the Philippines and Chile, particularly considering the country's relatively small number of resident Filipinos.[13] These include donating books on Philippine history and culture to a number of local libraries,[14][15] organizing cultural exhibits and lectures on José Rizal at the University of Santiago, Chile,[16] and promoting the Philippines as a tourist destination for Chileans.[13] However, while it does conduct outreach to the local community,[17] results can be mixed: it was reported that no Filipinos in Chile voted in the 2016 general election in the first week of voting, although bad weather may have played a role.[18]

In addition to activities in Chile, the Embassy exercises jurisdiction over Ecuador and Peru, where it has conducted outreach activities to provide consular services to Filipinos based in those countries.[19]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "National Day of the Republic of Chile". Manila Bulletin. September 19, 2005.
  2. ↑ "Relación histórica". Embassy of Chile in the Philippines (in Spanish). Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  3. ↑ "National Day of Chile". Manila Bulletin. September 19, 2006.
  4. ↑ "Filipinas, Relaciones Diplomáticas con Chile". Enciclopedia Chilena (in Spanish). Library of Congress of Chile. Retrieved June 15, 2020 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  5. ↑ Zaide, Jose A. (September 10, 2018). "Brains, brawn, and a bit o'luck". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  6. ↑ "Protesta en la Embajada de Filipinas por violación a los Derechos Humanos en el país asiático" [Protest at the Philippine Embassy for violations of human rights in the Asian country] (Press release) (in Spanish). Fundación Daya. October 12, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Fundación Daya adhiere a campaña mundial "Apoya, no castigues" que busca reformar las políticas de drogas a nivel mundial" [Fundación Daya launches worldwide campaign "Help, don't imprison" that seeks to reform global drug policy]. Crónica Digital (in Spanish). June 21, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  8. ↑ ACTION: CONFIRMED – Ad Interim / Nomination – From: June 30, 2022 To: December 19, 2022 (PDF) (Report). Commission on Appointments. p. 9. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  9. ↑ Vinzon-Balatbat, Celeste (March 31, 2022). "A meditation on the changing seasons". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
  10. ↑ Galvez, Daphne (December 7, 2022). "CA OKs appointment of Gloria Arroyo's daughter, ex-DFA chief Locsin as envoys". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Philippine Ambassador to Chile Celeste Vinzon-Balatbat Presents Credentials to Chilean President Gabriel Boric" (Press release). Embassy of the Philippines, Santiago. April 25, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  12. ↑ Lee-Brago, Pia (March 2, 2010). "DFA: 75 Pinoys in Chile safe". The Philippine Star. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  13. 1 2 Mercene, Recto (March 21, 2015). "Chile is so much like the Philippines". BusinessMirror. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  14. ↑ "PH Embassy in Santiago Donates Books to Centro Lector Corporacion Cultural" (Press release). Department of Foreign Affairs. December 3, 2019. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  15. ↑ "Fiestas Patrias of Chile". Manila Bulletin. September 18, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  16. ↑ "PH Embassy in Chile Introduces Rizal's Life, Work to Students" (Press release). Department of Foreign Affairs. September 5, 2018. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  17. ↑ "PH Embassy in Santiago Celebrates Heritage Month with Filipino Leaders" (Press release). Department of Foreign Affairs. May 31, 2019. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Overseas voter turnout in Chile: zero". The Manila Times. April 18, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  19. ↑ "PH Embassy Conducts Consular Outreach in Lima" (Press release). Department of Foreign Affairs. December 13, 2019. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
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