Marking independence
A colourful and vibrant performance marked Philippines Independence Day at a Palmerston North school.
St Mary’s School held a cultural event yesterday to commemorate the country’s 123rd Independence Day since it declared independence from Spain. The school has a big Filipino community and puts a big effort into celebrating the day.
Pupils wearing colourful Filipino garb performed traditional Filipino dances and traditional food was also served.
Frailan Venus Datio was organising the event and she said it was an important day to commemorate. She said the Philippines had been colonised by various countries historically and each of those cultures influenced Philippines tradition today.
‘‘We want to pass on the culture and Philippines values to our kids, that’s why we teach them. Through this we are able to show them traditional activities.’’
She said there were a lot of different ethnicities within the country and they liked to represent them all. One of the dances had been passed on from Spaniards, while another performance came from Malaysia.
The children had limited practices learning the dances but all loved doing it, she said.
Kendall Abais, 10, emceed the event, calling up each performance. She said it had been nervewracking speaking in front of everyone, but she was proud of how everyone had performed.
The independence day was a significant day for her and her family, she said.