Proclamation No. 496, s. 2003

MALACANANG Manila: PMS LIBRARY MFN Lp 48940 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES

PROCLAMATION NO. 496

DECLARING THE FIRST WEEK OF DECEMBER 2003 AS NATIONAL PRESS CONGRESS WEEK AND THE PERIOD FROM DECEMBER 1 TO 31, 2003 AS THE MONTH OF PUBLISHERS, EDITORS, WRITERS, COMMUNITY JOURNALISTS AND BROADCASTERS IN THE SERVICE OF THE NATION

WHEREAS, the Publishers Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PAPI) is spearheading the holding of the National Press Congress every first week of December;

WHEREAS, the PAPI is a professional organization dedicated to the promotion and defense of press freedom and to the lofty ideals of journalism as a public service especially in the countryside; and

WHEREAS, there is a need to focus public attention on the important role the PAPI plays in upholding press freedom and the dignity of journalism and publishing profession.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby declare the first week of December 2003 as National Press Congress Week and the period from December 1 to 31, 2003 as the Month of Publishers, Editors, Writers, Community Journalists and Broadcasters in the Service of the Nation, under the auspices of the Publishers Association of the Philippines, Inc.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hdnd and caused the seal of the Republic of the Philippines to be affixed.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 444 day of Neves ber, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Three.

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ALBERTO G. ROMULO Executive Secretary

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