Peace contingent to Liberia receives UN service medals

MANILA, Philippines – Members of the 16th Philippine peacekeeping contingent to Liberia have been awarded UN Service Medals and reunited with their families.

The 115-strong contingent was honored in Camp Aguinaldo on Friday in a ceremony that also served as a reunion with their loved ones whom they did not see for seven months.

“We congratulate and welcome you back home. You can all smile now,” Armed Forces deputy chief Lt. Gen. Gregorio Macapagal told the contingent.

“The medals awarded to you are for our recognition and appreciation of the sacrifices you made as representatives of our country to the UN peacekeeping force in Liberia. To uphold peace in one country is to uphold peace globally,” he added.

The General Headquarters Canopy Area, where the awarding ceremony was held, was filled with smiles, hugs and kisses courtesy of excited family members and friends.

“It is never easy to be away from your family while being surrounded by unknown faces in an unknown territory. But you have dutifully accomplished your mission,” Armed Forces chief Gen. Jessie Dellosa said.

The team was deployed last January to augment the peacekeeping contingents in Liberia. It consisted of seven officers, a medical officer, and 107 enlisted personnel.

“We experienced a lot of big challenges in the mission area. One of those is in dealing with different contingents from other 42 countries,” acting head of mission Lt. Col. Emilio Bartolo said.

“Finally, we have concluded the mission and we are very proud that we successfully accomplished our mandated mission of providing security,” he added.

The Philippines is a signatory of the United Nations charter and has been sending peacekeeping teams to Liberia since 2003.

The 16th peacekeeping team to Liberia arrived in the country last July 30 and was replaced by the 17th contingent that left on July 28.