• The Philippines and the Security Council
  
  
• The Philippines and the General Assembly
  
  
• The Philippines' Membership in Various UN Bodies
  

	Photo: Evan Schneider

Consistent with its position since becoming a charter member of the United Nations, the Philippines will support any and all measures, including new principles and approaches to disarmament that would lead to the enhancement of international peace and security.

Non-Proliferation

We will support all efforts to reduce or eliminate weapons of mass destruction. We will continue to call on Nuclear Weapon States to fulfill their obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). We will continue to assist in achieving the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). We will join efforts to convince States not party to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) to sign and ratify the convention without delay.

Nuclear Weapons Free Zones

We will support the establishment of nuclear-weapons free zones around the world and call on Nuclear Weapon States to respect these zones, particularly the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone.

Small Arms and Light Weapons

The Philippines will continue to pursue the implementation of the Program of Action adopted by the United Nations Conference to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in all its Aspects.

Economic and Financial (Second Committee)

The Philippine Mission will support international cooperation to reduce, if not eliminate, poverty, and to enhance economic development. We will seek for a new development paradigm that emphasizes participatory, multi-stakeholder approach to policy-making. We will press for the implementation of development objectives set forth in the Millennium Declaration, the Monterrey Consensus, and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation.

The Philippine Mission will seek the strengthening of coordination among the development agencies within the UN system, the international financial institutions, and the WTO, with the view to promote growth in developing countries. We will assist in addressing the concerns of developing countries, particularly the follow-up action on the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural (Third Committee)

The Philippine Mission will call concerted action for social development, particularly in alleviating poverty, promoting full employment, and securing social integration. We will assist in improving the conditions of the impoverished to reach the social development targets set at Copenhagen.

Family

The Philippine Mission will affirm the central role of family in addressing concerns relating to familial responsibilities, family values and culture, family environment, livelihood resources and domestic violence.


Ageing

The Philippine Mission will support the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing. We will support initiatives to enhance the well-being of older persons and their positive contribution to society.

Disability

As a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (September 2007), the Philippines will join international efforts aimed at including persons with disabilities in development opportunities. We will focus on mainstreaming the perspective of persons with disabilities and linking this to the Millennium Development Goals.

Women

The Philippine Mission will support the huge strides in addressing the challenges affecting the status of women. We will promote international policies and programs with a strong gender perspective as enunciated in the Beijing Platform for Action and in the initiatives made at the Beijing + 5 Review. We will assist in emancipating women from poverty, promoting their human rights, improving their health, increasing their participation in decision-making processes that affect their lives, and eliminating all violence against them, including trafficking.

Children

The Philippines will promote the universal acceptance of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Protocols. We will support initiatives by the United Nations Childrens Fund (Unicef) to implement the recommendation in the document, "World Fit for Children." We will seek measures to eradicate child trafficking and prevent children from being affected by armed conflict.

Migrant Workers

The Philippine Mission will protect and promote the welfare of about 175 million migrants all over the world. We will deal with the root causes of migration, such as the lack of peace, democracy and respect of all human rights, including economic, social and cultural rights. We will strengthen measures and mechanisms to protect and promote the human rights of migrants in countries of transit and destination. We will promote the 2001 Durban Declaration and Program of Action to eliminate the scourge of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance against migrants.

HIV/AIDS

The Philippine Mission will press for a global commitment to combat the HIV/AIDS scourge. We will promote knowledge, skills, services and a supportive environment to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS. We will call for increase in funding as well as surveillance and monitoring to combat HIV/AIDS.

Indigenous Peoples

Special Political and Decolonization (Fourth Committee)

Peacekeeping

The Philippines, considered the largest contributor of individual police officers to the United Nations, will continue to expand and enhance its participation in United Nations peacekeeping missions by deploying additional military and police personnel in conflict areas around the world where the services of Filipino peacekeepers would be needed.

We look forward to serving in other mission areas in addition to Afghanistan, Cote d' Ivoire, Darfur, Georgia, Haiti, Kosovo, Liberia, Nepal, the Sudan and Timor-Leste. We are also ready to contribute police and military officers to serve at United Nations Headquarters.

The Philippines remain committed to the peacekeeping roadmap outlined in Peace Operations 2010 and will support efforts to strengthen the peacekeeping capacity of the United Nations through the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the Department of Field Support.

We remain guided by the zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse committed by peacekeeping personnel and will support all initiatives intended to address this issue. We would like to see the implementation of the revised Memorandum of Understanding and the finalization of the Capstone Doctrine that shall serve as the reference guide in planning, managing and conducting modern-day peacekeeping and the Comprehensive Strategy on Victim Assistance.

The Philippines will also continue to exert efforts to ensure the safety and security of UN peacekeepers.

Decolonization

The Philippines will assist in providing the right of choice to territories under colonial domination on their future political status. We will support the work of the UN Special Committee on Decolonization in implementing the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.

We will encourage the Administrative Powers to comply with their international legal duties towards territories under their administration. We will support measures to accelerate economic and social progress in Non-Self-Governing Territories.

Information

The Philippines will continue to support the Department of Public Information (DPI) in delivering the good news about the United Nations to a large and diverse global audience as possible. We will support the DPI's efforts to further generate and sustain global public interest on the key thematic priorities of the UN--Peace and security, climate change, the Millennium Development Goals and human rights.  

We will encourage the DPI to promote and strengthen dialogue among civilizations and the culture of peace as a means of enhancing understanding among nations. We would like the DPI to continue pursuing these efforts and provide the necessary support by using the mass media to foster religious and cultural understanding, especially the Philippine efforts to promote interfaith cooperation.

Outer Space

The Philippines reaffirms its commitment to contribute to the work of the United Nations in promoting peaceful uses of outer space through its membership in the United Nations Committee for the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS).

The Philippines will continue to support COPUOS which continues to play a lead role not only in promoting the development of space technologies and applications that are beneficial to mankind and the environment but also in creating the necessary conditions for non-space faring and developing countries to share in the benefits afforded by these technologies.

The Philippines will continue to highlight the role of space technology and applications in disaster prevention, response and management.   The Philippines will underscore the importance of international cooperation in assisting developing countries in the development of their respective space technology/applicationprograms.

Administrative and Budgetary (Fifth Committee)

The Philippine Mission will work to implement measures to achieve the optimal utilization of resources to attain efficiency, quality and delivery of conference services in the UN.

Legal (Sixth Committee)

International Law

The Philippine Mission will support specific resolutions, declaration, and initiatives to enhance the universality and effectiveness of international humanitarian law.

The Philippine Mission will support the work of the General Assembly in enhancing the protection of diplomatic and consular missions and representatives.

The Philippine Mission will actively participate in and support the work of the UN Ad Hoc Committee on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property.

The Philippine Mission will support the work of the UN Commission on International Trade Law. We will help ensure that geographic balance in the membership of the commission will be achieved as mandated by the General Assembly.

The Philippine Mission will continue to support the work of the International Law Commission.

The Philippine Mission will participate in the work of the Working Group established by the Assembly of State Parties to the International Criminal Court to consider the possible inclusion of the crime of aggression in the Rome Statute.

The Philippine Mission will actively participate in the work of the Ad Hoc Committee on measures to strengthen and enhance the protective legal regime for United Nations and associated personnel.