ILO - President Corazon Aquino

Her Excellency
Ms. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
President of the Republic of the Philippines

Dear Madam President,

On behalf of the ILO, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy to you and to
your people on the death pf President Corazon Aquino. Through you, I also
wish to convey our sincere condolences to her family.

With great dignity and courage, President Aquino drew strength from personal
tragedy and confronted the challenge of championing democracy, progress and
justice in the most difficult of circumstances.

The history of our own Organization bears the stamp of President Aquino. In
1988, the International Labour Conference was honoured by her presence - the
first woman Head of State to address this gathering. She spoke of her
vision of a just and dynamic social order where people could be freed from
poverty through
policies to provide social services, promote full employment, a rising
standard of living, and an improved quality of life. Her impassioned call
to our
organization to protect human rights, to promote development and justice
still resonates. Her struggle was very much a struggle for the values and
principles
of the ILO. We join you in mourning of her loss.

Yours sincerely,

Juan Somavia
Director-General
International Labour Organization

ILO Headquarters Geneva, Switzerland