RP diplomatic ties with S'pore back on track
RP diplomatic ties with S'pore back on track
MANILA (Reuter): The Philippines and Singapore restored full
diplomatic ties yesterday, eight months after a near break over
the hanging of a Filipina maid.
Philippine President Fidel Ramos announced an official end to
the bitter diplomatic row with the appointment of new ambassadors
by each country.
"This exchange attests to the fact we have definitely placed
Philippines-Singapore diplomatic relations back on the right
track," Ramos said in a statement.
The two countries traditionally have been close allies in the
seven-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
"Our bilateral relations are now considered normalized," Ramos
said.
Alberto Encomienda, a seasoned envoy with more than 20 years
of diplomatic service and currently ambassador to Malaysia, will
take over the post in Singapore, Ramos said.
The Philippines welcomed the designation of Simon Tensing de
Cruz as Singapore's new ambassador to Manila, he said.
The two countries downgraded diplomatic ties by pulling out
their ambassadors and came close to a complete break after
Singapore hanged Flor Contemplacion for double murder in March
last year.
The execution of the mother of four sparked nationwide
protests in the Philippines even though Contemplacion had
confessed to killing another Filipina maid and a four-year-old
Singaporean boy in 1991.
Filipinos, claiming Contemplacion was framed, torched
thousands of Singaporean flags and gave her a heroine's burial in
her home town. Her story inspired three hugely successful movies.
Singaporean Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong scrapped a scheduled
visit to the Philippines and the uproar caused heads to roll in
Manila's foreign and labor ministries.
Ramos suspended nine diplomats and labor officials after
accusations they did not do enough to protect Contemplacion's
interests. Then foreign secretary Roberto Romulo was forced to
resign, which prompted him to remark that his government had
"gone berserk" over the affair.
The controversy over Contemplacion finally eased in July when
autopsy results conducted by a panel of U.S. forensic experts
backed Singaporean findings pointing to the maid as the killer.
The affair spurred an inquiry into the plight of about four
million Filipinos working overseas, including 60,000 in
Singapore. Most work in menial jobs, while thousands of others
work as night club dancers and prostitutes.
Manila officials said they expected the government to lift a
ban on the sending of maids to Singapore shortly.
"Our respective officials will pursue with added vigor their
efforts to continue expanding and improving bilateral relations
in all fields, most specially as regards the situation of
Filipino nationals working in Singapore," Ramos said.
Ramos said the decision to appoint new ambassadors was in
accordance with an agreement he reached with Goh when they met in
Bangkok last month during a summit meeting of ASEAN leaders.