On reporting the 15th ASEAN Summit

It was a hectic time we had in Cha-am, Hua Hin, Thailand covering the 15th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok, where my good friend, Press Secretary Cerge M. Remonde asked me to join the Malacanang Press so we could not only cover the Summit, but also to compare it with our hosting the 12th ASEAN Summit which was held in Cebu on January 2006.

True enough, while I was in the Press Room at the Sheraton Hua Hin, Mr. Noppajak Attanon, a reporter for the Nation Channel of the Nation Broadcasting Corp. in Bangkok requested me for a TV interview and one of the questions he asked was, whether the hosting of the ASEAN Summit in Thailand was better than the hosting we had in Cebu. Of course, I gave him a very polite answer. Though I submit that our Press Room was quite comfortable and well-spaced than what we had at the Sheraton.

Another area of interest for the Thai media that I gathered in that TV interview and later in a talk with a Bangkok Post reporter who was beside me in the Press Room was what they believed — that the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) is a toothless organization and wanted to know my opinion on this matter.

Obviously, everyone was eager to gang up on Myanmar over its dismal human rights record. However my response to them was, we cannot expect ASEAN to immediately engage erring member nations right away, as it really has to set up certain guidelines and rules on human rights. As Press Secretary Remonde pointed out, ASEAN is on a “continuing constructive engagement” with Myanmar on this issue.

Somehow, our experience in covering the ASEAN Summit in Cebu taught me that the ASEAN Secretariat already had a template on the protocol and how media should be handled. This is why the Press Center was at the Sheraton Hua Hin, while the major events of the 15th ASEAN Summit was held at the Dusit Thani Hotel. At least when we hosted the ASEAN Summit in Cebu, one of the major activities was held at the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) where the Press Center was located. But like all ASEAN Summits, not all journalists who covered the events were given special passes to enter the main hall where the ASEAN Leaders held their bilateral talks. We had passes to be at the Dusit Hotel, but not the areas where the bilateral talks were on-going. But we could ambush interview the ASEAN leaders, if we saw the opportunity.

Being with the advance party of the Malacanang Press corps also gave me an opportunity to see how the Malacañang Press prepares when they cover an important event where the President would be in attendance. On that trip, we had Assistant Secretary Maribel Dario (she’s an original member of the Bayanihan Dance Troupe), Antonio “Tonypet” Albano, president/CEO of RPN9; Jose Isabelo, chairman of NBN4; Ben Rosario of the Manila Bulletin, Saturnino “Freddie” Abando of NBN4, Alvin Baltazar, news reporter, Radyo ng Bayan; Joyce Panares, Manila Standard; Alfredo Reyes, Presidential close-in photographer; Lorina delos Reyes, advance MARO officer; Aguinaldo “Boy” Florencio, NBN 4 and Teotilde Mendoza, MARO.

Press Secretary Cerge M. Remonde arrived last Saturday noon with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA) and while the President immediately went to the Summit at the Dusit Thani Hotel, Sec. Remonde went straight to the Sofitel Centara Resort where the top Philippine officials and the President were staying. I thought that Cerge would now have a time to doze off after their three-hour long trip, but instead he called a staff meeting to brief his people and apprise them of the matters that the Philippine government would be pushing at the ASEAN Summit.

Later in the evening, we had dinner at the Rashnee Thai Cuisine restaurant, where to my surprise, we saw the autographed photo of the Press Secretary on the wall of the restaurant. It turned out that he already had dinner in that restaurant before and they asked him for a photograph. The restaurant people probably knew that with the summit held in Hua Hin, officials from the Philippines might have dinner there. We had a great time with Cerge and his staff, while Pres. Arroyo was at a Gala dinner.

As we dropped the Press Secretary at the Sofitel, one of the aides of the President asked him to join her at the dinner, which was almost finished. He tagged me along, both of us in casual shirts and the President asked us to join her table with ASEAN Ambassador Orly Mercado and Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo. We not only exchanged pleasantries, but ideas on what else we can do for our country. Yes, I did mention my favorite issue on the return of the ROTC that can really help in having warm bodies in times of calamities or natural disasters, which was proposed under the Gullas bill.

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