LOOK: Sinulog festivities warm up Europe

SPAIN – "Viva Señor Sto. Niño!"

Filipinos in Europe chanted while dancing and carrying the image of Sto. Niño, like it is done in the Philippines.

The colorful festivities in various European cities might not be as grandiose as those in Cebu, nonetheless, Filipinos found a way to continue with the tradition they grew up with and keep their devotions alive.

“Importante para sa atin yun, siya yung kauna-unahang santo na dumating sa Pilipinas. Maraming miracles na nangyayari,” said Helen Cervantes of Asociación Visayas y Mindanao, an association based in Barcelona, Spain.

Not minding below 10 degree temperatures, Filipinos in Barcelona choreographed a mini-Sinulog at the plaza of San Agustin Church. They danced in colorful costumes and dramatized the arrival of Christianity in the Philippines.

Batangueños also joined the celebration as Sto. Niño is also the patron saint of Batangas, whose name can be traced back to one of the Holy Child’s miracles, explained Barcelona-based Batangueña, Tina de Chavez.

“Dahil nga dun sa original na nakita ng Santo Niño sa batangan ng bahay, nung bumaha nga sa Batangas City, yung batangan ng bahay na lumulutang sa tubig nakita dun yung Santo Niño na nakapatong sa batangan kaya pinangalanang batangan.”

Associations such as Asociación Bisayan Ug Mindanaoan en España, Block Rosary, Hermandad, AFICAT, Immanuel, Amistad, Pastoral Youth Ministry, and Centro Filipino also participated in the celebration.

Paris-based Filipino devotees also expressed their gratitude to the Holy Child by holding Sinulog at Sainte Bernadette Church. And then they went to a restaurant where they crowned the Little Princess of Sto. Niño.

Filipinos from different parts of London, meanwhile, converged and held Sinulog at St. George’s Cathedral in Westminster Bridge.
Fr. Jake Dicto, organizer of the celebration, was very happy with the outcome of the event.

“Viva! Pit Senor!! Napakaganda po ng ating selebrasyon ngayon sa fiesta ng Sto. Nino sa London kaya po tayo nagkakasiyahan lahat ng mga Pilipino.”

Croydon Choral Group offered a serenade while Sydenham Pinoy group presented a Tagalog folk dance.

The Wadon Filipino community did a tribal dance while East London Filipino community had a dancing nuns’ production number.

“Napakasaya po ng selebrasyon ng Sto. Nino festival dito sa Central London sa St. George’s Church. Talaga ang mga Pilipino ay nagkakaisa,” said dance performer Leo Redoban.

Sinulog represents the Philippines’ acceptance of Catholicism brought by Spanish colonizers. This one of a kind Filipino festival is held on the third Sunday of January. - With reports from Bong Agustinez in Paris and Babo Gamboa in London

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Filipinos in Europe urged to vote in May polls

MANILA - A network of Filipinos in Europe lauded the decision of the Commission on Elections to reinstate more than 200,000 overseas voters it delisted from the Overseas Absentee Voters list for failing to vote in the last two elections in 2007 and 2010.

The European Network of Filipino Diaspora (ENFiD) considers a victory the COMELEC's reinstatement of the 238,000 overseas voters who were removed from the Overseas Absentee Voters lists.

“Our task now in ENFiD is to pass the word around as widely as possible to all our contacts across Europe, first to tell them the good news, and then to encourage them to exercise their right to vote,” said ENFiD Chairman Gene Alcantara.

Alcantara was among the group from the global Filipino Diaspora Council or GFDC who called on the COMELEC to reconsider its decision on the disenfranchised overseas voters.

The group explained that without adequate notice and due process, the Comelec had unwittingly wasted the efforts of overseas groups, mainly the Global Filipino Diaspora Council (GFDC), which relentlessly campaigned for absentee voting during the last 10 years.

Alcantara had promised COMELEC Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. that the ENFiD network, covering 50 countries, would do its very best to get overseas Filipinos in Europe to turn out to vote in May 2013 and to register for future national elections.

source: abs-cbnnews.com