The kissable Mr. Tony Blair
It is difficult for me not to think of Tony Blair as the staunch ally of the USA against terrorism. It is, in fact, this alliance with America that cost him his position and his popularity in his country, where he had the unprecedented feat of winning three consecutive elections. In spite of criticisms of his foreign policy, he stuck to his conviction that this world should be free of terrorism and for this he holds the admiration of his peers.
In the aftermath of 9/11, I took a keen interest in the world figures that involved themselves in the battle against Al Qaeda and its formidable head, Osama Bin Laden. The memory of Sept. 11 is so fresh in my mind that I can still smell the stench of human debris that wafted through the rubble of what were once two majestic towers. I was one of the many thousands who trekked to the site of the crash, attended the vigils, and cried my heart out as I felt the pain of the widows and widowers, the young orphans, the parents, the separated lovers. It was a time of mourning in New York City, and not even the bright lights of Broadway could illuminate the dark mood that pervaded the city and the country in general. It was also a time of reckoning and recognizing the enemies, not only of America but also of the entire democratic world.
In 2003, George “Dubya” Bush awarded Blair the Congressional Gold Medal for his alliance with the USA in their fight against terror. (It was the second time this award was ever given to a dignitary; the first was to George Washington for what Congress called his wise and spirited conduct in getting the British out of Boston.) A friend in New York who knew about my admiration for Tony Blair e-mailed me his speech to the US Congress when he received this award. It was so impressive that he was given a standing ovation — no mean feat in the walls of Congress. The gist of the speech, which encapsulates his feelings on the fight for democracy, lies in these lines: “Members of congress, I feel a most urgent sense of mission about today’s world. Sept. 11 was not an isolated event but a tragic prologue, Iraq another act and many other struggles will be set upon this stage before it is over. This is not a war of civilizations because each civilization has a unique capacity to enrich the stock of human heritage. We are fighting for the inalienable right of humankind — black or white, Christian or not, Left, Right, or a million different — to be free, free to raise a family in love and hope, free to earn a living and be rewarded by your efforts, free not to bend your knee to any man in fear, free to be you so long as being you does not impair the freedom of others. That is what we are fighting for and it is a battle worth fighting.”
When I received the invitation from PLDT/Smart Infinity to attend the dinner for Tony Blair, I thought I died and went to heaven. He is one of my idols and I never thought that one day I would meet him in person.
The Sofitel ballroom was filled to capacity — PLDT/Smart’s bigwigs were there, headed by Manny Pangilinan, Napoleon L. Nazareno and Butch Meily. VIPS (ambassadors, an ex-President, ex-politicians, etc.), businessmen and women, and Manila’s society stalwarts were among the guests. While they were being served the first course, there was a comedic incident happening outside. A group of us who went to the ladies’ room happened to chat outside, listening to Vickie Perez de Tagle’s account of Blair’s speech during the afternoon forum. Her impressions on his brilliance did not really matter because what she emphasized was his charm, his charisma, and his good looks.
“Gosh, I want to kiss Tony Blair,” she declared with gusto. Immediately after she said this, Blair’s security men arrived, asking us to vacate the scene. We adamantly stayed on and when Blair arrived, all hell broke loose. Vickie (faster than lightning) sprang to her feet and kissed him, leaving security with their mouths open. We followed suit, but did not dare to kiss him. We shook his hands, exchanged pleasantries and asked him to pose with us. Blair was all smiles and looked thrilled that he received a kiss from a lovely gal, and allowed The Philippine STAR’s photographer, Mike Amoroso, to take our photos with him. It was a breach of security on his part to allow us to surround him and that truly made us idolize him even more.
The evening went on without a hitch, Smart gave awards to deserving subscribers, the show starring Lea Salonga, among many others, was enjoyed by all. Johnny Litton was his usual witty self, but for us ladies who were outside with Blair, we were on cloud nine during the whole affair.
