31 May 2016 – Alongside Filipino community leaders who lent support and numbers, Consul General Mario De Leon, Jr. met with ranking officials of US Senators Susan M. Collins (R-Maine) and Angus S. King Jr. (I-ME), and US Representative Chellie Pingree (D-ME-1st) to enlist more co-sponsors for the Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2015 (CGM 2015). Without enlisting the requisite number of co-sponsors, the bill lapses by end of 2016.
Consul General met with State Office Representative Kate Norfleet of Senator Collins’ office in Portland, Maine. Senator Collins is the most senior female Republican in the US Senate, being active in the Committee on Appropriations and Intelligence, Armed Services, as well as the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
During the meeting, Consul General De Leon requested Ms. Norfleet to convey to Senator Collins the importance of CGM 2015, which is ultimately recognition of the sacrifice and service of Filipino WWII Veterans who served in the US Forces during the war. The Congressional Gold Medal had already been awarded to other ethnic minorities who served in the war such as the Navajo Code Talkers, Tuskegee Airmen, the Puerto Ricans, and Japanese Nisei. The bill is urgent and, if passed, will benefit about 260,000 Filipino veterans of which only 4,000 are alive today, he added.
Consul General De Leon also conveyed updates on the proceedings in the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague arising from the case filed by the Philippines to establish maritime entitlements in the South China Sea. He underscored that the Philippines adheres to rule of law and is supportive of US-PH maritime cooperation embodied in the US-PH Mutual Defense Treaty and in the recently-concluded Enhanced Development Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) that allows temporary access to US naval ships in five PH bases.
Ms. Norfleet said that the matter will be taken up by the military/ legislative director with Senator Collins who works closely with another Maine senator, Angus King.
Afterwards, Filipino community members led by Tess Cardona and Sarah Boothby raised concerns that included medical benefits and physician services availability to senior citizens and H1B visa issuance to foreign nationals with the appropriate skills.
In the afternoon, Consul General De Leon met with Chief of Staff Jesse Connolly, Legislative Assistant Joe Marro and Constituent Services Representative Leslie Merrill of the office of Representative Chellie Pingree.
Rep. Pingree is recognized as the first woman elected to US Congress to represent Maine’s first district. She is known as a champion of economic and social development in Maine and in growing small businesses in the state as a founding member of the Maine Economic Growth Council. In Congress, she serves in the House Armed Services Committee overseeing the welfare of US military personnel, as well as with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Consul General De Leon said that there are about 3,000 Filipinos in Maine of which about 900 reside in Rep. Pingree’s district. He said that Filipinos in the US are highly-skilled professionals or entrepreneurs and contribute significantly to the US economy having among the highest-earning median income among ethnic minority groups.
Consul General De Leon requested Ms. Connolly to convey to Rep. Pingree the Filipino community’s urgent request to support CGM 2015. Filipinos in the US and Philippines recently voted in the last election where a newly-elected President, Rodrigo Duterte, was voted into office with a majority. As a result, Filipino-Americans are being encouraged by the Consulate General and Filipino leaders to register to be able to participate in local US elections in November to make their numbers matter in crucial issues. Rep. Pingree was invited to join the US-PH Friendship Caucus in the US Congress where matters of mutual and strategic interest are discussed.
Finally, Consul General De Leon and Filipino community members were welcomed to the office of Senator Angus King by State Director Edie Smith and Constituent Service Director Teague Morris.
Senator King is touted is Maine’s first Independent US Senator. He is a firm believer in bipartisan dialogue. In the US Senate, he serves as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee where he has worked effectively to protect jobs and community interests in Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and Bath Iron Works. Previously, he served as Maine’s 72nd Governor.
After Consul General De Leon’s presentation, Edie Smith assured that the matter will be raised before Senator King and suggested the need for support of CGM 2015 US Veteran’s groups.
Consul General De Leon also shared some of the Consulate General’s economic diplomacy programs that promote the Philippines as an investment site for US manufacturers of medical device and EMS and as a gateway to other Asian markets. The Philippines and ASEAN welcome the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community which paves the way for increased cross-border trade of goods and services in the 600 million-strong ASEAN market, he added.
Edie Smith said that Senator King is a co-chair of the Arctic Caucus and the Philippines may wish to see synergy in issues involving climate change and opening of trade routes in the Arctic.
The Consulate General, in coordination with the local Filipino community, holds periodic joint political and economic missions to the ten states under its jurisdiction where topics such as US legislation, economic, trade and investment opportunities are discussed and where community building and networking activities promoting US-PH relations and the local Filipino community take place. END