Blas F. Ople
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Blas Fajardo Ople (February 3, 1927 – December 14, 2003) was a Filipino journalist and politician who held several high-ranking positions in the executive and legislative branches of the Philippine government, including as
Senate President President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for ex ...
from 1999 to 2000, and as
Secretary of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...
from 2002 until his death. Perceived as a leftist-nationalist at the onset of his career in public service, Ople was, in his final years, a vocal supporter for allowing a limited United States military presence in the Philippines, and for American initiatives in the War on Terror including the
2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...
. Ople's most enduring role was his nineteen years as Secretary (later Minister) of Labor and Employment during the administration of President
Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...
, when Philippine labor laws were overhauled through the enactment of the Labor Code of the Philippines that he had helped author.


Early life and career

Ople was born in Hagonoy, Bulacan on February 3, 1927, to Felix Antonio Ople, a craftsman who repaired boats, and his wife Segundina Fajardo. He graduated valedictorian of his grade school class at the Hagonoy Elementary School in 1941. Upon the
invasion of the Philippines Philippines campaign may refer to various military campaigns that have been fought in the Philippine Islands, including: Spanish colonial period (1565–1898) *Numerous revolts against Spain during the Spanish colonial period; see Philippine revo ...
by
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
during World War II, he also had been to Hagonoy Institute during his secondary schooling, the teenage Ople joined the guerilla movement and fought under the Del Pilar Regiment and the Buenavista Regiment of the Bulacan Military Area founded by Alejo Santos. In 1948, he finished his high school studies at the Far Eastern University High School in Manila. He worked towards a degree in liberal arts at the Educational Center of Asia (formerly Quezon College) in Manila. After graduation, Ople pursued a career in journalism. He became a desk editor at the ''Daily Mirror'' and the author of its ''Jeepney Tales'' column. Still in his twenties, Ople was one of the youngest newspaper columnists of that era. Ople also established a public relations consulting firm. He soon became known for his nationalist views. He co-founded the Kilusang Makabansa (National Progress Movement), an organization which frequently spoke out on issues of nationalism and social justice in the 1950s. In 1953, he joined the Magsaysay-for-President Movement, a volunteer group supporting the presidential campaign of Ramon Magsaysay, heading its Executive Planning Committee and working as a speechwriter for candidates of the
Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino and Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; ) is the oldest political party in both the Philippines and in Southeast Asia in general. It is responsible for leading the country throughout the majority of the 20th ce ...
. After Magsaysay's election, he joined the government as special assistant to the Secretary of Labor and technical assistant on labor and agrarian affairs.


Secretary of Labor

In 1965, Ople was appointed as Social Security Commissioner by President Ferdinand E. Marcos. In 1967, he was appointed Secretary of Labor and Employment (in 1978 the position was renamed Minister of Labor and Employment). He resigned briefly in 1971 to run an unsuccessful campaign for election to the Philippine Senate, but was re-appointed to his post in 1972, retaining the position until 1986. At the time of his appointment, Ka Blas was perceived as a " leftist Nationalist". His leftist credentials were enhanced when he co-founded, in 1972, the ''Philippine-Soviet Friendship Society''. As Labor Secretary, Ka Blas was instrumental in the framing of the Labor Code of the Philippines, which codified the labor laws of the country and introduced innovations such as prohibiting the termination of workers without legal cause. Ople instituted labor policies institutionalizing the technical education of workers. In 1976, Ople initiated a program for the overseas employment of Filipino workers. It was during his tenure at Labor that the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration were created. Ople obtained recognition from the International Labour Organization during his stint as Labor Minister. In 1975, he was elected president of the 60th International Labour Conference of the ILO, the first Filipino to hold that post. In 1983, that organization awarded Ople a Gold Medal of Appreciation. He was a close adviser of President Marcos, though he was not later to be associated with the corruption of the Marcos' government and was perceived as "not corrupt". He created international headlines in December 1984 when he admitted to the press that the
lupus Lupus, technically known as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Comm ...
-stricken Marcos was incapacitated to the point of being unable "to take major initiatives", and that the President's illness had placed the Philippines in "a kind of
interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...
". Marcos responded a few days later by baring his chest to his Cabinet before television cameras to dispel rumors that he was seriously ill or had undergone surgery. In 1978, Ople was elected an assemblyman of the Interim Batasang Pambansa representing Central Luzon, and reelected in 1984. During the 1986 presidential elections, Ople served as a political
campaign manager {{Political campaigning A campaign manager, campaign chairman, or campaign director is a paid or volunteer individual whose role is to coordinate a political campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, getting out the vote ( ...
of President Marcos, who was running against
Corazon Aquino Maria Corazon "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; ; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipina politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines from 1986 to 1992. She was the most prominent figure of the 1986 People P ...
. Shortly before the outbreak of the
1986 People Power Revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular Demonstration (people), demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a ...
, Marcos dispatched Ople to Washington, D.C. to lobby the American government on behalf of the President. Ople was in Washington D.C. upon the outbreak of the revolt, and was advised by U.S. Secretary of State, George P. Shultz, to call on Marcos to resign. Ople publicly reiterated his support for Marcos in the American media in such fora as on ''
This Week with David Brinkley ''This Week'', originally titled as ''This Week with David Brinkley'' and currently billed as ''This Week with George Stephanopoulos'', is an American Sunday morning political affairs program airing on the ABC television network. It premiered o ...
''.


