How the Philippines voted at UN with Locsin
MANILA, Philippines — Teodoro "Teddy" Locsin Jr., the country's permanent representative to the United Nations, confirmed that he has accepted the offer of President Rodrigo Duterte to be the next Department of Foreign Affairs secretary.
Locsin has been the Philippines' representative to the UN since September 2016, around the same the UN has repeatedly expressed concern over the spate of killings of drug suspects in the country.
The incoming DFA chief has represented the country on its votes on certain world issues before the UN General Assembly. He was also the one who submitted the Philippines' withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Rohingya crisis
The Philippines was among the 10 nations that voted against a UN resolution urging Myanmar to end its military campaign against Rohingya Muslims living in the Rakhine state.
In November 2017, the UN General Assembly's human rights committee expressed alarm over the violence and "disproportionate use of force by the Myanmar military" against Rohingya Muslims.
At least 135 countries voted for the measure while 26 others abstained.
The Philippine government initially discussed whether to vote "no" or abstain from the UN draft resolution on the Rohingya crisis.
Locsin then said that he would push for Manila's abstention from the vote in deference to the Muslim and non-Muslim member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
“ASEAN cannot stop the genocide of Rohingya. We adhere to unanimity and non-intervention,” Locsin said on Twitter in November last year.
READ: Locsin: Abstaining from vote on draft UN resolution on Rohingya crisis 'the right thing'
Jerusalem as Israel's capital
In December 2017, the United Nations issued a resolution demanding all countries to comply with Security Council resolutions over the status of Jerusalem.
This came after the decision of US President Donald Trump to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
The Philippines, along with 34 other countries, abstained on the UN vote to declare the US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital null and void during an emergency session of the UN General Assembly.
About 128 countries, an overwhelming majority of UN member-states, voted in favor of the resolution expressing "deep regret" over Trump's decision on the status of Jerusalem.
ICC withdrawal
On March 2018, Locsin submitted the country's letter of withdrawal from the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC.
He submitted the letter to UN Chef de Cabinet Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti.
The decision to withdraw from the ICC came after Duterte was accused before the international court of crimes against humanity for leading and instigating killings of thousands of drug suspects in his so-called war on drugs.
"The Philippines assures the community of nations that the Philippine Government continues to be guided by the rule of law embodied in its Constitution, which also enshrines the country's long-standing tradition of upholding human rights," the letter read.
- Latest
- Trending
