THE ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) has conferred the distinguished Service Award to the Philippines’ former five-time Speaker of the House of Representatives, Jose de Venecia Jr., on September 20 during a ceremony held at the World Trade Center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

De Venecia  was honored for sponsoring a resolution that transformed the former ASEAN Inter- Parliamentary Organization (AIPO) into what is now the AIPA, and in moving for the establishment of the AIPA Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia.

This took place in September 2006 in Cebu City, when the House of Representatives under De Venecia, hosted the General Assembly of what was then the AIPO, which also paved the way for the election of Rep. Antonio Cuenco as the first Filipino AIPA Secretary General.

De Venecia received the award, accompanied by his wife, 4th District Rep. Gina De Venecia, chairperson of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Inter-Parliamentary Relations and Diplomacy.

Speaking on behalf of her husband, De Venecia expressed their family’s heartfelt gratitude to AIPA, composed of parliaments and legislatures from member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Beyond ASEAN, the former House Speaker founded and launched several Asia-wide and global organizations that continue to play vital roles in promoting peace and understanding.

These include the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP) based in Seoul, Korea; Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) based in Tehran, Iran; Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace based in Seoul, and New York, USA; and Asian Peace and Reconciliation Council (APRC) based in Bangkok, Thailand. (Leonardo Micua)

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