My past weekend was typical of my Dubai weekends – packed, extremely hectic. Fridays, for most, even for most of my staff, are reserved for families, outings and gallivanting around the malls, or just plain lounging at home. I harbor no complaints though. I get it.  Weekends are when the Filipino community schedules their organizations’ events and activities, and what better way for them to celebrate it than by inviting their Congen to either deliver an inspirational speech or do a ceremonial toss, or grace the opening of a branch, or even present awards that serve as their ‘pat on the back.’

This particular weekend was a tad more sundry. My audience ranged from Philippine government authorities, to Filipino sports enthusiasts, to graduating students and their proud parents, to an ecumenical forum and celebration, and to a quasi-socio-economic aggrupation along with Filipinos needing government assistance the most.

It started off with airport duty a little after midnight. Part of my responsibility as Consul General is to provide diplomatic port courtesies to officials visiting or transiting through the city. Dubai International Airport, with its famed service orientation and extensive aviation network, has become a preferred route for most and thus, I get to meet many of our officials when they transit DXB (Dubai’s airport code). Most often, it is a 4-5 hour layover during which, I get to be up close and personal with them, sharing views on current events, providing briefs on our Consulate’s activities and requirements (aka wish lists), and even reviewing films they watched on board the plane. These captive moments allow me, well us, to get to know each other, almost at a personal level (snippets of opportunities which are not available to us both while in Manila). Flights are often in the wee hours of the morning, so my body clock gets a jolt ever so often, with mealtimes shared with my principals at 3 or 4 am – a routine which my digestive system has grown quite accustomed to!

Just a little after lunch was my community affair with Filipino golfers – a golf tournament in celebration of Philippine Independence Day. Before making a fool of myself at the ceremonial opening that I was to lead, I made it clear to the organizers that golf was not my cup of ‘tee.’ Yes, you read that right! I was en route to becoming a golf aficionado as a junior officer in one of our Central European posts some 20 years back, but the long hours took me away from my first-born, so I opted to forego the sport. I told that golfers that, on top of their dedication, holding their tournament under Dubai’s 45-degree sun definitely earns my respect! But what could be a better way, I added, than to commemorate Philippine Independence Day under as much heat as that of the Filipinos’ felicitous display of affection to the communities they find themselves immersed in – be it in America, Hong Kong, the Middle East, or Europe. (If you insist on me telling you, I hit the ball on my second swing. Not bad I’d like to think!)

And then there was a graduation ceremony. One of the most difficult tasks asked of me is to address our youth. Phrasing one’s remarks within the confines of youthful experience is most certainly a toughie. For many grownups, youth is a fuzzy memory, a blur and hazy pigment of the past so that recalibrating our present verbal templates into the patterns geared for the young is a challenge. This becomes more pronounced for me because I had been primed to speak to young folks, those of the same age-bracket as that of my teenage boys, in a father like tone, authoritative and yes, to an extent stern but solicitous. Graduation ceremonies dictate that I shift my tenor to a bit more nurturing, tenderly, more like a gentle reminder given by a doting uncle to our children to prepare themselves for their hard lessons of life. I spoke to the students about their role as the future of the Philippines, juxtaposed with the reality of having been raised within the context of migration, my words most carefully crafted to catch their youthful vibe and swag.

I approached early evening rushing off to an ecumenical forum and celebration. This time, the audience was inter-faith and inter-cultural, with the purpose of highlighting the diversity of faith and ethnicity in Dubai and how Ramadan contributes towards a deeper understanding between cultures. Addressing the 200-strong audience, I shared how Philippine history has seen the stark and painful divide between the Filipinos of the north and south. Having spent all of my career in Christian Europe and North America, my Dubai posting is my first foray into an Islamic community and thus far, has shaped a new perspective on the similarities of Christian and Islamic faiths.  Stripped off details and minutiae, I felt that all faiths preach the same virtues of kindness and compassion, the essence of what humanity should be all about and Ramadan provides that experience for both our Muslim brothers and Christian expats in this gem of a city. The tranquil and sedating mood of the event laid a more meditative Ramadan experience for me, something that seemed to soothe and calm a week that has seen incoherent ramblings and deeds borne out of religious intolerance and ignorance around the world.

