Carlos Peña Romulo Sr. (January 14, 1899 – December 15, 1985) was a Filipino diplomat, statesman, soldier, journalist and author. He was a co-founder of the

Boy Scouts of the Philippines The Boy Scouts of the Philippines (BSP) is the national scouting organization of the Philippines in the World Organization of the Scout Movement. The Scout movement was first introduced in the Philippines in 1910 during the American Occupat ...

, a general in the US Army and the Philippine Army, university president, and president of the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its Seventy-ninth session of th ...

. He has been named as one of the Philippines's national artists in literature, and was the recipient of many other honors and honorary degrees. Romulo believed in

anti-colonialism Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. The meanings and applications of the term are disputed. Some scholars of decolon ...

and internationalism, as well as held Pro-American, anti-communist, anti-fascist, and economically and politically liberal beliefs.

Early career

National Boy Scout Movement 50th Anniversary 28 Oct 1987

Carlos Romulo was born in

Intramuros Intramuros () is the historic walled area within the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is administered by the Intramuros Administration with the help of the city government of Manila. Intramuros comprises a centuries-old hist ...

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

on January 14, 1899. His parents were Pangasinense. His father fought against the United States in the Philippine-American War. His father transitioned to working for the U.S. government in the Philippines after the war, rising through the ranks as town councilor, mayor, and eventually the governor of Tarlac province. He studied at the Camiling Central Elementary School during his basic education. Romulo became a professor of English at the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...

in 1923. Simultaneously, Romulo served as the secretary to the

president of the Senate of the Philippines The president of the Senate of the Philippines ( or ), commonly referred to as the Senate president, is the presiding officer and the highest-ranking official of the Senate of the Philippines, and third highest and most powerful official in the ...

Manuel Quezon Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina (, , , ; 19 August 1878 – 1 August 1944), also known by his initials MLQ, was a Filipino lawyer, statesman, soldier, and politician who was president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines from 1935 until his d ...

Publishing

During the 1930s, Romulo became the publisher and editor of ''The Philippines Herald'', and one of his reporters was Yay Panlilio. On October 31, 1936, the

(BSP) was given a legislative charter under Commonwealth Act No. 111. Romulo served as one of the vice presidents of the organization.

World War II

At the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Romulo, a major, served as an aide to General

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He served with dis ...

. He was one of the last men evacuated from the Philippines before the surrender of U.S. Forces to the invading Japanese, as illness had prevented him from departing with MacArthur, finally leaving from

Del Monte Airfield Del Monte Field (active 1941–1942) was a heavy bomber airfield of the Far East Air Force (FEAF) of the United States Army Air Forces, located in Mindanao in the Philippines. The airfield was located in a meadow of a Del Monte Corporation pine ...

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...

on April 25. Active in propaganda efforts
particularly through the lecture circuit
after reaching the United States, he became
member of President Quezon's War Cabinet
being appointe
Secretary of Information in 1943
He reached the rank of general by the end of the war.

Position on independence

Romulo supported Philippine independence. As the United States had promised Philippine independence in the Jones Act of 1916, Romulo believed that independence was inevitable. Romulo tended to portray American imperialism in a favorable light compared to European imperialism.

Diplomatic career

Romulo served eight Philippine presidents, from

Manuel L. Quezon Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina (, , , ; 19 August 1878 – 1 August 1944), also known by his initials MLQ, was a Filipino people, Filipino lawyer, statesman, soldier, and politician who was president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines from 1 ...

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...

, as the secretary of foreign affairs of the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

and as the country's representative to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

(UN). He also served as the resident commissioner to the U.S. House of Representatives during the Commonwealth era. In addition, he served also as the

secretary of education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

in President Diosdado P. Macapagal's and President

Ferdinand E. Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the country under ...

's cabinet through 1962 to 1968.

Resident commissioner

Romulo served as resident commissioner of the Philippines to the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

from 1944 to 1946. This was the title of the non-voting delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives for lands taken in the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

, and as such, he is the only member of the U.S. Congress to end his tenure via a legal secession from the union.

