The Official Website of the Philippine Embassy in Seoul, Korea

PH PARTICIPATES IN ASEAN DIGITAL EXPERIENCE ZONE, ALTERNATIVE IDENTITIES EXHIBIT & ASEAN-ROK PARTNERSHIP WORKSHOP IN BUSAN

PR MTD 54 2023 ASEAN Digital Experience Zone

The Philippines is among the featured countries in the ASEAN Digital Experience Zone and Alternative Identities Exhibition; Cultural Officer Anthony Cornista tries out the new VR exhibition technology

5 May 2023, Busan, South Korea – The Philippines participated in the new Digital Experience Zone, Special Alternative Identities Exhibition, and the ASEAN-Korea Partnership Workshop in Busan from 26-27 April 2023.

Jointly held by the Korea Foundation-ASEAN Culture House (KF-ACH) and the International Information and Networking Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region under the auspices of UNESCO (UNESCO ICHCAP), the new Digital Experience Zone exhibition featured an Avatar Playground “Experience ASEAN Festivals in a Virtual Space through an Avatar.” The 3D character digital experience zone allowed participants to experience various events by virtually exploring the famous festivals of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and the Philippines. The Philippines giant lantern festival of San Fernando, Pampanga was promoted in the digital zone, showcasing the colorful and intricately-designed lanterns (paroles).

Another feature of the exhibition Alternative Identities: Masks of ASEAN and Korea introduced “other faces” created by the people of Korea and ASEAN under the theme of “Mask”, the cultural heritage of humanity. The MassKara Festival of Bacolod City was featured in the exhibition. All ASEAN countries together with the Republic of Korea were represented in the exhibition.

On 27 April 2023, the KF-ACH also hosted the 2023 ASEAN-Korea Partnership Workshop where participating Embassies and overseas and Korean institutions reported on their public diplomacy thrusts. Presentations from ASEAN Member States and representatives from the academe, Korean institutions and overseas cultural institutions provided various insights and strategies where each country may learn from.

Professor Kim Dong-Yeob, Director of the Korea Institute for ASEAN Studies, Busan University of Foreign Studies gave the keynote speech where he emphasized the advantages of digitization as the way forward in information gathering and sharing on different cultures.

The Philippine Embassy’s Cultural Attaché Anthony Z. Cornista and Ms. Mariel Jasmine A. Nini, Planning Officer II of the Sentro Rizal, International Cultural Affairs Office (SRICAO) of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) participated in the events. END

PR MTD 54 2023 ASEAN Korea Partnership Workshop

(L-R) Prof. Kim Dong-Yeob of BUFS delivers the keynote address at the ASEAN-Korea Workshop while Cultural Officer Anthony Cornista presents the Cultural and Public Diplomacy thrusts of the PH Embassy in Seoul

PHILIPPINE EMBASSY CONDUCTS SPECIAL FORUM ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND DIGITAL SAFE SPACES FOR FILIPINO COMMUNITY IN KOREA

H.E. Ambassador Theresa Dizon De Vega welcomes the participants of the special forum on domestic violence and digital safe spaces. Right: Resoource speaker Atty. Junglan Kim, Post’s Gender and Development Focal Person Vice Consul Reisha Olavario, and Post’s Legal and Assistance to Nationals Officer Vice Consul Jiliane Joyce De-Dumo Cornista addressed the participants of the forum on digital safe spaces.

02 May 2023, Seoul - The Embassy of the Philippines in Korea, in collaboration with the Itaewon Village Global Center, organized a gender and development special online forum on domestic violence and digital safe spaces on 23 April 2023. In her remarks, Philippine Ambassador to the Republic of Korea H.E. Theresa Dizon-De Vega stated that “In the midst of forward movements, there remains pressing concerns to the safety of women and girls in the workplace, at home, and in the digital world.” She likewise encouraged collaborative individual, community, and governmental action to build safe spaces for women and girls, including in the digital sphere.

The seminar provided up-to-date information on domestic violence laws in Korea, it likewise shared information in identifying technology facilitated abuse (including through stalking, illegally recorded conversations, and harassment) and understanding it within the lens of gender-based violence as shared by resource speaker Attorney Jung Lan Kim.Members of the Filipino community were also encouraged to reach out to the Philippine Embassy’s legal and assistance-to-nationals team in the event that they face challenges of gender-based violence in the workplace, at home, or online.

