Thai Governors Pledge to Assist PH Embassy in Trafficking Situation in Mekong Region
Philippine Ambassador to Thailand Millicent Cruz Paredes thanks Udon Thani Provincial Government Officials for their assurances to assist and support the Filipino Community (Udon Thani Provincial Government official photo)
BANGKOK 13 March 2023 – Philippine Ambassador to Thailand H.E. Millicent Cruz Paredes paid courtesy calls on Thai Governors Wanchai Kongkasame of Udon Thani and Governor Suwit Chanhaworn of Nong Bua Lam Phu on 03 March 2023, as part of her official visit to the Kingdom’s northeastern region of Isan.
The Ambassador’s official visit centered on her engagements with the Filipino Community in Udon Thani, such as the Palarong Pinoy 2023 which gathered all the Filipino community organizations in the northeast of Thailand, the oath-taking of their organizations’ officers, the Embassy’s Awareness Campaign on the Trafficking in Persons Situation in the Mekong Region, and a Consular Outreach Mission for the Filipino nationals in Isan. This was followed by a side trip to, and courtesy call at, Nong Bua Lam Phu.
Ambassador Paredes, on behalf of the more than 1,000 Filipino nationals working and residing in Isan, thanked the Governor and people of Udon Thani for the warm and generous hospitality accorded to the Filipino community. The Ambassador proudly noted that the majority of the Filipino community work as English teachers in Thailand’s public schools. She lauded their significant contribution to Udon Thani’s burgeoning growth as the economic, tourism, and transportation hub of the Thai Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS), as well as to Thai society, especially its youth.
Testament to the strong people-to-people ties between the Philippines and Thailand is the 2022 Memorandum of Understanding between Udon Thani Rajabhat University and Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University in La Union, Philippines on joint degrees, teaching, research and cultural activities, among other forms of educational cooperation.
Governor Wanchai likewise recognized the important contribution of Filipinos to Udon Thani, and assured Ambassador Paredes of the province’s continued support and hospitality for the Filipino community. And in response to the Ambassador’s appeal for Udon Thani’s assistance in the ongoing fight against trafficking in persons in the Mekong region, Governor Wanchai promised the Ambassador that Udon Thani’s government will assist any Filipino citizen caught in distress.
Ambassador Paredes made similar appeals to Nong Bua Lam Phu Governor Suwit for assistance in the ongoing fight against trafficking in persons in the Mekong region, should there be any Filipino national caught in distress in the province. Governor Suwit assured her of the province’s support and committed to inform the Embassy of any such incident.
Ambassador Paredes and Governor Suwit wrapped their meeting with stories of the Ambassador’s previous visit to Nong Bua Lam Phu organized by the Thai Ministry of Culture which featured the province’s creative industry and textiles. END
Ambassador Paredes presents Governor Wanchai with Philippine cacao liqueur.
Ambassador Paredes (middle; fifth from left) and Governor Wanchai (fourth from right) with Udon Thani senior officials and the Philippine Embassy’s Second Secretary Ms. Beatriz Davila (second from left) (Udon Thani Provincial Government official photo)
Philippine Ambassador to Thailand H.E. Millicent Cruz Paredes (left) and Nong Bua Lam Phu Governor Suwit Chanhaworn (right).
Ambassador Paredes and Governor Suwit sharing a light moment.
Ambassador Paredes presents Governor Suwit with Philippine cacao liqueur.