Pinoy soldier among fallen peacekeepers honored by UN

A Filipino soldier will be among the over 100 fallen peacekeepers who will be honored posthumously in New York on May 29 during the celebration of International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers.

Sgt. Benson Angot, who died of malaria in October last year while serving in Liberia, was one of the 106 peacekeepers who died while on duty in 2013.

“We grieve with their friends and families and we recommit ourselves to ensure that their contributions to the cause of peace will never be forgotten,” said Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a statement Wednesday.

A total number 3,200 personnel have been lost since the first UN peacekeeping mission, the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), at Palestine in 1948.

Angot and other peacekeepers, composed of police, UN, and international volunteers, will be commemorated at the UN's headquarters in New York, with Ban himself presenting the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal.

The Dag Hammarskjöld Medal was established in 2000 as a standard award to personnel who lost their life during active service with the UN.

“Our courageous peacekeepers who made this ultimate sacrifice did so so that others could have a better life,” Ban said.

“I express my deepest and most sincere condolences to the families and friends of those we honor today,” he added. “We honor their memory and pay tribute to their dedication.”

A total of 676 military and police personnel from the Philippines are deployed to peacekeeping missions in Cote d'Ivoire, Haiti, India-Pakistan, Liberia, and the Middle East.

Currently, there are 85,000 military personnel, 12,500 police officers, 17,000 international civilian and national staff serving in 16 UN outfits on four continents. — Rie Takumi/KBK, GMA News

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