1986 Constitutional Commission Member

Following the success of the People Power Revolution and the installation to the presidency of
Corazon Aquino Maria Corazon "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; ; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipina politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines from 1986 to 1992. She was the most prominent figure of the 1986 People P ...
, Ople was relieved of his Cabinet post. Ople returned to the Philippines and immediately attempted to position himself as the leader of the political opposition against Aquino. Nonetheless in May 1986, Ople accepted an offer by President Aquino to serve in the Constitutional Commission that drafted a new Philippine Constitution. In the 1987 congressional elections, Ople ran a second time for the Philippine Senate, under the banner of the Grand Alliance for Democracy coalition. He was defeated in this attempt, and returned to private life, serving as chairman of the Institute for Public Policy (IPP), a policy research institute.


Senator of the Philippines

In 1992, he ran again for the Senate under the
Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino The Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino () is a centre-right political party in the Philippines. There are no results available for the 2004 election for the House of Representatives, but according to the website of the House, the party held 7 out ...
. He was elected to a six-year term. In the Senate, Ople served as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and on the Commission of Appointments. He became
Senate President Pro-Tempore A president pro tempore or speaker pro tempore is a constitutionally recognized officer of a legislative body who presides over the chamber in the absence of the normal presiding officer. The phrase ''pro tempore'' is Latin "for the time being". ...
in 1998. Ople won a re-election for the senate in 1998, under the
Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino The Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino () was the umbrella political coalition party of the opposition during the May 11, 1998 Philippine general election that led to the presidency of then-Vice President Joseph E. Estrada. It was the larges ...
. In 1999, upon the resignation of the terminally-ill Marcelo Fernan, Ople became the
President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for e ...
. In that capacity, he was a key proponent of the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement between the Philippines and the United States, which allowed American forces to enter the Philippines for short-term training exercises. He yielded the Senate presidency in 2000 to
Franklin Drilon Franklin Magtunao Drilon (born November 28, 1945) is a Filipino lawyer and former politician. He had the longest tenure in the Senate of the Philippines (tied with Lorenzo Tañada, Tito Sotto and incumbent Loren Legarda), having served four no ...
. Later that year, he sat as one of the senator-judges in the impeachment trial of his ally, President Joseph Estrada. He was one of the eleven votes during the trial that successfully voted to block the opening of an envelope that was believed to contain proof of the corruption charges against Estrada. Public anger over the Senate vote triggered the
EDSA Revolution of 2001 EDSA Revolution of 2001 refers to either of two consecutive events relating to a change of power in the Philippines over the course of the first four months of 2001. These are: *EDSA II in January 2001 that toppled President Joseph Estrada after an ...
, leading to the ouster of Estrada and the accession of Vice-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to the presidency.


