29 July 2010 - The Philippine Embassy in Wellington held celebrations for the 112th Philippine Independence Day last July 6.
The celebrations began with a lively opening salvo by the "Ati-atihan" and was followed by a Holy mass by Fr. Alberta dela Cruz of the Filipino Chaplaincy.
At the lunchtime "salo-salo", guest savored a variety of Filipino delicacies in 16 food stalls while being serenaded with old-time favorite Original Pilipino Music (OPM) by three bands from the Filipino community in Wellington.
The event's highlight was a cultural show attended by ASEAN diplomats, New Zealand's Race Relations Commissioner Joris de Bres, and Hutt City Mayor David Ogden. The message of Hon. Alberto G. Romulo, Secretary of Foreign Affairs, was read by Consul General Marcos A.S. Punsalang.n June 12, the Filipino community in Auckland celebrated the Philippine Independence Day led Philippine Honorary Consul in Auckland Emilie P. Shi and Mr. Noberto Richacho, President of the Federation of Filipino Clubs and Societies in New Zealand.
During the event, Ambassador Tejano also conducted a mass oath-taking for 29 qualified dual citizenship applicants from Auckland and its neighboring areas.
The cultural show was attended by Hon. Pansy Wong, New Zealand's Ethnic Affairs Minister; Hon. Jonathan Coleman, Minister for Immigration; Mayor Andrew Williams of North Shore City; Mayor John Banks of Auckland; and Mayor Len Brown of Manukau.
On June 19, a Philippine Festival organized by Ms. Delia Richards, President of the Philippine Culture and Sports, was held at Christchurch.
Consul General Marcos A.S. Punsalang and Ms. Estalilla attended the event. Other guests present were Mayor of Christchurch, His Worship Mayor Bob Taylor and his wife, Mrs. Joan Taylor Member of Parliament Nicky Wagner, and officials of the Multi-Ethnic Group of Canterbury.
Consul General Punsalang delivered his Independence Day greetings and read the message of Ambassador Tejano to the audience.
While in Christchurch, Consul General Punsalang and Ms. Estalilla also represented Ambassador Tejano in the Ambassador's Cup, a basketball tournament organized by Dr. Rose Ruiz and Dr. Len Redoblado of the Pinoy Cantabrians Sports Association in Christchurch.
An open forum with the attendees to answer queries on passporting, dual citizenship and other services of the Embassy, was conducted
During a lunch hosted by by members of the Alpha Phi Omega Fraternity in South Island for Consul General Punsalang and Ms. Estalilla, the former presented their proposal to help the Embassy in disseminating information about dual citizenship on the South Island. They proposed that if the Embassy is able to gather more than 20 qualified applicants, they will be sponsoring the Embassy officials' travel cost to South Island for a mass oath-taking ceremony in Christchurch.
This is their part of their community service activities and to save the qualified applicants the time and expense of travelling to Wellington for their oath-taking.
On June 19, the Filipino Community in Hamilton, headed by the Waikato Filipino Association, held a Filipino Food Expo and Music Show at the Hillcrest Baptist Centre, Hamilton in celebration of the Philippine Independence Day. Honorary Consul Shi represented the Embassy during the event.
On June 26, Ms. Estalilla represented the Embassy in the Independence Day celebration of the Filipino community in Timaru upon invitation of Ms. Belinda Dewe, President of the South Canterbury Filipino Association.
The event was attended by more than 200 Filipinos, most of whom are Filipinas married to New Zealanders, dairy workers and their families coming from Timaru and Ashburton. Other guests were officials of the Aoraki Multicultural Group.
Ms. Estalilla read Ambassador Tejano's message and congratulated the Filipino community for their efforts in organizing the event to commemorate Philippine Independence Day Timaru. She then administered the oath-taking ceremony for the newly-elected officers of the Association.
The new officers met with Ms. Estalilla the following day to seek advice on their future programs for the Filipino community. Ms. Estalilla encouraged them to create programs that would get the younger generation of Filipino migrants interested in their Philippine cultural heritage so that they will still have a comprehensive knowledge and a "good feel" of their Filipino identity while growing up in another country.
She also gave them pointers on how to apply for funding with the Timaru City council and the New Zealand Lotteries grants. She urged them to develop linkages with the multi-ethnic groups in Timaru by joining activities so that they may help new Filipino migrants integrate, understand better and live in harmony with people in New Zealand and other ethnic groups. This will also give them the opportunity to promote the Philippines and its rich cultural heritage in this part of the world. END