PNoy names Usec. Basilio as new PHL ambassador to China

resident Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday confirmed the designation of foreign affairs undersecretary Erlinda Basilio as the Philippines' next ambassador to China.

Erlinda Basilio, newly named ambassador to China. DFA file photo

Aquino said the selection of a senior foreign affairs official as the country's top diplomat in China will indicate the seriousness of the Philippines in resolving the territorial dispute between the two countries.

Basilio will replace Ambassador Sonia Brady, who had suffered a stroke earlier this year.

“Given that she’s already the senior undersecretary, parangthat sends a signal of how important our relations with China are and how serious we are in trying to achieve an understanding with them,” the President told reporters.

He added, "I chose Basilio because of her wealth of experience, and also, she is  highly recommended by Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario."

Aquino said he has yet to sign the appointment papers of Basilio, which are being prepared by the office of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr.

The dispute between the Philippines and China over Panatag (Scarborough) shoal started last April when Manila authorities caught Chinese fishermen poaching in the area. But before the Philippine Navy could make arrests, Chinese ships blocked its path.

The Philippines and China have since been locked in a standoff that has soured relations between the two countries, affecting economic relations.
   
Last May, as the dispute over Panatag deepened, China imposed tighter sanitary measures for Philippine bananas after it supposedly saw insects in the imported shipments.
 
Also last May, China issued an advisory suspending tourism flights to the Philippines after Filipino civil society groups protested Beijing’s growing aggression in the West Philippine Sea.

Basilio profile

Basilio was among the Philippine foreign affairs officials talking with Chinese officials at the start of the Panatag standoff.

She was named as acting DFA secretary in February 2011, when then Secretary Alberto Romulo filed an indefinite leave of absence.

Basilio earned her Bachelor of Arts and Masters in Political Science degrees from the University of the Philippines.

She joined the foreign service in 1970. She served as Ambassador to Sweden from 1997 to 2003, and Permanent Representative to the Philippine Mission to the United Nations in Geneva from 2007 to 2010.

Basilio served as Assistant Secretary for Asia and Pacific affairs from 1995 to 1997. She was named Undersecretary for policy during President Arroyo's administration in 2006 to 2007, and continued in this capacity under the Aquino government.