Foreign journalists look forward to meeting Duterte

DEPARTURE TALK Before leaving for Peru to attend the Asia- Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, President Duterte
discloses his message to Apec leaders: The Philippines is open for business. —BING GONZALES

LIMA, Peru—President Rodrigo Duterte is scheduled to arrive here for his first Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Economic Leaders Meeting before midnight Thursday under the gaze of a curious foreign press, many of whom may be wondering what controversial thing he will say next.

There has been a marked interest in Mr. Duterte among foreign journalists, according to Malacañang insiders privy to requests for media coverage of the President’s activities in this annual trade summit of the leaders of 21 Pacific Rim economies.

“Our past Presidents don’t usually get that much attention from the foreign press,” said one source, who disclosed that at least one international media agency and a Peruvian news organization were seeking an opportunity to cover or interview  Mr. Duterte.

The requests have been forwarded to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), though it is believed he will have no time to speak to journalists during the two-day event.

Bigger stage

Mr. Duterte, who left the Philippines on Thursday and was to make a short layover in New Zealand, is expected to land in Lima about 11:30 p.m., Thursday. Lima is 13 hours behind Manila.

One Philippine official earlier said Mr. Duterte, who is notorious for his profanity-laced language—he has called US President Barack Obama a “son of a bitch” and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the European Union “fools” for criticizing his brutal campaign against illegal drugs—would have a bigger stage during the Apec summit to “showcase both his mystique and his agenda for the country.”

“Many of the other economic leaders would want to understand the President’s, I think, ideology, mission, and even programs from his own words, free of any biases or any slant,” said DFA Senior Special Assistant Leo Herrera-Lim.

Socioeconomic program

In a departure speech at Davao International Airport on Thursday, Mr. Duterte said he would push his administration’s socioeconomic program, particularly improvements in doing business in the Philippines, during his meetings with other leaders.

“My message to Apec will be clear: The Philippines is open for business,” he said. “We will do everything to ensure that business, particularly [micro, small and medium enterprises] will thrive and flourish.”

He said he would also emphasize government policy support and his administration’s drive against corruption and crime “as building blocks of a strong and resilient economy aimed at inclusive and continuous growth.”

Mr. Duterte said he hoped his first South American trip would serve as venue for the Philippines to deepen and broaden its engagement with the continent and other Pacific Rim nations “as our economic partners.”

This year’s Apec summit, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, is the first for Mr. Duterte, who will have bilateral meetings with two to four leaders, including the prospect of a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Philippine leader’s own request.

It is also the last Apec summit for Obama, who is on a valedictory trip to assure allies that the United States will keep its security commitments to them during the presidency of Donald Trump, the antiestablishment businessman whose shock election victory on Nov. 8 has left the free world without a leader.

Passing the mantle

Obama’s first stop in Europe is Berlin, for a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in what is seen as a symbolic gesture of passing the mantle.

With British Prime Minister Theresa May preoccupied with securing her country’s future outside the European Union after June’s Brexit vote, and with French President Francois Hollande grappling with record low ratings ahead of next May’s election that could see far-right Marine Le Pen reaching the second round run-off vote, Merkel now looks increasingly like the only bulwark of stability and liberal freedom among Western allies.

But Merkel must first win a fourth term in next year’s German elections. She hasn’t declared an intention to stand for a fourth term, though.

Mr. Duterte is unlikely to meet with Obama during the Apec summit. Their first planned meeting at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Laos in September was canceled after Mr. Duterte called Obama a “son of a bitch” for expressing concern about extrajudicial killings in the Philippine war on drugs. —WITH A REPORT FROM FRINSTON LIM IN DAVAO CITY