United Nations

In his career in the UN, Romulo was a strong advocate of human rights, freedom, and decolonization. In 1948, at the third UN General Assembly in Paris, France, he strongly disagreed with a proposal made by the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

delegation headed by Andrei Vishinsky, who challenged his credentials by insulting him with this quote: "You are just a little man from a little country." In return, Romulo replied, "It is the duty of the little Davids of this world to fling the pebbles of truth in the eyes of the blustering Goliaths and force them to behave!", leaving Vishinsky with nothing left to do but sit down.

Palestine partition plan

In the days preceding the UN General Assembly vote on the Partition Plan for Palestine in 1947, Romulo stated "We hold that the issue is primarily moral. The issue is whether the United Nations should accept responsibility for the enforcement of a policy which is clearly repugnant to the valid nationalist aspirations of the people of Palestine. The Philippines Government holds that the United Nations ought not to accept such responsibility." Thus, he clearly intended to oppose the partition plan, or at most abstain in the vote. However, pressure on the Philippines government from Washington led to Romulo being recalled, and was replaced by a Philippines representative who voted in favor of the partition plan.

President of the UN General Assembly

Romulo served as the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the fourth session of UN General Assembly from 1949 to 1950—the first Asian to hold the position—and served as president of the

UN Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...

four times, twice in 1957, 1980 and 1981. He had served with General MacArthur in the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

, and became the first non-American to win the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

in Correspondence in 1942. The Pulitzer Prize website states that Carlos P. Romulo was awarded "for his observations and forecasts of Far Eastern developments during a tour of the trouble centers from Hong Kong to Batavia".

Campaign for secretary-general

Romulo ran for the office of

UN secretary-general The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or UNSECGEN) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the United Nations System#Six principal organs, six principal organs of ...

in the 1953 selection. He fell two votes short of the required seven-vote majority in the Security Council, finishing second to

Lester B. Pearson Lester Bowles Pearson (23 April 1897 – 27 December 1972) was a Canadian politician, diplomat, statesman, and scholar who served as the 14th prime minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. He also served as Leader of the Liberal Party of C ...

of Canada. His ambitions were further dashed by negative votes from France and the Soviet Union, both of whom were permanent members with veto power. The Security Council eventually settled on a

dark horse A dark horse is a previously lesser-known person, team or thing that emerges to prominence in a situation, especially in a competition involving multiple rivals, that is unlikely to succeed but has a fighting chance, unlike the underdog who is exp ...

candidate and selected

Dag Hammarskjöld Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld (English: ,; 29 July 1905 – 18 September 1961) was a Swedish economist and diplomat who served as the second secretary-general of the United Nations from April 1953 until his death in a plane crash in Septe ...

to be UN secretary-general.

Ambassador to the United States

From January 1952 to May 1953, Romulo became the second former member of the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

to become the ambassador to the United States from a foreign country, following

Joaquín M. Elizalde Joaquín or Joaquin is a male given name, the Spanish version of Joachim. Given name * Joaquín (footballer, born 1956) (Joaquín Alonso González), Spanish football midfielder * Joaquín (footballer, born 1981) (Joaquín Sánchez Rodríguez), ...

, who had been his immediate predecessor in both posts. He later served as ambassador again from September 1955 to February 1962.

Return to the Philippines

Philippine presidential elections

Romulo returned to the Philippines and was a candidate for the nomination as the presidential candidate for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

, but lost at the party convention to the incumbent president,

Elpidio Quirino Elpidio Rivera Quirino (; November 16, 1890 – February 29, 1956) was a Philippine nationality law, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 6th President of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953. A lawyer by profession, Quirino entered p ...

. Quirino had agreed to a secret ballot at the convention, but after the convention opened, he demanded an open roll-call voting, leaving the delegates no choice but to support Quirino, the candidate of the party machine. Feeling betrayed, Romulo left the Liberal Party and became national campaign manager of

Ramon Magsaysay Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay Sr. (August 31, 1907 – March 17, 1957) was a Filipino statesman who served as the seventh President of the Philippines, from December 30, 1953, until his death in an 1957 Cebu Douglas C-47 crash, aircraft disast ...

