Luzon Ballroom, Sofitel Philippine Plaza Hotel
Roxas Blvd., Pasay City
13 May 2014
President Benigno S. Aquino III graced the opening of the 34th ASEAN Association of Chiefs of Police (ASEANAPOL) Conference, an annual event attended and organized by the heads and representatives of police forces from the countries under the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
With the theme, “Forging strong partnership for peace, security, and progress,” the conference focused on the improvement of cooperation and collaboration on the further prevention of crimes such as illegal drugs, human trafficking, and terrorism across the Southeast Asian region.
As the guest speaker, President Aquino hoped for a better progress in all of the nations, and that such gathering like the ASEANAPOL will play a vital role in turning agreements into tangible realities of peace and security for the benefit of the people.
“All of you thus play an important role in ensuring that the current momentum of growth in ASEAN is sustained. Each small step you take towards making our police forces and law enforcement agencies work better together means that more of our people are freed from the shackles of injustice and abuse,” he said.
Moreover, he encouraged the delegates to work hand in hand and bring security agreements to fruition by means of optimizing synergies between the ASEAN countries acting as one voice along the spirit of the association’s platform.
“I encourage all of you present here to make it a point not simply to talk, but to listen, and to be open to the ideas of your counterparts. After all, it is through this sharing and listening that we will bring about a Southeast Asia where justice and the rule of law reign supreme,” President Aquino ended.
This is the fifth time that the Philippines hosted the ASEANAPOL Conference after 11 years. The conference was first held in Manila on 21-23 October 1987, where the Philippines, along with Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand are the founding members. Aside from the 10 ASEAN countries, different dialogue partners from Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Korea, and Timor Leste participated. Also present in the conference was General Colonel Vladimir Kolokoltsev, Minister of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation.
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