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PHL CONSULATE GENERAL, FILIPINO COMMUNITY IN JEDDAH MARKS TWO-WEEK CELEBRATION OF 117^TH PHL INDEPENDENCE ANNIVERSARY

17 June 2015 - The Philippine Consulate General in Jeddah commemorated the 117^th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence with a morning flag-raising ceremony at the Consulate General and an Independence Celebration Night at the Jeddah Marriott Hotel on June 12. 

During the flag-raising ceremony, Philippine Consul General Leo Tito L. Ausan, Jr. led the reading of Independence messages by government officials, highlighted by that of President Benigno S. Aquino III.  The messages of Vice President Jejomar Binay, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario, Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory L. Domingo, Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration Administrator Rebecca Calzado and Social Welfare and Development Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman were read by Consul Germinia V. Aguilar-Usudan, Vice Consul Alexander Joseph Estomo, Trade Executive Asst. Evangeline M. Pungutan, Labor Attache Jainal Rasul, Jr., Welfare Officer Amelito Adel and Social Welfare Attache Josephine Arang, respectively.

The simple but meaningful activity was attended by representatives from various Filipino community organizations, Consulate General officers, staff and their respective spouses, as well as the female wards of the Filipino Workers Resource Center and male “Bawadi” wards housed at the 3^rd floor of the Consulate General. A simple salu-salo or Brunch ng Bayan capped the flag-raising ceremony.
In the evening, the Consulate General hosted a well-attended dinner at the Jeddah Marriott Hotel. Guests include the Consul General of Indonesia and his spouse, and Consuls General of Thailand and Brunei, members of the Filipino community, media and teachers from the Philippine curriculum schools in Jeddah.

In his remarks, Consul General Ausan discussed the significance of this year’s Independence Day theme, “Kalayaan 2015: Tagumpay sa Pagbabagong Nasimulan, Abot-kamay na ng Bayan”, and reassured the “Boss Kabayans-OFWs” that  now, more than ever, they can be almost certain that the tens of billions of dollars in foreign currency earnings that they send back home to form part of the country’s economic and financial cycle are well-spent by the government for the sake of their children and their children's children.

After his remarks, Consul General Ausan was joined onstage by ASEAN Consuls General for the slicing of the mango cake especially baked for the Independence celebration.

The event was highlighted by the well-applauded performances from the DSON, a group of Filipino Artists in Jeddah, who sang Philippine nationalistic medley songs, from the special traditional “animal and warrior” dance numbers of Aetas OFWs, the first batch of Aeta OFWs in the Kingdom, and the folk dance numbers from the teachers of the Philippine schools in Jeddah.  The Knight Movers (KM), a homegrown teenage dance crew formed in 2009, fired up the stage with their Muslim dance “Singkil” and skillful performance of the famous “Tinikling” dance to the delight of the audience.

After the program, the attendees made their way to the Mezzanine Foyer of the hotel for the sumptuous dinner. Filipino food such as kare-kare, kinilaw and the all-time favorite halo-halo as dessert, which were among the more popular dishes served during the dinner, and the rendition of more nationalistic and Filipino love songs, made the event more festive and enjoyable for all the guests.

In addition to the customary morning flag raising and the evening Independence Dinner, the Consulate General and the Filipino community held a series of activities that started in the last week of May to make the 117^th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence more meaningful, memorable and enjoyable. 

On May 28 to 29, the Dreamstar Productions organized the “Fiestayahan sa Jeddah – Pasiklaban at Musikahan sa Gitnang Silangan Season 2” at Reem Riviera Beach Resort, while on June 11, an OPM Amateur singing contest dubbed as “Kanta Pilipinas… Himig OPM” was organized by the Filipino Artiste Migrant Ensemble (FAME) at the Consulate General premises. On the other hand, an Independence Day Photography Contest was organized on June 12 by the Unite – Jeddah Photographers & Friends at the Consulate General Hall. 

Consul General Ausan was present in all the affairs to give his inspirational message on the celebration and to thank the community partners for their support and cooperation in making the celebration a great success by showcasing the Filipinos’ ingenuity and talents featuring the famous Philippine folk dances, songs, traditional costumes, all-time favorite Filipino food/delicacies and a lot of entertainments.

