Philippine Independence Day 2013 - Celebrating the Global Filipino Community

By Chiqui Tolentino-Desphy 

Manila (Philippines) - Oslo (Norway) - Copenhagen (Denmark) - Helsinki (Finland) - Lofoten (Norway) - Brugge (Belgium) -Rotterdam ( Holland) - Vienna (Austria) - Johor (Malaysia) - Bangkok (Thailand) - Hong Kong (China) - London (UK)- New York/California/Illinois/Washington DC (US) - Vancouver/Calgary/Ottawa/Ontario (Canada) - Dubai (UAE) - Mansouriyah (Kuwait) - Muscat (Oman) - Singapore City (Singapore) -  Australia

The cities and states listed above have one thing in common: in 2013, each and every one commemorated the 115^th Philippine Independence Day in the month of June. In the Philippines, the main event was held on June 12, 2013 at the Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila. Within Australia, every weekend in June was filled with many events celebrating this Philippine milestone, from Alice Springs in NT, to the many Filipino hubs in News South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, ACT, Western Australia and Queensland.

Independence Day celebrations in the Philippines are highlighted by the police and military parade, headed this year by President Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino (NoyNoy or PNoy).  Similar ceremonies that included flag raising and wreath-laying at the graves of national heroes were simultaneously held in major cities in Luzon, in Cebu and Davao.

Outside of the Philippines, Philippine Independence Day celebrations were made possible through a number of ways-   

-Philippine Embassies or Consulates worked with the overseas-based Filipinos within their communities 

-Local government councils supported Philippine Independence Day celebrations with their local Filipino community organisations

-Self-funded events held by Filipino communities and organisations

Additional support through sponsorship is provided by Philippine-based companies.  In many cases, the celebrations are held on the closest weekend day.

This event for overseas Filipinos is more than a national holiday.  It has evolved to be a celebration of Filipino culture, food, crafts and arts.  Many of the Philippine Independence Day events in Australia consist of the flag-raising ceremony, ceremonial speeches, performances of Filipino dance and song, and a Filipino meal, be it a simple merienda (snack) or a full-on Filipino market with food and crafts stalls.  In most major states, formal balls are held, giving guests the opportunity to wear the beautiful Filipiniana costumes.  The same is true for celebrations in other countries.  

In some countries though, there are notable additions:

· New York City is perhaps the home to the largest PID celebration in the United States.  The culmination of the event is the annual Philippine Independence Day Parade that attracts over 100,000 people.  This year’s parade was held on 2 June 2013.

· In Singapore, under the title “Isang Bangkang Malaya’, the  Filipino Dragons (Singapore) celebrates with a dragon boat race that was open to Singapore-based Filipino organisations  last 22 June 2013.

· In Belgium, the Council of Filipino Associations in Flanders celebrated  Independence Day on 2 June 2013.  While entrance was free, this fund-raising event supported the  Philippines’ Classroom project for  an elementary school  in  Aklan, Philippines

· The Philippine Independence Day celebration in Oman   featured the book launch on ‘Art as Reality’ last 12 June 2013.  The book contains art, essays and poems created by elementary and high school children of overseas foreign workers from 21 Philippine schools in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates. 

  Source:  http://www.dfa.gov.ph/images/stories/pisu/2013/Jun/05/Muscat_book_on_Filipino_migrant_children2.jpg

Filipinos indeed can be found all over the world and are proud of their culture and heritage, whether it is the teaching of their children the language or enrolling them in Filipino language schools, cooking native dishes at home or buying from the local Filipino store, participating actively in their adopted country’s local communities or quietly by contributing to the local and Philippine economies. 

Filipinos overseas largely embody one of Jose Rizal’s best quotes: Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makararating sa paroroonan (He who does not look back whence he departed from shall never be able to reach his destination. En.wiktionary.org/wiki/user:J.J.Nario). They acknowledge with gratefulness what their land of birth has given, and in return, they contribute positively and strongly to the success of their adopted countries