Teodoro Locsin Jr. | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Locsin atKantei in 2022 | |
| Ambassador of the Philippines to the United Kingdom | |
| Assumed office August 30, 2022 | |
| President | Bongbong Marcos |
| Preceded by | Antonio M. Lagdameo |
| 27thSecretary of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office October 17, 2018[1] – June 30, 2022 | |
| President | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Preceded by | Alan Peter Cayetano |
| Succeeded by | Enrique Manalo |
| 20th Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations | |
| In office April 19, 2017 – October 12, 2018 | |
| President | Rodrigo Duterte |
| Preceded by | Lourdes Yparraguirre |
| Succeeded by | Enrique Manalo |
| Member of the Philippine House of Representatives fromMakati's1st district | |
| In office June 30, 2001 – June 30, 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Joker Arroyo |
| Succeeded by | Monique Lagdameo |
| Press Secretary | |
| In office March 26, 1986 – September 14, 1987 | |
| President | Corazon Aquino |
| Preceded by | Alice C. Villadolid |
| Succeeded by | Teodoro C. Benigno, Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Teodoro Lopez Locsin, Jr. (1948-11-16)November 16, 1948 (age 77) Manila, Philippines |
| Political party | PDP–Laban |
| Alma mater | Ateneo de Manila University (LL.B) Harvard University (LL.M) |
| Occupation | Businessman, journalist, ambassador |
| Profession | Lawyer, politician, diplomat |
Teodoro "Teddy Boy"Lopez Locsin Jr.GOLH (born November 16, 1948) is a Filipino politician, diplomat, lawyer, and former journalist who is currently serving as thePhilippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom since August 30, 2022.[2] He previously served as theSecretary of Foreign Affairs under theDuterte administration from 2018 to 2022. He was a member of theHouse of Representatives from 2001 to 2010, representing the1st district ofMakati and later served as thePhilippine ambassador to the United Nations from 2017 to 2018.[3] He was the host of the editorial segment titled "Teditorial" forANC's nightly newscastThe World Tonight.[4]
Locsin was born in Manila on November 15, 1948. His father was the prominent newspaperman and publisherTeodoro Locsin Sr. from theNegrense branch of theLocsin family of Molo, Iloilo.[3] He studied at theAteneo de Manila University and received a bachelor's degree in law and jurisprudence. He also earned aMaster of Laws degree fromHarvard University.[5]
When Senior Associate JusticeLeonardo Quisumbing retired from the Supreme Court in 2009, Locsin was among the candidates nominated by theJudicial and Bar Council as a potential replacement. However, he was not appointed to the said post.[6] In 2012, he was nominated as chief justice to replaceRenato Corona[7] but the post eventually went to Associate JusticeMaria Lourdes Sereno.
Locsin was designated as the Philippines' 20thPermanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations by PresidentRodrigo Duterte in 2017. It was announced that he accepted the appointment on September 18, 2016.[8] His term officially began when he presented hiscredentials to theSecretary-General of the United NationsAntónio Guterres, on April 19, 2017.[9]
Under his leadership, the Philippines voted toabstain from the challenge against the legality of the Independent Expert on SOGI (sexual orientation and gender identity) at a November 2016 session.[10]
Also, the Philippines was among 10 nations that votedagainst a UN resolution urging Myanmar to end its military campaign against Rohingya Muslims living in the Rakhine state in November 2017.[11]
Additionally, the country was one of 35 nations toabstain on the UN vote to declare theUS recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital null and void during an emergency December 2017 session of the UN General Assembly.[11]
In March 2018, Locsin submitted the country's letter of withdrawal from theRome Statute, the treaty that established theICC, after President Duterte expressed his intent to withdraw from the court.[11] Locsin vacated the post of permanent representative of the Philippines to the United Nations on October 12, 2018, upon assuming the post of Foreign Affairs Secretary, with the former post being filled up by his successor,Enrique Manalo.
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On October 11, 2018, Locsin announced that PresidentRodrigo Duterte offered him the post ofSecretary of Foreign Affairs, which was held byAlan Peter Cayetano. Cayetano intended to run in theMay 2019 elections for representative ofTaguig–Pateros, effectively vacating the position.[12]
Locsin was sworn in by Duterte as secretary of Foreign Affairs on October 17, 2018.[1] His appointment confirmed by theCommission on Appointments on November 28, 2018.[13]
On August 30, 2022, PresidentBongbong Marcos nominated Locsin to be the nextPhilippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom, of which the position has been left vacant since July 7, 2022 afterAntonio M. Lagdameo was appointed as the Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations by President Marcos on July 7, 2022.[14]
Then-press secretaryTrixie Cruz-Angeles announced Locsin's appointment on the aforementioned post on September 4, 2022, with his appointment being subsequently confirmed by the Commission on Appointments on December 7, 2022.[15] Later, Locsin has presented his credentials on May 16, 2023, to KingCharles III.[2][16][17]
Amidst recent maritime confrontations with China due to territorial disputes in theSouth China Sea, President Marcos appointed Locsin on August 16, 2023, as concurrent Special Envoy of the President to thePeople’s Republic of China for Special Concerns.[18][19]
Locsin is married to Ma. Lourdes Barcelon, a2010 candidate for representative of the1st district of Makati who lost in a tight race to outgoing CouncilorMonique Lagdameo ofPDP–Laban.
