May 1997

Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies

University of California San Diego

The man we honor today has heard well-deserved praise for turning a basket-case economy around, repeatedly defending democracy, and seeking peace. But when you talk about the economy, democracy, even peace, you are never really too sure what they mean to individual lives.

So I would like to speak about how the past five years of President Ramos’s presidency have affected my life, and the lives of Filipino students abroad who often wrestle with the choice of returning or building new lives elsewhere.

When I first came to study here five years ago, I was committed to returning to the Philippines after I was done. I had seen too many friends and acquaintances study abroad only to stay abroad, and I had no desire to contribute to the Philippine brain drain.

Yet I found it awkward explaining this commitment to other Filipinos. Upon learning that I would be going back, the first question they asked was: Why?

I later came to realize that my desire to return home was driven less by my ideals than by the fact that compared to most, I had been luckier. I had something to go back to in the Philippines. Friends and relatives were there, I had a job waiting for my return, and I had every reason to believe that I could build a good life for my own family there. I was more the exception than the norm.

Five years ago, if you had any news about the Philippines at all, you would have read how Manila had no electricity for 12 hours a day, and how the economy was stagnating in, ironically, the fastest growing region of the world.

With prospects so dim, if you were a young Filipino who had the chance to study abroad, your friends would not expect you to return.

Today, I look across the Pacific Ocean and I see everything has changed. News about the Philippines is full of promise, and there are more opportunities for Filipino students to find meaningful use for skills gained during studies abroad. Today, I personally know more people who are planning to go back instead of staying away.

Let me say, too, that here at the Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies, the premier institution of its kind, from which I have gained valuable skills and rich experience, the interest in the Philippines has been so great that fellowship funding earmarked specifically for Filipinos has been increased — which only goes to show how the remarkable success story of the Philippines has created at least one tangible opportunity that young Filipinos may seize.

So, Mr. President, know that your success in consolidating democracy and fostering economic growth in the Philippines means more than just numbers or concepts of freedom and personal rights.

It means more Filipinos feel good about themselves and our country. More Filipinos have reason to hope and be proud. And because of these, more Filipinos are looking to actively participate in facing the many challenges that remain for the Philippines.

Much praise has been heaped on you, Mr. President. But I often wonder if you realize just how much of an impact your presidency has had on the lives of ordinary people like myself. And one very real and profound result of your leadership, the benefit to the Philippines I believe will last well beyond your presidency, is that more of us are coming home.