Our blood may be Chinese, but our roots grow deep in Philippine soil, our bonds are with the Filipino people.”

Chinese-Filipino Teresita "Tessy" Ang-See (born 1949), an academician, writer, and social activist, has helped free kidnap victims and sent their kidnappers to jail. She helped depose two corrupt presidents, assisted in leading children of war in Mindanao to the path of peace, and built a world-class museum showing the Chinese in Philippine life. In 1987, she co-founded Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran, to help Chinese-Filipinos integrate into mainstream Philippine society. Tessy works for peace and security, justice and development by harnessing the Chinese-Filipino community for nation building.

In a country divided by geography, economic disparity and ethnic prejudice, Chinese-Filipino historian and teacher Teresita Ang-See sees the need to build bridges of understanding between Filipinos and Tsinoys (Chinese Filipinos). Historically, in times of political turmoil, Chinese-Filipinos have chosen to be silent bystanders, resisting integration, and ready to pack up and leave in the face of unrest. This bothered Tessy, who has taught Chinese studies at leading universities and has written and coauthored more than 16 books on the Chinese in the Philippines. In 1987, with young professionals and businessmen, she founded Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran, a movement working for the full integration of the Chinese-Filipino community. It publishes "Tulay" (Bridge), a fortnightly magazine on the Chinese in the Philippines, and maintains the Chin Ben See Memorial Library and the Kaisa Data Bank and Research Center. It also established the museum Bahay Tsinoy, the first repository of the historical and cultural legacy of the Chinese in all aspects of Philippine life. Tessy is also a high-profile anti-crime advocate, who has pressured the government to act against criminality, especially the frequent kidnapping-for-ransom of ethnic Chinese. The killing in a shoot-out of a 15-year-old kidnap victim, whose bloodied body was dumped on the street side by side with her kidnappers for the media to feed on, made Tessy realize that more bridges were needed. With her own life and family at risk, she mobilized Kaisa to be the prime mover behind two anti-crime watchdogs that has saved kidnap victims and sent kidnappers to jail. "Peace," Tessy asserts, "is a condition where people can work effectively together, understand one another, regardless of race, creed, beliefs and tradition." In 1992, Tessy was chosen as one of The Outstanding Women in the Nation's Service.

Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran Citizens’ Action Against Crime (CAAC) Movement for Restoration of Peace and Order (MRPO)