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PHL EMBASSY IN THE HAGUE COMMEMORATES RIZAL’S 154^TH BIRTH ANNIVERSARY

14 July 2015 - In commemoration of the 154^th Birth Anniversary of Dr. Jose P. Rizal, Philippine Ambassador to the Netherlands Jaime Victor B. Ledda hosted a simple reception for the reestablishment of the Order of the Knights of Rizal – The Hague Chapter which was held at the Official Residence on June 26. The event was also attended by the Knights of Rizal members from neighboring Belgium.

Mr. Peter Plückebaum, KGOR, Supreme Council Trustee and Overseas Representative of the Order of the Knight of Rizal, presided over a Knighting Ceremony for induction of two new members.

After the ceremony, Mr. Lucien Spittael, KGOR, from Belgium gave a presentation about Dr. Jose Rizal’s life in Europe.  Mr. Spittael also presented a book entitled “Belgian Rizalist: Sir Lucien Spittael and His Rediscovery of the Foremost Philippine National Hero” by Professor Dr. Emmanuel F. Calairo, President of the Philippine Historical Association.

To conclude the event, Ambassador Ledda, KCR, together with Mr. Anton Lutter, KCR, The Hague Chapter Commander, and Sir Peter Plückebaum, KGOR, launched the “Virtual Sentro Rizal”.  The Virtual Sentro Rizal (VSR) is named in honor of Dr. Jose P. Rizal. It is a digital collection comprising 250 gigabytes of data, including 72 hours of video of Filipino cultural materials. The extensive cultural resource was provided by the Commission on Filipinos Overseas Secretary Imelda Nicolas to the Philippine Embassy and will be installed at the latter’s Consular Section for convenient public access.