Against the backdrop of an image of a pristine island in Palawan, the Philippine Embassy in Phnom Penh hosted a diplomatic reception to celebrate the 118th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence on 13 June 2016 at the Raffles Hotel Le Royal.
Over two hundred guests, including members of the royal family, high ranking officials, diplomatic corps, and business leaders attended the event, which was graced by H.E. Ly Thouch, Senior Minister in charge of Special Missions, as Guest of Honor.
In his toast remarks, Ambassador Montero shared with the guests the many positive political and economic developments taking place in the Philippines and underscored the people-centered focus of the evolving bilateral relations between the Philippines and Cambodia, citing their collaboration in the areas of culture and tourism, education and human resource development, agriculture and trade, and labor migration, among others.
In his response, Senior Minister Ly recounted the long and cordial relations between the two countries and expressed appreciation for the Philippines’ contributions to the human resource development of Cambodia.
Showcasing the musical talent of Filipinos, the Philippines' Loboc Children's Choir, which flew all the way from the Philippines, wowed the audience with awe-inspiring renditions of The Prayer, Kruhay (a Filipino song), and the favorite Cambodian song Arrapiya. The travel of the Choir to Cambodia was sponsored by the Liwayway Group of Companies, a food manufacturing firm that has a significant investment at the Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone, and whose Chairman Emeritus, Mr. Carlos Chan, attended the event.
The Koro Filipino, a choir composed of Filipinos living in Phnom Penh, also gave moving renditions of the national anthems of the Philippines and Cambodia.
The dinner buffet featured a completely Philippine cuisine that includes adobong manok, crispy pata, kare-kare, bulalo, Bicol express, pansit palabok, among others, which the guests thoroughly enjoyed. END.
