Press Release
 

SACRIFICE, COMMITMENT RECALLED IN FLAG-RAISING RITE

By Evelyn A. Opilas (APSL PRO)
Blacktown-NSW-Australia
June 27, 2012






Even as Filipinos elsewhere mark the 114^th Philippine Independence Day, the Australia Philippines Services League (APSL) and Blacktown City Council recently staged another successful flag raising rite at Bowman Hall, reinforcing a continuing partnership that acknowledges the achievements, contribution and sacrifices of Filipinos in Australia.

Welcoming the attendees, APSL Supreme Commander Col Chris Pilao emphasised the importance of credibility, commitment and appropriate response when dealing with issues that affect Filipinos and the wider community.
 
Cr Tony Bleasdale, representing Blacktown City Council, said that the occasion celebrates not only Independence Day but also acknowledges the sacrifices of Filipinos who gave their lives to freedom.
 
NSW Opposition Leader and MP for Blacktown John Robertson indicated that the struggle for independence saw sacrifice, bloodshed and loss of lives like many parts of the world these days and this required vigilance.
 
The significance of the event, he said, is not just raising the flag or singing the anthem but also an appreciation of the experience of freedom.
 
Guest speaker Consul Marford Angeles of the Philippine Consulate General, representing Ambassador Belen Anota, provided a glimpse of the Philippine’s drive for honest government and transparency.
 
He also said that Filipinos know by heart their heroes however must remember that ‘they are like us who wanted to give their families a better future’.
 
The achievements of Filipinos in Australia ‘bring honour to the home country’, he said.
 
Consul Angeles reiterated the current promotion slogan of the Philippine Department of Tourism that ‘It is more fun in the Philippines’, citing the standards, skills and heart that Filipinos show wherever they may be.
 
Sr Ruth Gulane of the Augustinian Recollect Sisters delivered the invocation while Jun Javier and the Blacktown City Council Community Band, Joven Rondalla & Friends, the AGAPI Choir, the Visayan Dance Group, the Philippine Australian Senior Citizens Inc (PASSCI), the AGAPI Cultural Dancers, the Philippine Australian Community Services (PACSI) provided entertainment during the program.
 
APSL-supported displays at Blacktown and Parramatta council libraries in cooperation with the Philippine Department of Tourism Sydney also featured at this year’s Independence Day celebrations.
 
Keeping with tradition, the APSL hosted its well-attended annual dinner at Rooty Hill RSL Club, where Col Pilao recently won a Board of Directors seat, the first for a Filipino.
 
The Philippines marks her Independence Day 12 June, with celebrations stretched over the whole month.
 
Information regarding APSL membership may be directed to Col. Chris Pilao, mobile +614 0276 3113

 

 

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