Duties of an Ambassador

however, that the appointment is coterminous with the term of the President. Many favorite businessmen of the chief executive were appointed ambassador-at-large. To this day, they still carry the title.

Duties of an Ambassador

As the highest-ranking representative of the president, the ambassador once accredited has to present his credentials to the leader of the host country in a formal ceremony. His credentials duly accepted, the ambassador can go about his work of relaying the policies and goals of his country to the host country and keeping abreast his president and the Department of Foreign Affairs of significant developments in the country of his assignment. The ambassador also represents his country at state functions of his host country and attends conferences.

The primordial responsibility of an ambassador is to represent the interests of his country in his nation of assignment. These interests may differ in priorities over time in a rapidly changing international geopolitical setting, which can complicate the job of a chief of mission. Today in a world of volatile alliances and steady regionalization, a country’s interest may very well lie in solidarity with regional groupings rather than the bilateral ties that characterized the age of colonialism before World War II.

Apart from keeping the home office informed of significant developments in the host country, the ambassador may be involved in negotiations, be these trade or security, and in crafting joint policy statements. The promotion of cultural ties with the host country is also an important task of an ambassador who must at all times do his level best to create goodwill by attending events and facilitating cultural exchanges. During my stint in Rome I was involved with negotiations regarding freedom flights for the national air carrier—the Philippine

Airlines. We were also part of negotiations on social security coverage for Filipinos working in Italy.

The Philippine ambassador must attend very seriously to one of the pillars of the country’s economic diplomacy, which is the care of Overseas Foreign Workers (OFWs). It is an important function to oversee the safety of Filipino nationals in his area of responsibility. The arduous tasks, however, are left to the consular section’s staff who have to attend to the passport and visa requirements of our nationals as well as their safety, health, and legal problems. In effect the ambassador is like a ship’s captain who is responsible for all passengers on his ship. Apart from issuing passports as chief of mission I even had to preside over civil marriages conducted in embassy premises for our nationals and to provide legal support for those charged with crime in Italian courts. Even the transport of cadavers of nationals to the country had to be attended to by the embassy because caskets had to be opened by Italian customs for verification.

The task I enjoyed the most was visiting our nationals in their areas of work to see to it that they were treated fairly by their employers and that they behaved so as not to give the country and our people a bad name. Independence Day celebrations, which allowed our nationals to get together in Rome, were the highlight of the year’s celebrations. Under my watch, this was usually held in the sprawling grounds of the Pontificio Collegio Filippino with the permission of the rector. This was marked by a food festival where Filipinos exhibited regional dishes to the delight of the foreign guests. Filipino entertainers from the Philippines also came over to give our OFWs a taste of home.

Given the typically lean staff and modest budget of our missions abroad, it is the duty of the chief of mission, the ambassador, to see to it that the mission’s activities are cost-effective and that the work of

his staff, comprising of diplomatic and economic officers and consular staff, and the work of heads of attached agencies such as Defense etc., is properly coordinated with that of the mission proper. This means that everyone in the mission must speak with one voice with regard to government policy. It is also the duty of an ambassador to provide his bosses—the President and immediate superior, the Secretary of Foreign Affairs—with expert guidance and frank counsel on matters relating to affairs affecting his host country. Also important is the role of the ambassador to ensure that those serving under him/her would render professional excellence, observe the highest standard of ethical conduct, and exercise to the utmost diplomatic discretion. In sum, the ambassador must also act as pater familias.

In essence, an ambassador is an official envoy, the highest-ranking diplomat who represents his country as recognized by his host country or international organization. As formally defined and recognized at the congress of Vienna of 1815, ambassadors were originally regarded as personal representatives of their country’s chief executive rather than of the whole country, which entitled them to meet personally with the head of state of the host country. Since the end of the World War II, however, all nations have been recognized as equals, and ambassadors or their equivalents are sent to all countries with which diplomatic relations are maintained.

Officially only chiefs of mission that have been confirmed by the Commission of Appointments of Congress as Envoys Extraordinary and Ambassador Plenipotentiary are entitled to sport the title for life. Before an ambassador can function as his country’s representative, he must first be approved by the host country in the form of an agrimont.

Today states and non-states use diplomatic representatives to deal with problems occurring within the international scene. Ambassadors