DFA Celebrates Golden Year of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties

Guest of Honor and Keynote Speaker Ret. Justice Antonio Carpio (second from right) receives a set of books, as tokens of appreciation, from OTLA Acting Head of Office Atty. Igor Bailen (second from left). Also in the photo are Acting Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo (leftmost) and Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Administration J. Eduardo Malaya (rightmost). (DFA Photo by Maria Vanessa Ubac)

PASAY 26 November 2019 – The Department of Foreign Affairs’ Office of Treaties and Legal Affairs (DFA-OTLA) conducted its annual Philippine Treaty Seminar at the Elpidio Quirino Hall, DFA, Pasay City, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.

Former Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio served as the Guest of Honor and Keynote Speaker.

In his welcome remarks, Acting Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo highlighted the importance of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties in shaping international law and the relations of States. “There can be no security in relations among States without a strict yet sustainable treaty governing agreements among them. It is in this sense that the Vienna Convention greatly contributes to international peace, security, and stability. With this, it is but appropriate that the Philippines, as a defender of the rule of law in the international community, commemorate its golden anniversary,” Manalo said.

OTLA Acting Head Atty. Igor G. Bailen opened the program by emphasizing the importance of familiarizing oneself with the rules and the whole processes involved in entering into international agreements. “Understanding the nuances of treaty law and practice, especially the relevant rules, processes, and nomenclatures, will give our government officials a competitive edge in negotiating international agreements. The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, which has guided countries for fifty years on the matter, is one treaty that everyone in the business of negotiating international agreements, should be aware of,” Atty. Bailen said.

In his keynote speech, former Senior Associate Justice Carpio highlighted the significance of treaties as an important source of international law. “Treaties regulate relations between and among states. Treaties constitute the law between and among treaty states. Treaties must be observed faithfully between and among treaty states as expressed in the maxim pacta sunt servanda,” former SAJ Carpio stated. He noted that harmonious relations between and among treaty states could be maintained if states uniformly apply and interpret treaties that regulate their relations.

DFA-OTLA’s annual treaty seminar was founded by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Administration and former Foreign Affairs OTLA Assistant Secretary J. Eduardo Malaya in order to benefit the legal practitioners in the government service who negotiate agreements with foreign counterparts.

In addition to the module on the basics of treaty law and practice, this year’s seminar incorporated a discussion on the procedural aspects of treaty-making, as well as an interactive workshop on national interest analysis, treaty review, and legal scrubbing.

This year’s seminar was attended by some 100 high-ranking officials and government lawyers from the Office of the President, Senate, Department of Justice, Department of National Defense, Office of the Solicitor General, Department of Finance, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Department of Public Works and Highways, Government Procurement Policy Board, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Agriculture, Development Academy of the Philippines, Department of Education, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, Bases Conversion and Development Authority and the DFA. END