De La Salle – College of Saint Benilde

School of Diplomacy and Governance

Bachelor of Arts in Diplomacy and International Affairs

THE PHILIPPINE DIPLOMACY IN THE CONTEXT OF PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement

In Foundation of Diplomacy

By:
Chua, Ryan James
Cuartero, Quiaryza Ainhar N.

Submitted to:

Ambassador Marilyn Alarilla

Professor
School of Diplomacy and Governance

November 2022
Term 1, AY 2022-2023
 I. Intro

Public Diplomacy is one of soft power’s main elements and key instruments that
was recognized in the diplomatic field. It can be agreed upon that even in ancient times,
this was practice. Ancient Greece had a diplomatic routine of taking and addressing
opinions, ideas, and concerns from the local public before settling off for official
business in nearby jurisdictions alongside practicing transparency then consequently
repeating the same routine at their assembly at the host destination, but now with the
foreign publics and other officials. Any government-sponsored initiatives aimed at
directly connecting with foreign publics are referred to as public diplomacy, sometimes
known as people's diplomacy. Public diplomacy refers to all official initiatives made to
persuade specific segments of the international community to accept or tolerate a
government's strategic goals. Methods include official pronouncements, deliberate
public diplomacy operations run by government agencies, and initiatives to influence
international media to depict official policy to foreign audiences favorably.

Some applications of public diplomacy involve creating exchange programs for

scholars, language training, and visitor programs. In the Philippines, some examples of
public diplomacy can be observed during campaigns when candidates try to persuade
the people to vote for them and the president’s State of the Nation Address (SONA).
The practice of public diplomacy was also observed during the aftermath of typhoon
Haiyan where many countries such as the U.S and Japan provided foreign aid
packages for the recovery of the Philippines. Lastly, the study will be focused on
countries that have strong ties with the Philippines as well as initiatives done by the
government to promote the country’s assets.

II. Body

a. Relations of the U.S and Philippines in the context of Public Diplomacy

Strong historical and cultural ties as well as a common commitment to

democracy and human rights form the foundation of U.S.-Philippine relations. The 1951
Mutual Defense Treaty between the United States and the Philippines serves as a solid
foundation for our strong post-World War II security alliance. Additional opportunities to
participate in a variety of bilateral, regional, and global issues are provided by strong
people-to-people ties and economic cooperation. The Bilateral Strategic Dialogue (BSD)
between the United States and the Philippines serves as the yearly venue for future
planning in all areas of our partnership. In addition to the nearly three hundred thousand
American citizens who live in the Philippines, including many former service members,
there are more than four million Filipino Americans living in the United States. The sole
Veterans Administration regional office outside of the United States is located in Manila,
and the American Cemetery there is the biggest American military cemetery outside of
the country. Before COVID, more than a million Americans traveled to the Philippines
annually. Lastly, the longest-running Fulbright program in the world, the International
Visitor Leadership Program, and the Kenney-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study Program
are just a few examples of the people-to-people exchange initiatives between the United
States and the Philippines.

The Philippine-American Educational Foundation is the world's oldest and

ongoing Fulbright Commission. They administer foreign exchange scholarship programs
of the US in the Philippines with the aim of increasing research collaboration, cultural
exchange and understanding, and interchanging of ideas. The commission celebrated
its 75th anniversary last 2021 alongside the celebration of the Philippine Republic day
wherein a commemoration of the Philippines’ exchange programs was held. In line with
this, the Philippines administers the Fulbright DAI (Distinguished Awards in Teaching
Program for International Teachers) that provides teachers an opportunity to enhance
greater expertise in their respective fields and subject areas. This program includes
co-teaching with US teachers in order to achieve immersion and engagement with
participants in the US classroom environment.

The Community Solutions Program (CSP) is another US-Philippine project that

centers in the field of Public Diplomacy. This program is a professional development
program that addresses issues related to the environment, tolerance and conflict
resolution, transparency and accountability, and women and gender. Delegates are
expected to participate in this fellowship at either US community-based organizations,
government offices, or the legislative sector. This helps develop knowledge and gives
first-hand learning experiences on community immersion and leadership that
strengthens their capacity to generate action plans for community-based initiatives back
home.

In 2021, the United States government via the United States Agency for
International Development (USAID) has launched four new projects worth ₱280 million
($5.7 million) to promote locally-led development solutions in the Philippines. Stated
prior, the United States and the Philippines celebrated its 75th anniversary of diplomatic
relations and have conducted these four collaborative projects that has a goal of
empowering local organizations to try brand new and unique approaches in order to
address challenges that hinder the development of their communities. Projects include
the Coalescing Organizations towards Locally Led Actions to Boost Development,
Assets, Agency, and Trust action-research, and Facilitating Local Access to Water, and
Capacitating Strategic Organizations to Strengthen the Civil Society Organization
Sector. They merge with the General Rural Opportunities by Working with Cooperative
program in order to expand rural livelihood and food security increase as part of Local
Works. This is USAID’s flagship locally-led development effort in the Philippines which
not only impacts our country but also enables and gives an opportunity to the United
States to drive their own development while strengthening its ties with the Philippines.

b. Relations of China and the Philippines in the context of Public Diplomacy

The Philippines and China have had a long history of shared kinships and
cultural affinities that can be traced back to pre-colonial times. Three thousand years
ago, people-to-people communication was evident alongside trade and commerce.
Among the Southeast Asian countries, the Philippines has been the one geographically
close to China, thus, the shared histories between the two countries. Undeniably,
disputes in bilateral relations have appeared. For instance, during the Communist
revolution in China in 1949, the anti-Communist government of the Philippines assertes
limited or no contact at all with any communist or socialist state in other to prevent an
outbreak of communism in the country and provide security. However, in 1975, official
diplomatic relations between China and the Philippines were eventually established.

Public Diplomacy and China-Philippine relations are continuously being

strengthened in a bilateral sense. Activities and programs on public diplomacy does not
only exist between the nations, but also cultural exchanges that ranges on a
state-to-state and people-to-people basis that serve as a turning point in enhancing
mutual understanding, friendship, and cooperation between the two that aids in finding
resolutions in the difference and conflicts of interest that may exist or have been
existing. An example can be the projects of the APCU (Association for
Philippines-China Understanding) that was recently reactivated under former President
Gloria Arroyo, the Chairman Emeritus of the organization. They launched two projects
that are both aiming to further help the bilateral relations of the Philippines and China,
the APPCU 2021. This is to actively sustain the efforts of mutual cooperation between
the two countries by enhancing its people-to- people exchanges, especially with the
ongoing dispute on fishery and environmental management zones. In the Philippines'
perspective, the APPCU is eager to discover individuals who have made and are willing
to make efforts to strengthen the ties between both countries by consolidating friendship
through different fields and disciplines that includes Public Diplomacy.

Another organization that provides exchange programs for the Philippines is the
Global Initiative for Exchange and Development (GIED). This organization is non-profit
with the aim of empowering people and realizing connectivity through the spirit of
volunteerism and community-building that leans toward sustainable development. They
have a three-point agenda that focuses on current issues concerning education, health,
gender sensitivity, environment, children and the youth, women, peace, human rights,
and other similar topics that impact social development efforts especially in
marginalized communities.

c. Relations of France and the Philippines in the context of Public Diplomacy

When France and the Philippines signed the Treaty of Amity in Paris in 1947,
diplomatic ties between the two nations were first established. Since that time, both
nations have taken important actions to guarantee an open and free Indo-Pacific region,
maintain international law, work together to combat climate change, and foster cultural
interactions between the French and Filipino people. Diplomacy between the two
countries involves partnerships in volcanology and agronomy, or collaborations with the
National Museum of the Philippines on the topic of resilience and natural disasters,
between French and Philippine research centers or regional centers based in the
Philippines (French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), French National
Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), French Agricultural Research
Centre for International Development (CIRAD)). Not only that, France stood with the
people of the Philippines in the face of the destruction brought on by Super Typhoon Rai
(Odette), which has left about 400 people dead and tens of thousands of others
homeless. The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs released €1 million in emergency
aid through its Crisis and Support Centre to support the actions taken by the French
NGO ACTED and the French Red Cross with its partner, the Philippine Red Cross, in
response to the population's most pressing needs and in support of the Philippine
authorities. With the help of the assistance given, thousands of family and hygiene kits
were delivered, and materials for the immediate restoration of homes damaged or
destroyed in the provinces of Surigao del Norte, Palawan, and Bohol was also provided

d. Philippine Public Diplomacy and Social Media

Social media has also become a huge part of the Philippines’ public diplomacy.
This has become a potent tool for the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in order to
conduct public diplomacy both on a national and international scale. It has become an
accountability tool and means of feedback to the DFA. Foreign policies, issues and
concerns, and the like are easily addressed through social media, and are evidently
visible to the public eye. Moreover, exchange and relay of messages are easier and can
be administered through written or visual (videos) means because of social media.
Diplomats can easily decipher messages just by following, for example, the tweets of
the Secretary of Foreign Affairs in the Philippines. Through this, the standing and
current events in our country are not hard to get a glimpse on, and most importantly, the
Philippines’ position on certain issues making it a lesser hassle just to secure appointed
meetings in order to talk about topics similar to them. Online platforms have proved that
barriers on domestic and international communications have been brought down
wherein even the transparency to the Filipinos has also been greatly achieved.
According to former DFA spokesperson, Ambassador Malaya, the “challenge to the DFA
public affairs office and public diplomacy practitioners, generally, is how to effectively
communicate and make their cases before the various publics in a complex and
democratized communications environment.”

e. Public Diplomacy during the Aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan / Super

Typhoon Yolanda

Relief efforts provided by foreign nations to an affected country is a reflection of

soft power. Considering Public Diplomacy characteristic with direct engagement, the
foreign public and many governments were able to provide aid to the Filipino public
following the devastating aftermath of typhoon Haiyan or Super Typhoon Yolanda in
2013. Public Diplomacy scholars and practitioners referred to this as “aid diplomacy”
considering how it also raises and increases the positive attitude of those who are
affected by implicitly stating that “there will always be help that will come.” This so-called
aid diplomacy drives and boosts the goodwill as well as the implementation of a nation’s
soft power, therefore, making it a big contributor to the field of international affairs and
diplomatic relations. With regard to the remains of typhoon Haiyan, aid diplomacy made
funding easier for the relief efforts intended for the affected Filipinos. The Foreign Aid
Transparency Hub (FAITH) noted that forty-nine countries pledged $504 million for this
aid. Countries include the Vatican, the European Union, and several other international
non-governmental organizations and multilateral organizations including the United
Nations. However, only $12 million from the total has been disbursed. As contradictory
as it may sound, it is now in question whether there really is a significant aid diplomacy
being conducted because the large majority of foreign aid has been tangled in the
bureaucratic distribution process which does not help the people at all.

According to the Philippines government report from the National Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), twenty-five countries provided
financial, medical, and humanitarian aid. Therefore, a significant amount of aid
diplomacy was conducted, yet is done but such a few thousand people on the fields
who provided these assistance. Considering that Public Diplomacy has a goal for
directly and immediately impacting the public. Therefore, government to government
relationships, public diplomacy scholars and practitioners are not circumvent to such
and must never consider foreign as a direct Public diplomatic tool. Furthermore, it is
understood that the aid provided by the twenty-five countries were a really great help to
the Filipino people, but the remaining millions out of the total $504 million were now a
necessity for reconstruction. This does not drive immediate public impact. Foreign aid
does not reflect direct Public Diplomacy all the time. Most of the time, foreign aid can be
a means of enacting in order to strengthen ties between foreign countries and countries
that are in need of help rather than providing an immediate impact for the public. In
addition, both cases still vouch for both long-term and short-term aid provided that
diplomacy is the tool being mainly used in situations such as the Philippines being
greatly affected by the Typhoon Haiyan.