My last two events were back in the fold of the Filipino community — one, leading the oath taking ceremony of an organization whose mission is to play a more constructive and active role in the economic development of Southern Philippines; and another, addressing a group meant to bring cheer to Filipinos awaiting their longed-for repatriation. The bayanihan spirit is very evident among any Filipino community elsewhere in the world. Somehow, Filipinos have no qualms about lending their hands to anyone in need of a lifeline. Be it fund-raising events for typhoon victims back home or spreading goodwill and smiles to those desperate for one, all Filipino communities seem to be masters of altruism. Our inherent social structure is like that of fire ants, locking in their arms together when threatened by an external force, ensuring their survival by rafting in the flood of despair.

The Consul General’s weekend experience was not in any way unique nor could it be the proverbial falling tree in the forest. That it was one shared by 550,000 other Filipinos in Dubai and the Northern Emirates makes it just as real as the rest of the Overseas Filipino community sharing their experiences with me.  We, the Pinoys of the Middle East, are in an enviable position of having the best of worlds at our fingertips – a vibrant Islamic economy that generously shares opportunities, a multi-cultural community that has respect for others’ faiths, a crossroads for migrants and policy-makers that make it an avenue for the pollination of ideas and opinions, a breeding ground for the migrant youth ready and raring to join the global community as active players, and an oasis that germinates what is essential to humanity. I could not have asked for more that weekend.

And that’s only on one Friday. Saturday is longer tale altogether.
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CONSUL GENERAL PAUL RAYMUND CORTES

When not performing his duties as the head of the Filipino community in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, or the obligations of a dutiful dad, passionate patriot Paul Raymund Cortes mulls over how to further enrich the local Filipino community by promoting a more progressive mindset.

Related articles: 
Keeping up with Congen, Talking Tourism
Keeping up with Congen, the Pinoy TV

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The Case For The Filipino Brand Of Art

By: Consul General Paul Raymund Cortes 

Just off our Global Conference of Heads of Post two weeks back, I revisited our 2017 Cultural Diplomacy Calendar of events to see how I could re-calibrate this to incorporate strategies and action plans as discussed by all Ambassadors and Consuls General during our week-long forum. Tweaking it to suit Manila’s recommended lines, I find our amended string of events this year meritorious enough to undergo scrutiny by our Home Office, assured that our efforts to build a strong case in favor of Philippine culture and our version of the creative arts could go a long way.

But how long is a long way? Do I foresee the Filipino brand of art catapulting on a global scale? Does long way mean dictating the global commercial tempo of music, dance, or visual art? Sure, pride in my culture and our art runs deep in my veins and I have long prepared to personally play the role of the Filipino artist to the hilt even. Lamentably though, I have to be honest enough to myself and temper my visions of an incredibly global reach for the Filipino artist simply because I think the global market is not prepared to welcome us on center stage.

When Adele won this year’s Grammy for Song, Record, and Album of the Year, countless opinions about how Beyoncé was robbed of the recognition filled the Internet. Racism, some called it. Others even presented catalogued matrices detailing the times African American artists were overlooked in favor of white artists. Rolling Stones even theorized that the Grammys’ domination by white males explains it all. I debunk the claim that only white artists matter because truth is, black artists – singers, dancers, film makers, and artists in general – have enjoyed as much commercial success, if not even greater, as their white counterparts. Frankly, I do not have any preference between Adele and Beyoncé but I feel that every time there is a debate on whether or not the global market for music is heavily in favor of the white Caucasian crooner versus the black soul singer, I feel horribly left out as the Filipino singer or the Asian artist does not seem to matter in this equation, not even as a variable. It is as if in determining who the global music industry could market and eventually sell, the choices end with either white or black and nothing else – no Filipino, no Asian, no browns.

I know I may be treading on dangerous waters here but let me say it as it really is. In the global scheme of things, it appears that there can be no room for Pinoy singers at the top. Our singers and artists may have been recognized at some point – Lea Salonga, the most perfect and possibly our most shining example; Rachel Ann Go in West End and now Bradway; Charisse to an extent; even some runner-ups or finalists in many of those reality talent shows – Jessica Sanchez, Jasmine Trias, Fourth Impact, and many others. Psy’s Gang Nam and Gentleman commercial success may not be flukes but they are too novelty to be considered seriously in the way John Legend, Luther Vandross, or Justin Timberlake are. These Asian editions of success are exceptions rather than the rule and it may take a revolution for our artists to even make a slight dent in the international pop culture. And how ironic is it all the more that the global community recognizes the Filipinos for their seemingly innate and exceptional talent in music, song writing, theater, and the performing arts yet we could not penetrate that glass cage that separates our artists from the likes of Adele and Beyoncé or Michael Jackson, Bono, or Sting.

