Rodolfo Certeza Severino Jr. (27 April 1936 – 19 April 2019) was 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 ...

diplomat who served as the tenth

secretary-general of ASEAN The secretary-general of ASEAN is the chief administrative officer of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ASEAN ( , ), officially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is a political and economic union of 10 member states i ...

between 1998 and 2002.

Career

He was the inaugural head of the ASEAN Studies Centre (ASC) at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore from 2008 to 2015, and was an adjunct professor at the

Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKY School) is an autonomous postgraduate school of the National University of Singapore (NUS), named after the late former Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew. History The Lee Kuan Yew School of ...

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in th ...

until 2015. He was an Associate Senior Fellow affiliated with the ASC at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. He is the author of four books: ''Southeast Asia in Search of an ASEAN Community'' (2006), ''ASEAN'' (2008), ''The ASEAN Regional Forum'' (2009) and ''Where in the World is the Philippines?'' (2010). He is also the co-editor of ''Whither the Philippines in the 21st Century?'' (2007), among other collections. He studied at

Ateneo de Manila University , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuits) , academic_aff ...

and held a post-graduate degree in international studies from the

Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) is a graduate school of Johns Hopkins University based in Washington, D.C., United States, with campuses in Bologna, Italy, and Nanjing, China. It is consistently ranked one of th ...

. He previously held the following positions *Third, Second, and First Secretary, Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. (1967–1974) *Special Assistant to the Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs,

Foreign Affairs ''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership organization and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and ...

(1974–1976) *Minister-Counsellor and Chargé d'Affaires, Philippine Embassy in Beijing (1976–1979) *Consul General, Philippine Consulate General in Houston,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

(1979–1986) *Assistant Secretary for Asian and Pacific Affairs and ASEAN Senior Official of the Philippines(1986–1988) *Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

(1989–1992) *Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs and ASEAN Senior Official of the Philippines (1992–1997) *Professor,

Asian Institute of Management The Asian Institute of Management (AIM) is an international management school and research institution. It is one of the few business schools in Asia to be internationally accredited with the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Busine ...

, Manila, the Philippines (2003–2004) *Visiting Research Fellow, ISEAS, Singapore, Singapore (2005–2008) Severino died of complications from

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

on 19 April 2019, eight days before his 83rd birthday.

Awards

*1997 – Order of Sikatuna, rank of Datu, from President

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 ...

of the Philippines *2001 –

Order of Sikatuna The Order of Sikatuna ( fil, Orden ng 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 Philippin ...

, rank of Rajah, from President

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 Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House Deputy Spe ...

of the Philippines, one of only two non-heads of state to receive the award in that rank *2002 – Commander of the

Royal Order of Sahametrei The Royal Order of Sahametrei ( km, គ្រឿងឥស្សរិយយសលំដាប់សហមេត្រី) is a chivalric order conferred by the government of the Kingdom of Cambodia. The Royal Order of Sahametrei was instituted in ...

, from King

Norodom Sihanouk Norodom Sihanouk (; km, នរោត្តម សីហនុ, ; 31 October 192215 October 2012) was a Cambodian statesman, Sangkum and FUNCINPEC politician, film director, and composer who led Cambodia in various capacities throughout hi ...

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...

*2017 –

Order of Lakandula The Order of Lakandula ( fil, Orden ni Lakandula) is one of the highest civilian orders of the Philippines, established on September 19, 2003. It is awarded for political and civic merit and in memory of King Lakandula’s dedication to the respo ...

, rank of Supremo, from President

Rodrigo Duterte Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945), also known as Digong, Rody, and by the initials DU30 and PRRD, is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the chairperson ...

of the Philippines (posthumous)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Severino, Rodolfo Jr. 1936 births 2019 deaths Filipino diplomats Secretaries-General of ASEAN Ateneo de Manila University alumni Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies alumni Commanders of the Royal Order of Sahametrei Academic staff of the Asian Institute of Management Neurological disease deaths in the Philippines Deaths from Parkinson's disease Burials at the Libingan ng mga Bayani Grand Collars of the Order of Lakandula