Silvestre Hernando Bello III (born June 23, 1944) is a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

businessman and lawyer from Isabela, who served as the

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a ...

of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Department of Labor and Employment The Department of Labor and Employment ( fil, Kagawaran ng Paggawa at Empleyo}, commonly abbreviated as DOLE) is one of the executive departments of the Philippine government mandated to formulate policies, implement programs and services, an ...

, and concurrently Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, under the Duterte administration. Bello was appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte to replace

Rosalinda Baldoz Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz is a Filipina lawyer, civil servant, and labor arbiter. She served as Secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) of the Philippines under the administration of President Benigno Aquino III. Profile Baldo ...

in the secretaryship. Bello was a former Justice Secretary, Solicitor General and representative of 1-BAP party-list during the

16th Congress of the Philippines The 16th Congress of the Philippines ( fil, Ikalabing-anim na Kongreso ng Pilipinas) composed of the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives, met from July 22, 2013, until June 6, 2016, during the last three years of Benigno Aquino III's ...

. In July 2022, he presented his credentials to

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: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician serving as president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2016. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan. She served as ...

in July 2022 as Philippine Ambassador to Taiwan. Republished as:

Early life and education

Bello was born in

Gattaran Gattaran, officially the Municipality of Gattaran ( ibg, Ili nat Gattaran; ilo, Ili ti Gattaran; tl, Bayan ng Gattaran), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 5 ...

Cagayan Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...

on June 23, 1944. He is married to Regina Gerona. He obtained his

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

in Political Science from Manuel L. Quezon University in Quiapo, Manila, in 1966. He earned his

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

from Ateneo de Manila University Law School in 1970.

Career

Bello worked in private practice in the 1970s and 1980s and became active in several civic and human rights groups during the Marcos dictatorship such as the

Free Legal Assistance Group The Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG) is a nationwide organization of human rights lawyers in the Philippines. It was founded in 1974 by Sen. Jose W. Diokno, Lorenzo Tañada and Joker Arroyo during the martial law era under former Preside ...

(FLAG), the Justice for Aquino, Justice for All (JAJA) Movement, the Coalition of Organizations For The Restoration of Democracy and the Coalition For The Protection of Workers’ Rights. He was appointed by then

Corazon Aquino as an undersecretary of the

Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

from 1986 to 1991. Bello has worked as Justice Secretary from 1991 to February 1992 when he resigned to run for the Senate as a candidate of

Fidel V. Ramos Fidel Valdez Ramos (, ; March 18, 1928 – July 31, 2022), popularly known as FVR and Eddie Ramos, was a Filipino general and politician who served as the 12th president of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998. He was the only career military ...

' Lakas-CMD party in the May 1992 elections, which he lost. He was then appointed to several government positions by President Ramos such as the government negotiating panel during peace talks with the CPP- NPA- NDF before running again in 1995 for governor of Isabela but lost to Benjamin Dy. He was then reappointed by President Ramos as Solicitor General from September 23, 1996, until February 3, 1998 when he was reappointed Secretary of Justice. In June of that year he was also concurrently reappointed as Solicitor General which he occupied until the end of Ramos' presidency on June 30. He was the Chairman of the Government Negotiating Panel for Talks with the CPP-NPA-NDF from January 2001 to August 2004. He served as president and CEO of PNOC Development and Management Corporation from November 2004 to December 2005. From January 2006 to December 2006 he was the General Manager and CEO of PRA. He was a presidential adviser for New Government Centers from July 2007 to July 2008. He served as Cabinet Secretary during the presidency of

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the House Deputy Speakers since 2022, and previously from 2016 to 2017. She previously ...

References

, - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bello, Silvestre III 1944 births 20th-century Filipino lawyers Living people Secretaries of Labor and Employment of the Philippines Secretaries of Justice of the Philippines Solicitors General of the Philippines Cabinet Secretaries of the Philippines People from Cagayan People from Quezon City Manuel L. Quezon University alumni Ateneo de Manila University alumni Corazon Aquino administration cabinet members Ramos administration cabinet members Arroyo administration cabinet members Duterte administration cabinet members Presidential Advisers on the Peace Process of the Philippines Heads of government-owned and controlled corporations of the Philippines Party-list members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines