FAST BACKWARD: Davao as diplomatic hotbed

Since 1920, roughly ninety-eight years ago, Davao has slowly become a key diplomatic hub. It was during this year when Japanese opened its consular office in the region, encouraged in large part by the growth of Japanese population, mostly Okinawans, who were working in Davao hemp plantations. On February 6, 1932, the legation became a full-fledged embassy.

In 1923, Republic of China (Taiwan), with an embassy in Manila, established a legation office in Davao, appointing Te Chiu Im, a Chinese beer distribution and charter member of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Davao, as first honorary consul of Davao (1923-28).

Great Britain, as it was then called, appointed Ack Brown, A Scot from Glasgow and manager of the Davao branch of Kerr & Company, as honorary prewar consul in the region.

Eight years after Davao was liberated by Allied Forces, Indonesia opened its consular mission in Davao City on December 17, 1953, in the process becoming the first postwar legation in Mindanao. With trade between the Philippines and Indonesia expanding, the mission was elevated to a consulate general on September 23, 1974.

Malaysia, on December 11, 1995, became the second member-nation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to open a chancery in Davao City. The legation, now consulate general, had its first office at Apo View Hotel but later on was transferred to different locations.

Indonesia and Malaysia, predominantly Muslim countries, played key roles in the signing of a peace accord between the Philippines and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) on September 2, 1996 and the covenant between the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which was formalized on October 15, 2012.

Japan continues to maintain a consular office in Davao City, its second after the prewar mission was padlocked after Japan surrender to the Allied Forces in August 1945. Like other missions, it caters to issuance of visa and addressing concerns delegated to it.

Between 1945 and 2018, close to a dozen friendly countries with flourishing foreign affairs links with the archipelago, many of them economic, have opened missions in Davao City, all of them managed by Davao-based businessmen and prominent socio-civic leaders.

Curiously, the United States, a close ally, did not open it consular office in Davao until July 2007 but the legation office was classified as a virtual consulate because it was only manned by a Digital Outreach Team.

In 2018, the People’s Republic of China (PROC) opened a consulate in Davao, predictably an offshoot of the growing RP-Chinese relations following the election to the presidency of former Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte.

In no specific order, over a dozen Davao luminaries, who are part of the southern Mindanao’s ‘who’s who’, have etched their legacy as honorary consuls, namely:

Gilbert C. Go, a well-known businessman, was the first honorary consul of the Czech Republic. Miguel Iñigo, scion of the prominent clan, was honorary consul of the Republic of Palau.

On the other hand, Antonio Brias, son-in-law of the late Don Antonio O. Floirendo, Sr., was the first honorary consul of Spain in Davao; he was succeeded by Genaro Lon y Ozami. Ma. Lourdes G. Monteverde is honorary consul of Mexico while Rowena Vida-Lisbona, Davao-based assistant general manager of the shipping firm Maersk Filipinas, represents Denmark.

Meanwhile, Dennis Uy, founder of Davao-based oil firm Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc. and 2013 Datu Bago awardee, is honorary consul of Kazakhstan, while Joaquin C. Rodriguez, a former president of Benguet Mines and son-in-law of former Davao City councilor Antonio Habana, is Republic of Serbia consul ad honorem. Both held office in Makati.

In November 2016, the Republic of Korea envoy to the Philippines presented Edgar Ang with a letter of appointment as honorary consul, signed by the ROK’s foreign affairs secretary. Less than a year later, Klaus Doring, a long-time German court interpreter, language teacher and permanent Davao resident who is married to a Davaoeña, was installed honorary consul of his own country in southern Mindanao.

On May 3, 2018, Joji Ilagan-Bian, a prominent business leader, was appointed honorary consul general of Bangladesh and on May 26, 2018, Vicente T. Lao, president of Davao Chamber of Commerce and Industry, was toasted as New Zealand’s honorary consul in Mindanao.

In October that same year, hotelier and tourism advocate Mary Ann “Baby” Montemayor was feted as the new honorary consul of Hungary. Completing the cast of honorary consults is Ariel Decena, who represents South Korea.

(The author is a member of the Davao Historical Society Foundation, trustee of Manila Railroad Club, founder of Philippine Industrial Archaeology Society and former member of the Philippine National Historical Society, Inc.)

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