f. Philippine Public Diplomacy as Nation Branding

“It’s More Fun in the Philippines.” The Management Association of the

Philippines (MAP) has proposed the revival of the National Branding Council in the
Philippines in order to build international image and develop the reputation of the
country. Nation Branding manages the country’s identity and reputation in the
international community that serves as a forming ingredient in our public diplomacy. It is
a concept in relation to tourism, trade, and the like, but does not necessarily entail
knowing the country, its people, products, and how the public perceives it. According to
the Foreign Services Institute, “the environment now appears to be more conducive and
strategic for nation branding and public diplomacy programs.” It could have been a great
opportunity and avenue to make use and practice nation branding when the Philippines
hosted the APEC in 2015, but failed to do so through lack of means. However, as the
advancement of technology takes place, the strategic adoption for nation branding has
decreased its difficulty through social media.

The establishment of a National Branding Council involves a very long and

complex process considering that it involves the government, the business sector, and
the public. All parties stated are in need of cooperation in order for the project to be
established. Moreover, its financing from the government would have to be the most
crucial step for the council to be realized. Despite the evident and numerous challenges
being faced in order to establish the National Branding Council, its doors remained open
for more strategic means for it to be plausible.

III. Conclusion

The Philippine Public Diplomacy is such a vast and general topic that covers not
only diplomacy itself but also Philippine culture, education, and the like. Coordination on
public diplomacy is very important just like how it is evident in our country’s relations
with the US and China. The establishment of different government and nonprofit
organizations contribute to public diplomacy that ranges from people-to-people ties to
social media. Public diplomacy, hence, is not only ending on the national scale but
stretches beyond international borders in order to aid in establishing and acknowledging
the country’s identity and reputation. Culture, tourism, and commerce are three of the
important tools that help in our public diplomacy. Programs such as student exchange
programs, fellowships, and projects on mutual understanding and launched for the sake
of public diplomacy. In the presence of our current era where globalization is being
evident, the borderless world is one big step for the Philippines to prove its full potential
on public diplomacy. This also goes for the proper and responsible use of social media
wherein even embassies, its staff, consular officials, diplomats, etc. can make use of in
order to easily assert the country’s standing on an international dispute, its current
domestic situation, and its plans for further strengthening of relations. It is also indeed a
fact that the most concerned government agency in the Philippines when it comes to
public diplomacy is the Department of Foreign Affairs. US exchange programs, official
meetings abroad, and the like are all processed through DFA. With public diplomacy, it
is well-known that embassies are connected through this agency, even individuals
themselves; may it be for pleasure or work. Moreover, relief efforts are also considered
to be part of Public Diplomacy. Having two sides to it, the immediate impact and dilatory
impact on the public, aid diplomacy is also a great contributor and tool for strengthening
diplomatic ties wherein not only the government is concerned, but also the citizens of
the country especially when it is affected by disasters like typhoons, earthquakes,
pandemic, etc.

All in all, the Philippines in the context of public diplomacy can be much more
complex as one initially perceives, but it is indeed one of the most important fields of
diplomacy needed in our country. Public diplomacy is a great tool in order to build and
further strengthen our ties with different nations considering that we are a country that
advocates more on soft power than on hard power since we are still lacking in military
advancement. Establishment of nation branding can be a hard decision to pull
especially how difficult of a task it is. Eventually, with these partnerships and more
collaborative research in the years to come, Public Diplomacy of the Philippines and the
Philippines as a country itself will be able to find its peak, not only in making its ties but
also in resolving disputes and achieving its general goals and national interests.
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Contributions
1. Chua - Introduction/Body
2. Cuartero - Body/Conclusion