He was formerly married toPhilippine Stock Exchange director Vivian Yuchengco. They have two daughters, Margarita and Bianca.
Locsin has found himself at the center of various controversial public statements via the social media platform Twitter.
In March 2016, during theVisayas leg of the PiliPinas Debates 2016, he opined in a tweet that the Tagalog language was "inappropriate to pointed debate" describing it as "so long, so bullshitty, so useless". Conversely, he described English as "the civilized language" and "the language of men".[20] He later defended his comments, saying "show me that [Tagalog] is a good language. That it is effective in debate, that it can get its point across". He did however praiseLuchi Cruz-Valdes for effectively moderating the debate in Tagalog: "she got the point across. In spite of the terrible situation, she was in control, and she did it in Tagalog."[21]
Locsin expressed support for thePhilippine Drug War on August 21, 2017, through Twitter, comparing the campaign against drugs of President Duterte toAdolf Hitler'sFinal Solution and said he does not believe in the rehabilitation of drug addicts.[22] He followed this with another remark that the "Nazis were not all wrong" and said people should keep an open mind drawing criticism.[23] He cited Hitler's military and economic policies that "are paying off even now in German primacy in Europe" but conceded that theHolocaust "wiped out his economic contribution."[23] Locsin later retracted these remarks by deleting the tweet, however threatened individuals who criticized him.[22]
On February 20, 2017, the majority bloc members of theHouse of Representatives caucused to remove rape from the list ofpossible death penalty offenses.[24] When the official Twitter account of theABS-CBN News Channel reported this, Locsin tweeted a reply:[25]
Locsin in a tweet said that while rape is a crime; an "indignity" and "outrage" it is not a heinous crime. Though he went on to mention select cases of rape as "heinous" such as agang rape in India and an incident where the rapist is an ugly man. He then said that killing is not heinous or premeditated saying it's a common crime. His posts were criticized by some users of Twitter.[25]
On February 14, 2018, Locsin tweeted that criticizers of the Chinese names imposed by China on thePhilippine Rise, which have been recognized by the International Hydrographic Organization, are 'childish and stupid', sparking a word war on the issue. Criticizers noted that Locsin is the current ambassador to the United Nations and should be one of the first to defend the Philippines' sovereignty and sovereign rights. Locsin did not reply afterwards.[26][non-primary source needed][27][non-primary source needed][28][29]
The Philippines has anunresolved claim to much of easternSabah.
On July 27, 2020, a tweet by theEmbassy of the United States to the Philippines regarding the donation of hygiene kits by Filipino expatriates from Sabah indicated that Sabah belongs to Malaysia. Locsin quoted the tweet and replied that "Sabah is not in Malaysia".[30] In response, on July 29, the foreign minister of Malaysia,Hishammuddin Hussein, called Locsin's remarks irresponsible and damaging to bilateral ties, and summoned the Philippine ambassador to Malaysia, Charles Jose.[31] In response, on July 30, Locsin also summoned the Malaysian ambassador to the Philippines, Norman Muhamad.[32]
On August 1, 2020, Locsin responded to a tweet by radio personalityMo Twister criticizing President Duterte's suggestion of using gasoline as a disinfectant for face masks in the COVID-19 pandemic. Locsin asked Mo Twister "...what if [Duterte]'s right? Seriously, bro." He added that he knew of people in small towns who used to killhead lice by dropping them into kerosene.[33]
In October 2023, amidst theGaza war, in response to a tweet aboutPalestinian stone-throwing, Locsin tweeted "That's why Palestinian children should be killed; they might grow up to be gullible ... lettingHamas launch rockets at Israel." After drawing criticism, he deleted the tweet and apologized, explaining he "was not advocating for the literal death of anyone, but rather simply for the end of any ideology that condones terrorism." The Department of Foreign Affairs disassociated themselves from Locsin's comments, saying it was his personal opinion.[34][35]
One Bangsamoro Movement Inc., a Muslim civic group, filed a disbarment case against Locsin at theSupreme Court.[36]
| House of Representatives of the Philippines | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of thePhilippine House of Representatives fromMakati's1st district 2001–2010 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Alice C. Villadolid | Press Secretary 1986–1987 | Succeeded by Teodoro C. Benigno Jr. |
| Preceded by | Secretary of Foreign Affairs 2018–2022 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations 2017–2018 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Philippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom 2022–present | Incumbent |
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| Legionnaire (Lehiyonaryo) | |
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