Case closed, De Lima says of Thomas remarks

US Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr.

As far as Justice Secretary Leila de Lima is concerned, the issue of US Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr.’s controversial comments about sex tourism in the country is closed.

“I don’t think it would do any good to anyone if we will still be prolonging this issue. No less than the Palace has said that it’s a closed case already. So let’s move forward,” she told reporters Wednesday.

De Lima last week sent a letter to the US envoy asking him to explain what the basis was for his remark that two of every five foreign male tourists come to the Philippines only for commercial sex.

The justice secretary said that apart from a text message, Thomas had sent her a letter.

“It was a letter of expression of apology and I commend him for that because it showed a sense of humility and honor on his part,” De Lima said.

Thus, she saw no further need to ask Thomas for an explanation, said De Lima who earlier described the envoy’s remarks as “offensive and demeaning to the image of the nation.”

She said she was confident that the “unfortunate episode” would not adversely affect the country’s relations with the US.

De Lima said that in his letter, Thomas had assured her of his government’s continued support for the government campaign against human trafficking.

“It was just an unfortunate episode. But I don’t think there is any substantial effect on the relationship. In fact, this could serve as a way to further strengthen the partnership in the area of human trafficking,” she said.

In his letter, Thomas said he “deeply [regretted]” what he had said at a judicial forum and that he was offering his “profound remorse” for issuing the statement.

“Clearly, it was not my intent to insult Filipinos, a people who I have come to admire and respect,” he said.

“I should not have said that ‘40 percent of American males come to the Philippines for sexual tourism,’ without the ability to confirm these statistics,” Thomas said.

“I want to assure you that the US Embassy in Manila will continue to work with your government to combat this modern day form of slavery… Working together with honest and dedicated officials, our two governments can end this global scourge,” he said.