The Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences (SASS) invited Dr. Baviera to a roundtable to discuss prospects for Philippines-China relations under the new Duterte administration. Dr Liu Ming, director of the Institute for International Relations and Prof. Li Kaisheng, who had spent six months in Manila in 2015 as a visiting research fellow at the Asian Center, were the main facilitators. Prof Cai Penghong, who is a long-time Philippines and Southeast Asia scholar, also shared his deep insights into the current situation. The event was held on June 28, merely three days before the new Philippine government was to be installed.
The following day, Dr Baviera spoke before researchers of Fudan University’s School of International Relations and Public Affairs. She was asked to explain Philippine perspectives on the pending arbitration case filed under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Official host Prof Qi Huaigao and Dr Baviera said they both look forward to a joint conference that Fudan University and the UP Asian Center will hold in August 2016 in Shanghai.
Another host of her brief visit in June was the Yangzhou Public Diplomacy Association, which arranged for her a rich sightseeing experience in the historic city of Yangzhou. Prof Luo Hui of SASS, a scholar whose current research interests focus on United States’ religions, accompanied Dr. Baviera in Yangzhou.