SARAWAT Supermarket, with a long history of serving the Philippine community in Jeddah, has once again hosted a Philippine food festival in conjunction with Philippine Independence Day celebrations on June 12, with the aim to promote the Philippine food industry in Saudi Arabia. A cultural program and raffle draws were also held inside the store.

The Independence celebration was capped with another Philippine Food Festival held at the Carrefour (Flamingo Mall), on June 14, the 2^nd year in a row at the French supermarket.  The event was a collaboration between the Philippine Trade & Investment Center (PTIC) and the Carrefour, and included the ribbon cutting and slicing of the Independence cake led by Consul General Ausan and the General Manager of Carrefour, product sampling and free dinner for all Filipino and expatriate shoppers. In his message, Consul General Ausan thanked the Carrefour for its participation to the Philippine Independence celebration and its support in promoting Philippine food.  He further shared that the store’s General Manager has committed to make the festival an annual fare at Carrefour.

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PHL EMBASSY IN CAIRO MARKS KALAYAAN 2015 WITH A DAY OF FAMILY FUN

Performances of the tinikling by the Pangkat Kawayan group and bulaklakan by the Filipino Group in Alexandria entertained, while Yara Mapandi, a young Filipina born and raised in Egypt, delivered a rousing rendition of the classic "Ako Ay Pilipino". 

Kids and adults alike also took part in various Filipino party games, including a sack race, tug-of-war, pukpok palayok, pabitin, and Pera o Bayong, as well as a poster-making contest using the theme of the Kalayaan 2015 celebrations, “Tagumpay sa Pagbabagong Nasimulan, Abot Kamay Na ng Bayan”.


With generous contributions from the Filipino community for lunch and prizes, the day truly embodied the Filipino spirit of bayanihan.

The Embassy also conducted overseas voters registration during the event.

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PHL EMBASSY AND FILIPINO COMMUNITY IN LEBANON CELEBRATE 117 YEARS OF PHL INDEPENDENCE

17 June 2015 - The Philippine Embassy and the Filipino community in Lebanon jointly celebrated the 117^th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence during the 2015 Philippine Independence Day Festival held at the St. Joseph Church Tabaris on June 07.

The event started with the traditional flag ceremony followed by the concelebrated holy mass, traditional Filipino food tasting, and a cultural show. The Embassy also conducted a mobile registration of qualified Filipinos in Lebanon to enable them to vote during the May 2016 presidential elections.

The flag ceremony commenced with the singing of the Philippine national anthem led by Consular Clerk Melissa Mancenido, followed by the Panunumpa sa Watawat led by Assistance-to-Nationals/Legal Officer Junaid Ali.  Philippine Ambassador Leah M. Basinang-Ruiz read the Independence Day message of President Benigno Simeon Aquino III, while Consul Rona Beth Goce, Consular Assistant Geranfel Abrillo, Labor Attaché Bulyok Nilong, and Welfare Officer Imelda Gatinao read the respective messages of Vice President Jejomar Binay, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz, and Overseas Workers Welfare Administrator Rebecca Calzado.

More than a thousand people attended the festival including hundreds of Filipino workers as well as representatives from Lebanese non-government organizations, educational institutions, and the St. Joseph Church parishioners. The St. Joseph Church was jam-packed during the holy mass, which was dedicated to the Independence Day celebration. With the help of Filipino community organizations, the Embassy served the ever-popular pancit bihon, beef caldereta, chicken adobo, chicken lollipops, special puto, biko, bibingka and sago’t gulaman.

The cultural festival featured Original Pilipino Music (OPM) compositions performed by Mr. Briane Famini and a medley of folk songs from various regions by the choir of the Couples for Christ Lebanon chapter. Several Filipino community organizations lent their talented members to perform traditional ethnic and folk dances: T’boli (RP Eagles-St. Therese), Kini-Kini (OFW Kapit-Bisig Foundation, Samahang Manggagawang Babae sa Lebanon and WEVAL), Pandanggo Rinconada (Filipino Community Association), Binislakan (Filipino Cultural Guild), Paro-Parong Bukid (Baclaran-Ballouneh Group) and Habanera de Jovencita (Samahang Manggagawa sa Lebanon).

The last event during the Festival were the raffle draws, with ten lucky winners receiving cash prizes from festival sponsor OMT-Western Union and another Filipino winner receiving a free Qatar Airways-sponsored return ticket to the Philippines.