DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR RANKS FOR LABOR OFFICIALS

Since we are signatories to the diplomatic and consular conventions, we have to conform to the protocols and agreements of those two conventions. Otherwise, it would seem that we are behaving like rouge countries in an international community of responsible nations. Right now, the DOLE has Labor Attaches assigned to offices in cities away from our embassies in those host countries. Since it is very clear that “attaché” is a diplomatic rank, it is technically wrong to assign that rank to a person who is not physically working in an embassy. It is definitely a misnomer, and perhaps other people in the diplomatic corps would find that amusing. The DMW also has Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLOs) in cities where we do not have embassies and consulates. Their posted people there are called POLO officers, an invented title that is not recognized by the other foreign missions in those countries. Technically, the host countries could give “Consular Commissions” to the representatives of foreign countries provided that they are physically assigned to a Consulate or to a Consulate General. Since we do not have these offices in places where there are big Filipino populations, the solution could be to put up “Consular Agencies” in those places, like what the United States has done in Cebu City. That way, we could assign real consular ranks to the representatives of both DOLE and DMW, and they could function properly. IKE SENERES/2-29-24