Arroyo stands out at NAM summit

Instead of facing isolation as predicted by her critics in Manila, President Arroyo stood out as a leader of substance and style during the recently concluded Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople said yesterday.

Delegates admired Mrs. Arroyo’s energy and conviction in pushing for a global peace agenda through peaceful disarmament of weapons of mass destruction, Ople said.

"They were impressed to learn that the President flew in for the day to deliver her statement, hold several bilateral meetings, including one with Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and to serve as vice-chair of the summit," Ople said.

Expecting her to take the United States’ line against Iraq, leaders of the Arab nations showed appreciation for the Philippine president’s call for peace.

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said that Arab leaders congratulated Mrs. Arroyo after her speech at the NAM plenary session at the Putrajaya World Trade Center in Kuala Lumpur.

The President, he said, was congratulated by Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, the head delegate of Pakistan, Libyan Foreign Minister Abdel-rahman Mohammed Shalgem, and the emirs of Qatar and Bahrain, whose countries are also member-states of the influential Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).

The OIC has been assisting the Philippines in its peace negotiations with the Muslim secessionist rebels in Mindanao.

Bunye disclosed that Mrs. Arroyo’s speech at NAM reflected the general sentiment of the world body on a new war in the Middle East, especially on its stand that the US-Iraq conflict must be resolved through peaceful means.

Before she left for Kuala Lumpur, there were published reports pointing to the President’s isolation from other NAM heads of state due to her unwavering support to the US-led fight against terrorism.

Ople said no isolation took place. Instead, she even turned out to be the summit’s "fashion icon" when she broke tradition and showed up in a resplendent red outfit.

He said that even The Malay Mail, a Malaysian daily, wrote approvingly of the President’s "bold fashion statement" and even carried a front-page photo of Mrs. Arroyo garbed in the elegant red dress.

"While it is convention for leaders attending such a summit to opt for dark, sober colors, her break with convention is a breath of fresh air and we should have more of it," wrote The Malay Mail.

The President and her official party, who included daughter Luli, returned to Manila at 3:00 a.m. yesterday.

In Malacañang, she will roll out the red carpet this noon for Sheik Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, prime minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain, whom she met at the NAM summit.