By Xinhua,
Manila : The Philippines gained a greater presence in the United Nations following the election of two Filipino diplomats to key posts in the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly, the Department of Foreign Affairs said on Friday.
Elmer Cato and Patrick Chuasoto were elected to two of six key committees of the UN General Assembly, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said in a press release.
The two Filipino diplomats will serve as members of the bureau of the Fourth and Fifth Committees and will help steer the committee meetings when the 63rd Session of the General Assembly opens in September, it said.
The Fourth Committee is in charge of issues related to decolonization, peacekeeping, information, outer space and Palestine while the Fifth Committee considers and approves the UN budget as well as those of specialized agencies.
The last time the Philippines was a member of the bureau of any of the main committees of the General Assembly was in 2003 when it was elected chair of the Sixth Committee (Legal), according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Cato was elected Vice Chairman of the Fourth Committee while Chuasoto was elected Rapporteur of the Fifth Committee, according to a report to the Department of Foreign affairs by Hilario G. Davide Jr., Philippine permanent representative to the United Nations.
He said the two diplomats were elected by acclamation by the General Assembly based on the endorsement of their nominations by the Asian Group in the United Nations.
Cato and Chuasoto joined the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs in 1998 and 1999 respectively and were assigned to the Philippine Mission in New York in 2003. Both served as Alternate Representatives to the Security Council during the Philippine membership in that body from 2004 to 2005.
Aside from representing the Philippines in the Fourth Committee, Cato oversees Philippine participation in UN peacekeeping operations. Chuasoto, on the other hand, represents the Philippines in the Fifth Committee and also handles issues in the Security Council as well as ASEAN concerns in the United Nations.
Former Minister Miguel d’ Escoto Brockmann of Nicaragua was elected President of the 63rd Session of the General Assembly. Also elected were Vice Presidents of the Assembly as well as Chairmen, Vice Chairmen and Rapporteurs of the Assembly’s six main committees.