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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider LOOK: Angara, Spanish envoy lead 20th Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day celebration

LOOK: Angara, Spanish envoy lead 20th Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day celebration

Published Jul 10, 2022 03:02 pm

Senator Sonny Angara and Spanish Ambassador to the Philippines Jorge Moragas Sanchez led the celebration of the 20thPhilippino-Spanish Friendship Day celebration and the 123rd Anniversary of the historic Siege of Baler in Baler, Aurora.

Also joining the celebration were Baler Mayor Rhett Ronan Angara, Aurora Rep. Rommel Angara and Department of Tourism (DOT) Regional Director Carolina Uy, who witnessed the laying of the wreath at the Baler Church.

Also present during the rites were National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) Chairman Rene Escalante and Col. Joseph Norwin Pasamonte, the Brigade Commander 703rd Agila.

Angara thanked the Spanish government for its contribution to the Philippine’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic and for supporting various programs and projects benefitting Filipinos over the years.

Sen. Sonny Angara delivering his message at the Baler Municipal Plaza after the wreath laying ceremonies at the Baler Church in Baler, Aurora.

The senator said celebrating the almost 500 years of quincentennial Philippine-Spanish relations “is something special” as Filipinos live up to its Spanish heritage “in name, blood, and even in our food.”

This year's theme is "Amistad Duradera" which translates to "lasting friendship."

“Everywhere you go, you cannot escape it. It’s something we can celebrate, something to push forward, to deepen not just on the government level but on the individual, private sector level,” Angara said in an interview at the sidelines of the friendship day celebration.

Angara said the Philippines can learn a lot from the Spaniards, especially in terms of reviving the country’s tourism sector during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Spain really made the efforts to revive their tourism even if their industries, manufacturing fell, their tourism was very much alive. People from England, Germany go to Span so they get close to 30 million tourists a year. Even though their population is small compared to the Philippines,” he said.

“They go to Spain because they see a lot of history preserved. That’s something we can learn from them. That’s why we are pushing this Philippines-Spanish Friendship Day because we want to show that to the world. We are the only ones in Asia that was colonized by Spain. So we’re unique in that respect. And that’s something we can leverage on,” Angara stressed.

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spanish ambassador Sonny Angara PH-Spanish Friendship Day
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