AT the local celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the adoption of Austria’s constitutional law on permanent neutrality in 1955, Ambassador Bita Rasoulian congratulated the Philippines for winning another term in the United Nations Human Rights Council.
“Please allow me to congratulate both Austria and the Philippines under the baton of [then-Acting] Foreign Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. for winning yet another term in the UN Declaration of Human Rights,” Rasoulian said.
Locsin, who led the Philippine delegation to the UN, is also the country’s permanent representative to the world’s general assembly of nations. (At that time, he was still the incoming foreign affairs secretary.)
“We look forward to continued and increased engagements with the Philippines in [the said] forum,” the Austrian envoy stated, as she hosted the festivity marking 100 years of the Austrian National Day.
“Additionally,” she declared, “we are also celebrating a ‘round’ birthday—the centenary of the Republic of Austria!”
The ambassador explained, “One hundred years ago in 1918, the First Republic of Austria was declared on the magnificent Ringstrasse in Vienna.”
Bobsled team training
AUSTRIA’S top local diplomat also revealed that her country is currently training the pioneering Philippine bobsled squad for the 2022 Winter Olympic games.
She said two members of the Philippine Coast Guard are given training, technical assistance and equipment by the OlympiaWorld Innsbruck— “high up in the snowy Austrian Alps—to become the [breakthrough] bobsled team from the Philippines.”
She added: “Actually, the first ever from Southeast Asia to compete [for the sport] in the 2022 Winter Olympics…. We wish them good luck!”
Austrian-made in PHL
WITH Vienna’s excellent infrastructure, its state-of-the-art health care, modern transport network, clean air and water, green energy and sustainable organic farming, Austrian companies—many of them world leaders in their field—are ready to share their expertise and cutting-edge technologies.
Rasoulian said Austria “is ready to bring in our smart city and smart traffic solutions to the Philippines.”
She offers her country’s innovative expertise for sustainable farming, renewable energy, modernized infrastructure and more, “to be part of the ambitious ‘Build, Build, Build’ program.”
“I was delighted to be part of the inauguration of what President Duterte called ‘the most beautiful airport in the Philippines’: the new Mactan-Cebu International Airport [MCIA].”
She disclosed that the MCIA’s magnificent arched-roof structure came from Austria.
“More than 6,200 sq m of ‘glulam’ [glued laminated] wood were imported to build the first resort-style airport at Terminal 2 of Mactan City.”
The ambassador went on to say: “And we will not stop there: We hope to use more of the same wood from Austria for the sustainable design of the new international airport in Clark Global City.”
From ‘Blue Danube’ to Boracay
DURING the event, the Austrian Embassy invited the Manila Symphony Junior Orchestra (MSJO) to play Johann Strauss II’s timeless waltz The Blue Danube, while young dancers in formal attire danced to the classic masterpiece.
Rasoulian announced, “The MSJO won first prize in the Strings Category at the 12th Summa Cum Laude International Music Festival in Vienna this year.”
Meanwhile, two replicas of Austrian artist Gustav Klimt’s iconic painting The Kiss, a deceptively simple depiction of love and desire, were also on display in the room.
The diplomat invited the guests to imitate the couple in the portrait who are seemingly locked in a tight embrace. Her challenged: A tandem that can come closest to the pose in the painting would win two round-trip tickets to Vienna.
The Austrian ambassador also conveyed her “very special thanks to President Duterte for reopening Boracay on October 26,” which coincided with the actual date of the Austrian National Day.
“[That said,] we can continue our celebrations in the beautiful, world-renowned island!”
Image credits: Jimbo Albano