, the candidate of the opposing

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino language, Filipino and Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; , NP) is a political party in the Philippines which is the oldest existing party in the country and in Southeast Asi ...

, who won the

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

in 1953.

Minister of Foreign Affairs

Romulo served as the Philippines' secretary (minister from 1973 to 1984) of foreign affairs under President Elpidio Quirino from 1950 to 1952, under President Diosdado Macapagal from 1963 to 1964, and under President Ferdinand Marcos from 1968 to 1984.

Bandung Conference

In April 1955, he led the Philippines' delegation to the

Asian-African Conference The first large-scale Asian–African or Afro–Asian Conference (), also known as the Bandung Conference, was a meeting of Asian and African states, most of which were newly independent, which took place on 18–24 April 1955 in Bandung, Wes ...

Bandung Bandung is the capital city of the West Java province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, the city is the List of Indonesian cities by population, fourth-most populous city and fourth largest city in Indonesia after Jakarta, Surabay ...

, Indonesia. During the conference, his opinions remained unpopular among Asian countries. Romulo warned against the threats of communism in Asia and justified that

SEATO The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was an international organization for collective defense in Southeast Asia created by the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty signed in September 1954 in Manila, Philippines. The formal insti ...

as a purely defensive and non-aggressive security pact. However, his suggestions were not included in the final communique of the conference. Participating countries viewed that colonialism, racialism, cultural suppression, discrimination, and nuclear weapons were considered regional threats.

Resignation from the Marcos cabinet

Romulo supported President

through most of his presidency. However, he resigned in 1983, soon after the assassination of Benigno Aquino, citing poor health. Gregorio Brillantes interviewed Romulo in 1984, and Romulo said he resigned "heartsick" because of the assassination of Aquino, whom he considered a "friend", and the resulting freefall of the Philippines' economy and international reputation. According to Romulo's wife, Beth Day Romulo, the Marcos administration had asked him to sign an advertisement that the administration was planning to place in the ''New York Times'' and other major international dailies. Romulo refused to sign the advertisement and instead resigned.

Death and legacy

Romulo died, aged 87, in Manila on December 15, 1985, and was buried in the

Libingan ng mga Bayani Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB, , ) is a national cemetery within Fort Bonifacio (formerly Fort William McKinley) in Barangay Western Bicutan, Taguig, Philippines. First established in May 1947 as a fitting resting place for Philippine mili ...

at Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. He was honored as "one of the truly great statesmen of the 20th century". In 1980, he was extolled by UN Secretary-General

Kurt Waldheim Kurt Josef Waldheim (21 December 1918 – 14 June 2007) was an Austrian politician and diplomat. Waldheim was the Secretary-General of the United Nations#List of secretaries-general, secretary-general of the United Nations from 1972 to 1981 a ...

as "Mr. United Nations" for his valuable services to the UN and his dedication to freedom and world peace.

Published books

Romulo, in all, wrote and published 22 books, including ''The United'' (novel), ''I Walked with Heroes'' (autobiography), ''I Saw the Fall of the Philippines'', ''Mother America'', and ''I See the Philippines Rise'' (war-time memoirs). In 1982, he was proclaimed
National Artist for Literature of the Philippines
in recognition of his contributions to Philippine Literature.

Honors

National Honors

* ''Bayani ng Bagong Republika'' (Hero of the New Republic Award) – (14 January 1984) * PHL Order of Sikatuna - Grand Collar BAR

Grand Collar of the

Order of Sikatuna The Order of Sikatuna () is the national order of diplomatic merit of the Republic of the Philippines. It is conferred upon individuals who have rendered exceptional and meritorious services to the Republic of the Philippines, upon diplomats, ...

, Rank of Raja – (1982). * PHI Legion of Honor 2003 Commander BAR

Philippine Legion of Honor The Philippine Legion of Honor (; ) was established by President Manuel Roxas, through Philippine Army Circular No. 60 dated July 3, 1947. The Philippine Legion of Honour, Honor was patterned after the Legion of Merit of the United States of Amer ...

