THE Embassy of the Republic of Korea celebrated its country’s National Day on October 3 online, as it shared stories from the seven decades-long partnership with the Philippines.
When asked about her essay Pink, Jowee Dator, an overseas Filipino worker in Korea for 5 years, shared in Filipino: “Actually, pink used to be the color I disliked the most, since it’s girly, and my personality is more boyish. But when I arrived in Korea during spring time, when the cherry blossoms were in bloom, they were beautifully pink. So I eventually fell in love with the color.”
Next was Nicole Torre Campo. Her story, The Underlying Tie of Peace and Camaraderie, relayed an event in the life of her grandfather, who was a Korean War veteran: “In 2019 we joined the revisit program held by the Korean Ministry of Patriots, which is held annually for veterans. Together with my mom, we were lucky to join my grandfather.”
Finally, Angeli Marie Baclea-an’s entry, It Started with a Hobby, was about her experience in Southern Leyte when Korean troops came to help survivors of Supertyphoon Yolanda. As someone who could speak the language, she worked as a translator of many written materials, and served as a bridge for others to communicate with the Koreans: “I learned a lot at the camp. At that time, I was only learning Korean for about three years. Other than improving my Korean-speaking skills, I appreciated a lot about Korean history and culture.”
Thanking several hundred story contributors, Ambassador Kim In-chul said in his introductory remarks: “They all together shape the great book of Korea-Philippines relations. Let’s look forward to more and more stories, as the partnership between the Philippines and Korea, [as well as the friendship between our people], continues to flourish.”
The National Day event highlighted 30 years of the development partnership between Korea and the Philippines. Emcees Ryan Bang and Sam Oh wore shirts produced by project-recipients of Igting, a social enterprise in Bulacan which partnered with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and Camp Asia in creating jobs for women in the province. The apparel was given as souvenirs for the occasion.
Rowena Osal, Igting’s company supervisor, also shared how they are able to help communities respond to the needs of the pandemic: “At its onset, KOICA and Camp Asia developed a response program, as we began to produce personal protective equipment for hospitals, as well as face masks that would be given to numerous communities and other health facilities.”