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17 July 2010 - The Philippines marked a milestone after it became a member of the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) and the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) on July 14, the Philippine Embassy in the Netherlands said.

These are the two of the oldest international legal organizations in The Hague.

Philippine Ambassador Cardozo M. Luna transmitted the Instrument of Acceptance of the Statute of the Hague Conference on Private International Law and the Act of Accession to the Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International Disputes (the basic document of the PCA) to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.

The documents were signed by then President Gloria MacapagalArroyo on June 29 and June 25, respectively.

Receiving the documents on behalf of the Ministry was Director of the Treaties Division Gerard Limburg, while Secretary General of the HCCH Hans van Loon attended the event as special guest.

Secretary General van Loon remarked that the Philippines' entry into the HCCH as the 70^th member was a special occasion to which many Member States have been looking forward to.

With the deposit of the documents, the Philippines becomes the 70^th member of the HCCH, effective July 14, and the 111^th member of the PCA, effective September 12.

First convened in 1893, the HCCH is the World Organisation for Cross-border Co-operation in Civil and Commercial Matters, while the PCA is an intergovernmental organisation established in 1899 that provides a range of dispute resolution services to the international community.

The Philippines is currently party to one HCCH convention, the Convention of 29 May 1993 on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption.  END