Secretary of Foreign Affairs

In July 2002, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo appointed Ople, a member of the political opposition in the Senate, as
Secretary of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...
in her cabinet. The appointment was with some controversy. Weeks earlier, Arroyo's hand-picked Vice-President
Teofisto Guingona Teofisto "Tito" Tayko Guingona Jr. (born July 4, 1928) is a Filipino politician and diplomat who served as the 11th vice president of the Philippines from 2001 to 2004, during the first term of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Born in San ...
had resigned as Foreign Affairs Secretary after voicing disagreement with the plan of the Philippine and United States governments to allow American troops to help combat Islamic terrorist groups such as the Abu Sayyaf as part of the post-9/11 " War on Terror". Ople, who had earlier been a vocal supporter of the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, was perceived to be more amenable to the plan. In addition, left-wing labor activists denounced the appointment of Ople, citing his Marcos-era role in promoting overseas employment of Filipino workers which, they said, had resulted in abuses inflicted on Filipino workers abroad. During his stint as Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Ople was at the forefront of the negotiations that led to the deployment of American military forces inside the Philippines, though he insisted that the American troops would not participate in combat missions. Under his watch, the American and Filipino governments signed an agreement that provided
immunity Immunity may refer to: Medicine * Immunity (medical), resistance of an organism to infection or disease * ''Immunity'' (journal), a scientific journal published by Cell Press Biology * Immune system Engineering * Radiofrequence immunity desc ...
to each other's citizens facing charges before international tribunals such as the International Criminal Court. Ople was also a vocal supporter of the Iraq War, and pushed for the deployment of a small Filipino contingent in Iraq. He predicted in November 2003, "Baghdad will be transformed from a symbol of brutal despotism to a new, shining symbol of human freedom. The sacrifices invested in the liberation of Iraq, to which Filipinos made a significant contribution, will be fully vindicated and cherished for all time."


Death and legacy

In the months prior to his death, Ople, a longtime chain smoker, had suffered from ill health and often attended international conferences in a wheelchair. On the night of December 13, 2003, Ople had difficulty breathing and lost consciousness while aboard a Japan Asia Airways flight from Bangkok to Tokyo. The flight was diverted to Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taoyuan County, Taiwan (now Taoyuan City), and Ople was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was initially pronounced dead on arrival, but given medical treatment nonetheless. Efforts to revive him were futile, and his death on Sunday, December 14, 2003, was announced by his family. President Arroyo mourned Ople as "an architect of Philippine foreign policy in the finest tradition of enlightened and pragmatic diplomacy", while U.S. Secretary of State
Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African ...
hailed him as "one of the pivotal figures of the late Twentieth Century for Philippine history". More critical of Ople,
Teddy Casiño Teddy is an English language given name, usually a hypocorism of Edward or Theodore. It may refer to: People Nickname * Teddy Atlas (born 1956), boxing trainer and fight commentator * Teddy Bourne (born 1948), British Olympic epee fencer * Teddy ...
, secretary-general of the leftist coalition
BAYAN Bayan may refer to: Eduational Institutions * Bayan Islamic Graduate School, Chicago, IL Places *Bayan-Aul, Pavlodar, Kazakhstan *Bayan Mountain, an ancient mountain name for part of Tarbagatai Mountains at Kazakhstan in Qing Dynasty period *B ...
, called him a "political chameleon" who "tried to pass himself off as a nationalist but asmost pro-American". Nonetheless, Casiño acknowledged that Ople was "a consistent, brilliant and very astute politician". Ople was eulogized in '' Time'' magazine, which recalled his erudition, his skill at political survival, and his trademark "extraordinary
baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...
". The eulogy also said that at the height of the People Power Revolution, Ople in Washington, D.C. had reported to Marcos in Manila that the President's support within the Reagan administration was falling. Marcos responded by asking Ople to reach out to his contacts in the Soviet government. Ople rebuffed Marcos, and as ''Time'' noted, declined "to help make the Philippines a Soviet colony three years before the Berlin Wall fell". Ople is buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. In 2004, President Arroyo named Ople's daughter, Susan Ople, as Undersecretary of the Department of Labor and Employment. The building housing the
Philippine Overseas Employment Administration The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) was an agency of the Government of the Philippines responsible for opening the benefits of the overseas employment program of the Philippines. It is the main government agency assigned to ...
at the corner of EDSA and Ortigas Avenue was renamed Blas F. Ople Building in his honor on February 4, 2004.


References


External links


Senate of the Philippines – Biography of Blas OpleBlas F. Ople Policy Center and Training Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ople, Blas 1927 births 2003 deaths 20th-century journalists Arroyo administration cabinet members Burials at the Libingan ng mga Bayani Filipino columnists Filipino diplomats Filipino journalists Filipino Roman Catholics Grand Crosses of the Order of Lakandula Kilusang Bagong Lipunan politicians Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino politicians Manuel L. Quezon University alumni Ferdinand Marcos administration cabinet members Members of the Batasang Pambansa Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Bulacan Paramilitary Filipinos People from Bulacan Presidents pro tempore of the Senate of the Philippines Presidents of the Senate of the Philippines Secretaries of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines Secretaries of Labor and Employment of the Philippines Senators of the 9th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 10th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 11th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 12th Congress of the Philippines Members of the Philippine Constitutional Commission of 1986