I’ve asked myself quite a number of times if I ever I could visualize a Filipino rising to the top of the heap of the music industry and while I could dream forever, reality strikes back and tells me “maybe not this generation or the next.” I read one time how almost impossible it is for an Asian to be cast as lead character in the cinema we all enjoy. Asian actors are more likely to be cast in a comical role or in support of a Caucasian or African-American character. Perhaps in similar fashion, our brand of musicality cannot match the commercial dominance of your traditional American or British or even European brand (remember Abba, the ultra-popular Swedish band).

In this painful epiphany, should I even try to convince the rest of the world how worth listening to or reading or watching Filipino music, literature, dance, and theater is? The odds are seemingly stacked against the brand my people produce and much as I myself dream of reaching the highest of heights as far as our arts are on the table, I may have to contend with the end goal of simply making other ethnicities understand who we are as a people and embrace the art and “humble” commerce that comes with it, not as captains of the industry but as perimetric designs that cater to the Filipino audience and a few global souls at the most. Maybe I just need ditch those illusions of grandeur for our vocalists, dancers, writers, painters, film makers, and all, accepting wholeheartedly the excruciating truth that in the current art market, the white and black artists dominate and dictate the pace at which the whole world goes. For us brown artists, we lay on their fringes, marginal notes on the page of commercial success.

But that would be the easy way out.

I choose not to and continue my vigorous campaign for our voice, our art, our expressions, our literature, our dance. And if the world cannot buy the fact that Filipinos rightfully deserve to be on top of the global cultural scene, that cannot be my loss.

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THE TIMELINE OF LOVE

By Consul General Paul Raymund Cortes

The story isn’t new. I’ve regaled friends and those interested to know several times before. Without doubt, I will continue telling the tale of how my wife and I took several turns in life to bring us to 20 years of marriage. I cannot pinpoint exactly where it all began but perhaps I can begin with the day when I finally decided to call it quits with career plans with SGV (for the benefit of those unaware, SGV is an accounting and management consulting firm then thought of as The Place to be after college.) Though just to set the record straight, I am extremely proud to have been a part of that family and everything about SGV is possibly the most rewarding as far having a career path that was to be the envy of all was concerned. It was crystal clear to me though that I was never going to be happy staying there, this strong urge to leave and set off to the unknown, away from what I had been educated to do and what I had been training for, tugging my soul.

Nebulous as to what I had hoped to be and where to take my education to, with a great leap of faith, I packed my bags and went to Baguio, my birthplace and where most of relatives including my grandparents lived. That was November of 1991, a few months after the great earthquake that struck the city. Just as the city was reeling from destruction and painstakingly trying to rebuild itself, there I was similarly trying to find out exactly what place under the sun I wanted to claim, an endeavor I was starting out of nowhere. And as unplanned as my decision to leave Manila was, I took another great leap and went on to try my luck as an artist/performer, this time as a pop/jazz vocalist, a departure from my classical vocal orientation in college.

I began with ballads and light pop rock even folk and jazz music, diving into musical genres then unknown to me or to vocal styles that were alien to me. Slowly though, I must have chosen my songs right and pretty soon, there were quite a few who followed my nightly sets — which either stretched from an early 730pm piano set or to the primetime 1030pm or to a late night capper at 1230am. One of those who often listened to my sets was a prominent, young optometrist, whose network of friends was undeniably wide and expansive, she carrying the family name of one of the city’s most respected politico-socio-civic brands and herself being a genuinely likeable and endearing personality.

Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t your proverbial love at first sight. We became friends, unearthing discoveries that bound our families together. Her father was a great friend of my father in their bachelor days, her mother and my mother knew each other as well, the Baguio circle of the 60s apparently small and tight. My family knew hers, our grandparents were from the same province, their towns close by each other, and most surprisingly, her dad was my baptismal godfather or ninong, in Filipino parlance. There was just too much of a web that linked us but we didn’t think of it as anything deeper than it was. This lady optometrist had become sort of a critic and fan (I see rolling eyeballs), who told me straight on whether my set or song choice was outright dead-on or lamentably horrible and substandard. She had become a confidant as well and we seemed to agree that being great friends was what we were destined to be…..until….we decided to try out something deeper and beyond infatuation as the connection was undeniably bringing us closer together.

We became an item, happily so. At some point in our relationship, however, as I was pushing my luck in singing a tad further in Manila, having signed on with a recording company my group and I snatched through the auspices of our business manager, she and I figured our paths were bifurcating, like trees whose branches were slowly drifting apart until the expanse was just too great to reconcile. Admittedly, the decision to let go was one of the most difficult and most bewailing moments in my life albeit some eight months after, we decided to give it another push and maybe see whether we were really destined to be. (Short of being film fiction, it was my grandmother, dad, and even my brother who paved the way toward reconciliation, like they knew where it all should have headed to.)

Well, as I always said in the past, stars seem to have a mind of their own and align exactly at the most perfect time. It was the serendipity and randomness of my career decision that led me to Baguio that year, the blind embrace of the obvious absurdity of leaving a promising and lucrative career in management consulting and information systems, the senseless desire to sing professionally, a career I was definitely unprepared for. And in those hours of joyful performing and nightly soul searching, I met her, fell in love, and eventually married her, to which I am crediting all that I bask myself in today.

I look back to where I was some 20 years ago, thinking about how my and my wife’s timelines diverge to where we are right now. These snippets of yesteryears collided to figure in a cosmic display of fate, resulting in some magical formation who knows it was intended for. Maybe our love story isn’t the end of it all – maybe it was the foundation of stories of the future, or maybe a logical precursor to something even greater. In the scheme of things, we will never know. I do know though that what is most certain is that at some point in this eternal line of forking events, Yasmin and I fell in love. Luckily, we still are!

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Consul General PAUL RAYMUND CORTES

Dubai and the Northern Emirates

Curious thing about Philippine Consul General Paul Raymund Cortes – he doesn’t exactly fit the mold of what most people would construe as a “quintessential diplomat.” Yes, he is diplomatic, well-tempered, and in touch. Yes, he carries himself with the gravitas and dignity that befit his position. But what makes him truly exceptional is his palpable sense of openness and inclusivity – even outright friendliness. Where most people would expect a diplomat to be guarded and measured, Consul General Paul Raymund is charming, approachable, and pleasantly spontaneous. But make no mistake – these amiable qualities do not, in any way, make him lightweight. This man gets the job done. And he gets it done well.

2016 has been an inordinately hectic year for the Philippine Consulate, as Consul General Paul Raymund endeavors to expand the reach of the institution, two-ways: by making tangible and lasting improvements in the Consulate’s administrative capabilities, and by opening its doors to the community as a true hub for celebrating Filipino culture. This year, the Consulate launched Monthly Town Hall meetings to provide Filipinos in Dubai a clearer understanding of public policy issues. It also hosted several health awareness campaign forums and gender and development projects, and initiated an aggressive campaign to encourage overseas Filipino voters to participate in the 2016 Presidential election. 2016 also saw the first ever songwriting competition organized by the Consulate: the Dubai Dubai Musikahan.

The Consulate’s list of achievements this year could very well necessitate a double-page spread, and yet for Consul General Paul Raymund, 2016 has only been a warm-up. He sees 2017 as a year of even greater expansion, buoyed by enhanced community participation. He attests: “By understanding that government is not the repository of all answers, theories, and solutions to public policy issues and concerns, I strove to seek the opinion and studies of technical experts and the community and from there, craft policy issues that would address these concerns. I provided more avenues for stakeholder engagement, making overseas Filipinos understand that they are part of the policy process and that their views are important and meaningful.”

My duties include protecting and promoting the welfare of Filipinos in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, promoting the Philippines as a trade and investment, tourism and finance destination, ensuring that Philippine political interests in Dubai and the Northern Emirates are adequately protected, and encouraging overseas Filipinos to take pride in their culture through arts, sports, community activities, and building on to the excellent repute of the global Filipino.

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On leadership and machismo:  Is Man-Rule Absolute?

