Ambassador De Leon Lauds Journalist and Author Amando Doronila during Launch of “Afro-Asia in Upheaval, a Memoir of Front-Line Reporting”

Canberra, 27 April 2010 - Philippine Ambassador to Australia Ernesto H. De Leon lauded Filipino journalist Amando Doronila during the launch of the latter’s book, “Afro-Asia in Upheaval, a Memoir of Front-Line Reporting held at the Co-op Bookshop, University of Canberra.

In congratulating Doronila for his “obra,” Ambassador De Leon said that “His is the first book that I launch here in Australia and it makes me proud that I do so for a highly-regarded and respected Filipino journalist.”

In his memoirs, Amando makes sense of history. Being in the right place at the right time, he covered the significant events of the 60s which contributed to the formation of the geo-political landscape as we know it today,” Ambassador De Leon said.

Doronila’s book, the first of a series, was awarded the Philippine National Book Award for autobiography in 2009.

In his book, Doronila narrates the historic times when Asian and African nations made efforts to seek the respect and recognition of the world. He tells of his assignments in some of these nations and how he came face to face with some of the world’s great leaders such as Indonesia’s Sukarno, Malaysia’s Tunku Abdul Rahman and Cambodia’s Norodom Sihanouk.

The event was attended by the Heads of Missions of Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, whose countries were also featured in Mr. Doronila’s publication. Others in attendance included members of the academe, Filipino students, and personnel from the Philippine Embassy.

The book launch was jointly organized by the Co-op Bookshop of the University of Canberra and the Philippines Studies Association of Australia.

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