‘“It’s an exhibit that honors the nationalist,the historian, the writer, the generational Filipina that she was. No borloloy.”’
SEOUL in spring found us conducting the 2025 MM-UPM Colloquium Alpha (From Bridging Horizons to Fostering Synergies in Trade, Academia, and Diplomacy between the Philippines and Korea): participating in a commemoration ceremony of the Independence Movement of March 1st 1919 in Boryeong, hanging lanterns at a 1000-year-old Buddhist temple site at Seong Joo, playing Korean traditional folk game (Yutnoli), and visiting the City Hall of Boryeong, among others.
We held our Master of Management Colloquium in Korea in order to learn from Mayor Kim Dong-il of Boryeong about leadership and community development as well as to promote mutual friendship through people-to-people exchanges. We marveled at Mayor Kim’s efforts to bring his city to the forefront of the world’s attention and saw how Kia and Samsung’s histories contribute to their success as international brands. We saluted the PEFTOK at two Memorials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the Korean War and lectured on Philippine Democratization at Ajou University. We even chanced upon a cosplay assembly at a Seoul hotel.
This last event reminded us of the success of cosplay.ph helmed by Pablo Bairan who had sent us this statement: “Celebrating the 25th year of Cosplay in the Philippines, Cosplay Carnival 2025 brought together some of the brightest talents from Asia.
Featured in the JAM Concert, Akase Akari embodied the spirit of cosplay itself, starting her journey as a simple cosplayer, then evolving into a musical artist with her music featured as the ending theme of a major anime title.
Shuka Saito, on the other hand, is a celebrated voice actor and singer famous for her role as You Watanabe in the anime TV series, ‘Love Live! Sunshine!’ which chronicles the story of the schoolgirl idol group Aqours as they compete in a school idol talent competition to save their alma mater from shutting down. Since then, she became a solo artist with her song ‘Papapa’ used as the opening theme of the anime ‘Oresuki.’ Cosplay Carnival 2025 also featured aspiring Filipino cosplayers in the All-Star Avenue and Filipino Idol Groups on-stage.”
***
Manila in summer found us at the opening of the exhibit “Letizia: A Life in Letters,” which marks the 105th birth anniversary of the nationalist writer and historian Letizia Roxas Constantino. Red Constantino (managing director of the Constantino Foundation) told the attendees: “It’s an exhibit that reflects the grace, intellect, and heart of Letizia Roxas Constantino. It’s an exhibit that honors the nationalist, the historian, the writer, the generational Filipina that she was. No borloloy. Only concision, substance, and something Letizia embodied — elegance. The exhibit represents a sliver of a fingernail of letters, manuscripts, and other artifacts that we worked on, which represents an incredibly tiny fraction of what remains covered in boxes inside the Constantino Foundation’s compound.”
Letizia Roxas Constantino in one of our conversations in her living room on 38 Panay Avenue, Quezon City (which is the location of Linangan Gallery) shared a tidbit of her experience surviving the Japanese Occupation in the last year of World War II: “In February 1945 the Americans and the Filipino guerrillas were battling the Japanese for control of towns and provinces in Luzon. Manila was their prize, our home. MacArthur passed through Bulacan. It was time for us to go home. We walked from our hiding place in Bulacan to Manila. Before we reached the city, my husband saw one of his friends among the Allied convoy. So we hitched a ride. Along the way, we saw hundreds of guerrillas marching to Manila. They were the HUKBALAHAP (People’s Anti-Japanese Army). We reached the city in safety. Our house in northern Manila was still intact. We were home.”[16 July 2005, Saturday, 3.30-5.30 P.M]
You can still view the exhibit (curated by journalist Karmina Constantino-Torres, a granddaughter of Letizia Roxas Constantino) Mondays to Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. up to May 30, 2025, except on Sundays and holidays. Interested visitors are advised to reserve slots due to limited space. Docents will be available most days and times for those who reserve early. Contact events@constantinofoundation.org.
***
Manila in summer found us marking the 52nd Department of Social Sciences Week (University of the Philippines Manila) as well as South African Freedom Month for which we invited Ambassador BN Radebe-Netshitenzhe of the Republic of South Africa: “On 27 April 2025, South Africa celebrates 31 years of democracy. It is 31 years since Nelson Mandela was elected South Africa’s first democratic President of a free and inclusive South Africa. Therefore, it is indeed an honour and immense pleasure to stand before you today to discuss two towering figures in the history of our two nations. The two figures whose lives have left indelible marks on their respective nations and beyond. President Nelson Mandela of South Africa and Dr. Jose Rizal of the Philippines, who both fought for freedom, equal rights, and justice. The two heroes displayed great patriotism and willingness to sacrifice for the freedom of their people. They became a great inspiration to many people in the world, including myself. A quote from Mandela — ‘Real leaders must be ready to sacrifice all for the freedom of their people’. This what defines Mandela and Rizal, more profound and present as we today continue to face challenges of inequality and poverty.”
“The brutal system of apartheid not only divided communities along racial and ethnical lines but also created deep economic, social, and political inequalities that persisted to this day … In the Philippines, we have witnessed a similar spirit of resilience and determination in the pursuit of freedom and democracy. The Filipino people have overcome countless challenges and obstacles to build a vibrant and inclusive society that values freedom, diversity and unity, both countries share a history of being a colony to more than one coloniser, and this was one of the reasons for late President Nelson Mandela’s historical visit to the Philippines in 1997.”
Seoul in spring, Manila in summer. We hope that the 25 delegates of the 2025 MM-UPM Colloquium Alpha learned about the true value of peace and prosperity, that visitors to the Letizia Roxas Constantino exhibit at Linangan Gallery will appreciate the value of Filipinism and democracy, and that Filipinos will continue to study the anti-apartheid struggle.