, Commander (''Komandante'') * PHL_Blue_White_Red

National Artist of the Philippines The Order of National Artists of the Philippines ( Tagalog: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the President of the Philippines on Philippine nationals who have made significant contributions to ...

: Grand Cross (''Dakilang Kamanong'') of the

Gawad Mabini Gawad Mabini is an Order (decoration), order given by the President of the Republic of the Philippines. History Created by President Ferdinand Marcos through Presidential Decree No. 490 on June 24, 1974, the Gawad Mabini may be conferred upon ...

– (2005) * PHI Order of the Golden Heart var2 Grand Cross BAR

: Grand Cross (''Maringal na Krus'') of the

Order of the Golden Heart The Order of the Golden Heart (''Orden ng Gintong Puso'') is an order of the Philippines. History Created by Executive Order No. 40-A issued by President Ramon Magsaysay on June 21, 1954, the Golden Heart Presidential Award was upgraded to t ...

– (1954) * PHI Order of the Golden Heart var2 Member BAR

: Member (''Kagawad'') of the

– (13 September 1954) * PHL_Blue_White_Red

: Presidential Medal of Merit – (July 3, 1949) * Order_of_the_Knights_of_Rizal_Ribbon

Order of the Knights of Rizal The Knights of Rizal (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Orden de Caballeros de Rizál''; Filipino language, Filipino: ''Mga Maginoo ni Rizal''; sometimes abbreviated as KOR) is an order of chivalry of the Philippines, created to honor and uphold the ...

, Knight Grand Cross of Rizal. – (1961)

Military Medals (Philippines)

Distinguished Service Star The Distinguished Service Star is the third highest military award of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. It is awarded for eminently meritorious and valuable service rendered while holding a position of great responsibility. Description of the ...

: Philippine Gold Cross * Philippine Defense ribbon

Philippine Defense Medal The Philippine Defense Medal is a military award and decoration of the Republic of the Philippines which is awarded to recognize the initial resistance against Japanese invasion between 8 December 1941 and 15 June 1942. The award was first created ...

Philippine Liberation Medal The Philippine Liberation Medal is a military award of the Republic of the Philippines which was created by an order of Commonwealth Army of the Philippines Headquarters on December 20, 1944, and was issued as the Philippine Liberation Ribbon. Th ...

Military Medals (Foreign)

: Commander,

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

(10 March 1950) *:

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal The Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal was a United States military award of the Second World War, which was awarded to any member of the United States Armed Forces who served in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater from 1941 to 1945. The medal was create ...

Foreign Honors

*: **

ARG Order of the Liberator San Martin - Grand Cross BAR

Grand Cross of the

Order of the Liberator General San Martín The Order of the Liberator General San Martín () is the highest decoration in Argentina. It is awarded to foreign politicians or military, deemed worthy of the highest recognition from Argentina. It is granted by the sitting President of Argenti ...

(1983) *: ** Grand Cross of the Order of Carlos Manuel do Cespedes *: ** Grand Cross of the National Order of the Legion of Honour *: ** GRE Order of the Phoenix - Grand Cross BAR

GRE Order of the Phoenix - Grand Cross BAR

Grand Cross of the Order of the Phoenix *: ** Bintang Republik_Indonesia Adipradana Ribbon1

2nd Class of the

Star of the Republic of Indonesia The Star of the Republic of Indonesia () is Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of ...

(February 16, 1979) *: ** PRT Order of Christ - Grand Cross BAR

: Grand Cross of the

Military Order of Christ The Military Order of Christ is a Honorific orders of Portugal, Portuguese honorific order. It is the former order of Knights Templar as it was reconstituted in Portugal. Before 1910, it was known as the Royal Military Order of Our Lord Jesus Chr ...

*: **

: Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic (; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OYC) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bestowed by the Kingdom of Spain, alongside the Order of Charles III (established in 1771) and ...

*: ** :

Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, alongside the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by decision of the president of the United States to "any person recommended to the President ...

