Philippine Permanent Representative to ASEAN Ambassador Elizabeth P. Buensuceso joined other women diplomats, including US Ambassador to ASEAN Nina Hachigian , at an open forum, entitled “ Women Who Lead: A Discussion with Women Diplomats,” held on 19 May 2015 at the American Cultural Center, Pacific Place, Jakarta.
The event was held in conjunction with the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI), a program launched in 2013 by U.S. President Barack Obama for bright young leaders aged 18-35 years from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Laos, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. YSEALI targets young leaders who have innovative ideas for tackling what they have identified as their generation’s greatest challenges in the ASEAN region: economic development, environmental protection, education, and civic engagement. It also provides training and funding to up-and-coming community leaders and social entrepreneurs.
In her presentation, Ambassador Buensuceso discussed the qualities that a good leader must possess- quoting from the story of the Centurion in Matthew 8: 5-13 who exhibited excellence in the fulfillment of his job, compassion for his people, and faith in God or faith that he will succeed in what he is doing. A good leader must work hard, even harder than her people, learn from her mistakes, and the experience of others, to accomplish the tasks given to her. Like the centurion who went all the way to plead with Jesus for the healing of his lowly servant, a good leader must also be able to feel the pain of her constituents, sympathize with them and help them overcome these difficulties. A happy employee is a productive employee, she advised the audience composed mostly of young women coming from business, journalism, community service and other backgrounds. She said that believing that one can succeed in achieving one’s goals , no matter what the challenges are, demonstrates unflinching faith . In her case, she said, faith is simply belief that all things are possible with God. The 60-year old envoy said that a leader must have vision, going beyond the ‘here and the now,’ being able to visualize the bigger picture and see things that an ordinary foot soldier would not see. Responding to a question from the audience about the seeming pressure from men for women leaders to make tough decisions, as is illustrated in the case of President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Ambassador Buensuceso opined that on the contrary, women leaders are not being pressured to take “manly” decisions, but are making tough decisions because of the fact that they are women. Citing the case of the women peace advocates in the Philippines, Secretary Teresita Deles and Chairperson Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, the Ambassador said that women are the ones who make tough decisions because they are the ones who hear and respond to the cries of children and old people and other marginalized sectors who are the first victims of war and conflict. Stretching the analogy further, Ambassador Buensuceso said that it is women who go to foreign lands to seek work as domestic helpers because they cannot bear to watch their children go hungry or miss school. Asked about gender barriers, Ambassador Buensuceso said that the Philippines ranks No 9, and the only Asian country to be included in the Top Ten in the WEF Global Survey on closing gender gaps, and until recently, the only country which has a National Action Plan in implementing UNSCR 1325, but that gender bias still exists in the minds of people. She exhorted other ASEAN member countries to legislate and institutionalize the promotion and protection of the rights and welfare of women.
Other women envoys spoke about the fact that women impose limitations on themselves and echoed the Ambassador’s advice for young women not to be afraid to commit mistakes and learn from them, to not be too shy, and to welcome every opportunity to shine.