By Consul General Paul Raymund Cortes

News across the globe around the deadline time for this edition circled on political and economic developments back home, in the US, in India, and here in the UAE. In the Philippines, the Supreme Court ruled against a petition to block the proposal to bury the remains of former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos at our Libingan ng mga Bayani or our Heroes Cemetery.  The US saw the closure of one of their most contested Presidential elections with the victory of an unlikely politician, Donald Trump. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi scrapped its highest denomination notes in an effort to curb money laundering and arrest a culture of corruption and tax evasion. The UAE, on the other hand, churned jaw dropping news with the launch of the Dubai-Abu Dhabi Hyperloop One, a project that would cut the 2-hour travel time between UAE largest city and socio-economic center, Dubai, and its capital, Abu Dhabi to a mere 12 minutes.

Truly it was quite a week, and in the midst of these divisive, perplexing, and inspiring news, a few souls came up to me and asked me what I thought of all these. It made me wonder whether or not it really mattered to people in the community what I thought or at the very least what my office could offer as viewpoints on current issues. In addition, day in, day out, I receive tons of messages from either my personal FB account or the official page: inquiries, requests for assistance, some legitimate, others ludicrous and preposterous. My WhatsApp threads are deluged with pleas. The monthly town hall meetings we hold at the Consulate are packed with leaders and members of the community eager to understand and internalize the goings on in Philippine and international politics, the machinations of global economics and how these bewildering puzzles make their way to the plight of overseas Filipinos, and the social dynamics that rattle Pinoy’s back home and abroad. Clearly, as far as I’m concerned, my role as stepfather to the community here demands much on my part and obliges me to ensure that our constituency in this part of the world is aware not only what is due them but is likewise armed with ammunitions that make them more informed and thus, empowered citizens of the world.

Earlier on, arriving in Dubai some 17 months ago, I mapped out for myself what I believed was expected of me as Consul General in Dubai. Woven into all intricacies of this map was the underlying role to act as father to the community, looking after their welfare and offering that seemingly elusive ray of hope to Pinoy’s. Perhaps I put too much weight on my shoulders, and that acting out such a role wasn’t really necessary. However, I felt that to deny the urgency and necessity of this role would be tantamount to cowardice and pusillanimity. And with the newfound swagger our leadership possess, a parallel vigor in the manner I conducted this office would not be as misplaced as I would have thought before.

On leadership and machismo:  Is Man-Rule Absolute?

Maybe what happened in those four parts of the world weren’t as serendipitous or as independent as I deemed it were. Those four news events dovetailed into a moment of clarity of purpose that defined my view on this office, on my posting in Dubai, on why I was even promoted to Chief of Mission, on why the stars aligned for me to take on the path of diplomacy 20 years ago. Somehow, answers hit us when we least expect them to. And in this case, purpose had never been so much clearer and transparent to me as it is now – for each and every step I take, much more is asked of me, all in the manner of stepping up to be a leader to others. Spiderman, in the movie, said “with great power comes great responsibility” and in the course of my life as a son, husband, father, and stepfather to the rest of the Filipinos in Dubai, I embrace this expectation with confident and open arms albeit with a little trepidation and worry that I may fall short.

Society had always been about who led everyone else and under what circumstance have made that society move forward, stagnate, or retrogress. And traditionally, it was the men who led their respective homes, their communities, their states, and even other states. Today’s era has seen women take on the leadership roles once reserved for men – the Philippines has had two, Britain has the Queen, India, the world’s largest democracy, had one, Israel, Sri Lanka, and many others. Part of this week’s denouement included the epiphany that beyond me, it is the office of the Consul General that is laced with the obligation to lead, the task to be the father or mother of the community in Dubai. Leadership was never about machismo. It was about who took the on the mission to thread the path for everyone else to follow. Being that person who everyone seeks their opinion of, who serves as the hope for all, and who is the answer to their supplications, is defined not by gender but by strength of heart and steely resolve. And in these times, men seemingly do not have that monopoly anymore.

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Related Post:

Public Advisories from the Philippine Consulate General – Dubai

Keeping Up With the Con Gen: Of Being Consul General and the Real Me

Most Influential Filipinos in the Gulf: Philippine Consulate General – Dubai and the Northern Emirates

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