*: ** : Grand Cordon of the Order of Brilliant Star *: ** : Order of the Yugoslav Star with Sash (1974)

Awards and recognitions

Romulo is perhaps among the most decorated Filipinos in history. He has been awarded 72 honorary degrees from different international institutions and universities and 144 awards and decorations from foreign countries: *

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...

nomination in 1952 "For his contribution in international cooperation, in particular on questions on undeveloped areas, and as president for UN's 4th General Assembly" *

Boy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

Silver Buffalo Award The Silver Buffalo Award is the national-level distinguished service award of Scouting America. It is presented for noteworthy and extraordinary service to youth on a national basis, either as part of, or independent of the Scouting program. The ...

*Presidential Unit Citation with Two Oak Leaf Clusters *

in Correspondence, 1942 *World Government News First Annual Gold Nadal Award (for work in the

for peace and

world government World government is the concept of a single political authority governing all of Earth and humanity. It is conceived in a variety of forms, from tyrannical to democratic, which reflects its wide array of proponents and detractors. There has ...

), March 1947 *

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

– Woodrow Wilson Memorial Foundation Gold Medal award ("in recognition of his contribution to public life"), May 1947 *International Benjamin Franklin Society's Gold Medal (for "distinguished world statesmanship in 1947"), January 1948 *Freeman of the City of

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, October 1948 * United Nations Peace Medal *World Peace Award *Four Freedoms Peace Award
Notre Dame University, Doctor of Laws
(LL.D.), 1935 *Georgetown University, Doctor of Laws (LL.D.), 1960
Harvard University, Doctor of Laws
(LL.D.), 1950

Anecdotes from Beth Romulo through ''Reader's Digest'' (June 1989)

At the third UN General Assembly, held in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1948, the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

's deputy foreign minister, Andrei Vyshinsky, sneered at Romulo and challenged his credentials: "You are just a little man from a little country." "It is the duty of the little Davids of this world," cried Romulo, "to fling the pebbles of truth in the eyes of the blustering Goliaths and force them to behave!" During his meeting with

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

, Marshal Tito welcomed Gen. Romulo with drinks and cigars, to which the general kindly refused. Their conversation went as follows: At this, Marshal Tito was tickled by his reply and loudly exclaimed around the room, "I etcetera, etcetera, etcetera!" Romulo was a dapper little man (barely five feet four inches in shoes). When they waded in at Leyte beach in October 1944, and the word went out that

General MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army. He served with distinction in World War I; as chief of ...

was waist deep, one of Romulo's journalist friends cabled, "If MacArthur was in water waist deep, Romulo must have drowned!" In later years, Romulo told another story himself about a meeting with MacArthur and other tall American generals who disparaged his physical stature. "Gentlemen," he declared, "When you say something like that, you make me feel like a dime among nickels."

Books

*''I Saw the Fall of the Philippines.'' *''My Brother Americans'' *''I See The Philippines Rise'' *''I am a Filipino'' *''The United'' *''Crusade in Asia'' (The John Day Company, 1955; about the 1953 presidential election campaign of

Ramón Magsaysay Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay Sr. (August 31, 1907 – March 17, 1957) was a Filipino statesman who served as the seventh President of the Philippines, from December 30, 1953, until his death in an aircraft disaster on March 17, 1957, the mos ...

) *''The Meaning of Bandung'' *''The Magsaysay Story'' (with Marvin M. Gray, The John Day Company 1956, updated re-edition by Pocket Books, Special Student Edition, SP-18, December 1957; biography of

, Pocket Books edition updated with an additional chapter on Magsaysay's death) *''

I Walked with Heroes ''I Walked with Heroes'' is an autobiographical book written by Carlos P. Romulo, a former Philippine general, journalist, poet, story writer, diplomat, former resident commissioner to Washington, D.C., former Philippine ambassador to the United ...

'' (autobiography) *''Last Man off Bataan'' (Romulo's experience during the Japanese Plane bombings.) *''Romulo: A Third World Soldier at the UN'' *''Daughters for Sale and Other Plays''

Citations

References

* * * * * *

External links