A true patriot

When the Philippine delegation to arbitration on the South China Sea was preparing to leave for proceedings at The Hague, the name of Justice Antonio Carpio was suddenly excluded from the list, no thanks to a pro-China government executive.

Then Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario made a stand. He said he wouldn’t go to The Hague for arbitration if Justice Carpio wouldn’t be part of the delegation.

The rest, as they say, is history.

The Philippines took China to court and won. This, indeed, is perhaps Sec. Albert’s biggest legacy.

He is best remembered for bringing China to the international court of arbitration for violating the Philippines’ rights over parts of the West Philippine Sea.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled in favor of the Philippines and invalidated China’s claim under the so-called nine-dash line.

This is recorded in history and nobody can take this away from us.

I’ve watched Sec. Albert from afar, this officer and a gentleman. I did not have the pleasure and honor of covering his time at the Department of Foreign Affairs but I monitored with deep concern and interest the dispute between the Philippines and China over the contested seas.

As a Filipino, I am saddened by his passing. No doubt, the Philippines lost a true patriot and fighter. His work in defending our sovereignty, among others, could never be overemphasized. He has done more for our country than many of our lawmakers and even presidents.

China, not surprisingly, did not take the ruling sitting down.

Sec. Albert, long after he stepped down as the country’s top diplomat, continued his fight despite the risks.

In June 2019, he was denied entry to Hong Kong without reason.

“Denied entry without explanation. [Diplomatic] passport not honored in violation of Vienna Convention,” Sec. Albert said at the time.

Because of the Hong Kong immigration’s decision, Sec. Albert was unable to attend a meeting of Hong Kong-based conglomerate First Pacific in the Chinese special administrative region. He was a member of the board back then.

That move by Hong Kong immigration came months after Sec. Del Rosario, together with former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales and a group of fishermen, filed a separate complaint against Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The two legal luminaries filed the complaint before the International Criminal Court (ICC) over China’s actions in the disputed waterway.

In 2021, when then president Duterte claimed there was nothing the Philippines could do to address the incursion of Chinese vessels in Philippine waters, Sec. Albert continued to assert the ruling of the international tribunal.

He said at the time:

“As we have said before, neither war nor bloodshed is an option for the Philippines to assert its rights over the West Philippine Sea… The President has already invoked the Arbitral Ruling that we won in The Hague at the 75th UNGA and the 37th ASEAN Summit last year. We do not see a war being waged by China against us.

“This should have put to rest the utterly inane notion that invoking the Arbitral Ruling and standing up for our rights are equivalent to waging war against China.”

Sec. Albert joined his Creator in the early morning of Tuesday, April 18 en route to San Francisco.

His remains arrived in Manila on Saturday, said his daughter Dr. Inge del Rosario, who also gave this statement:

A Patriot Has Come Home

“A patriot has returned to his beloved family and his home, the Philippines.

“In the early morning of Tuesday, April 18, Ambassador del Rosario was en route to San Francisco with his wife and son-in-law, Jay Inocentes, when he breathed his last.

“While there were valiant attempts to resuscitate him by two doctors who were passengers on the same flight, these efforts were to no avail.

“Following an investigation by the coroner’s office in San Mateo, California, it was determined that the causes of death of Ambassador del Rosario were cardiac insufficiency, congestive heart failure and cardiomyopathy.

“He had suffered a massive heart attack. He died in the arms of his wife of 60 years, Gretchen.

“Ambassador del Rosario traveled to California on short notice as he had deeply hoped to pray at a private devotion to our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. He was a devotee of the Rosary and sought to pray for better health as he believed he continued to have a mission for his country.

“He had suffered over the past 20 years from various ailments and had had numerous back and knee surgeries but persisted despite the pain and suffering to serve as Philippine ambassador to the United States and Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

“Even after he left the DFA because of health reasons, he lived out a work ethic which was unrelenting and an inspiration to us, his family.

“Till the final week before his death, he continued to go to his office in Makati seven days a week, including Sundays.”

Indeed, a true patriot true has come home to the country he so valiantly and staunchly defended.

May we continue to honor his life and work by continuing the good fight that he led. He fought for our sovereignty and the rights of every Filipino, here and abroad.

Thank you for your service to the nation, Sec. Albert. We are deeply grateful.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @eyesgonzales. Column archives at EyesWideOpen on FB.