This seminar was conducted with the help of Itaewon Global Village Center and its Director, Ms. Katherine Corteza. The Embassy of the Philippines in the Republic of Korea continues to conduct informational sessions to protect and inform overseas Filipinos on relevant laws and regulations both in the Philippines and Korea. END

PH EMBASSY PARTICIPATES IN BUFS PH STUDIES SERIES

(Left) Minister and Consul General Israel with Associate Professor Kim Dongyeob, Director of the Korea Institute for ASEAN Studies at BUFS, and two Filipino exchange students from U.P. Diliman. (Right) Minister and Consul General Romulo Victor M. Israel, Jr., delivering a lecture on PHL-ROK relations to undergraduate students at the Busan University of Foreign Studies.

03 May 2023, Busan, South Korea – The Philippine Embassy in Seoul yesterday took part in the Busan University of Foreign Studies (BUFS) Philippine Studies Lecture Series by delving into Philippines-Korea relations founded in 1949, forged by adversity during the Korean War, and which has flourished into a stable and strong partnership based on shared history and values, and is now poised to scale greater heights.

The lecture series was launched by the Korea Institute for ASEAN Studies in BUFS in order to promote greater interest and specialization in Philippine studies among Korean students. Made possible through a grant from the Philippine Government through the DFA and the Office of Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda to BUFS, the project encompasses six sessions covering Philippine history and culture; public diplomacy in the Philippines; Philippines from an influencer’s and local Koreans’ perspectives; and Filipino professors in South Korea.

Running from April 25 to May 30, the lectures will be translated in Korean and posted on KIAS YouTube channel for the general public. END

PHILIPPINE EMBASSY IN KOREA SHOWCASES FILIPINO FOOD TO KOREAN MEDIA

Ambassador Theresa Dizon-De Vega welcomes members of the Korean media to a dinner event showcasing famous Filipino cuisine prepared by Filipino Chef in Korea Belgium Villanueva.

Among the dishes guests enjoyed the most were shrimp sinigang, chicken inasal, and sisig. Guests likewise enjoyed San Miguel Beer and Philippine juices.

19 April 2023, SEOUL – For Filipino Food Month and in keeping with this year’s theme, “Pagkaing Sariling Atin, Mahalin at Pagyamanin”, Philippine Ambassador to Korea Theresa Dizon-De Vega hosted a dinner attended by members of leading English and Korean-language media outfits to showcase Filipino food.

Shrimp sinigang (Filipino sour soup), chicken inasal (specially marinated grilled chicken), and sisig (chopped sizzling pork cheeks with a spicy and sour dressing) were among the night’s favorite dishes, with media guests saying that these dishes will appeal to the Korean palette based on their unique and appealing taste. Guests likewise enjoyed the Philippines’ famous San Miguel beer and were very impressed with the Filipino-style lechon belly roll.

As the Philippines supplies fresh okra to Korean market the menu showcased different ways of preparing this vitamin-rich vegetable such as okra kimchi and okra in soy sauce, serving as side dishes for the dinner.

Highlighting the rich history of Filipino cuisine and Philippine produce, Ambassador De Vega told the media that food has always played an important part in Philippine culture in connecting people and bridging differences. She likewise shared that each region in the Philippines boasts its own rich food culture and agricultural products.

Chef Belgium Villanueva, a Filipino chef based in South Korea, prepared a sumptuous dinner of Filipino dishes with a contemporary twist. The menu included vegetable lumpia and pork sisig served in wonton cups, green papaya salad (atchara), shrimp sinigang, chicken inasal with green mango salsa, Filipino-style roasted pork belly roll and halo-halo with handmade ube ice cream and turon for dessert. Guests also enjoyed Philippine tropical juice drinks and fresh Philippine fruits such as ripe mango and pineapple.

To show that Filipino food can easily be recreated at home, guests were also provided with QR codes of the dinner’s recipes, along with a digital directory of where to buy Filipino products and ingredients. Philippine products used during the dinner are also available in most leading grocery stores in South Korea such as E-mart, Homeplus, and Lotte Mart, and online through Coupang and G-Market.

Filipino food promotion is a key priority of the Philippine Embassy in Seoul for this year. Also present during the dinner were members of the Philippine Food and Culture Promotions Program in South Korea (FOCUS Philippines), Third Secretary and Vice Consul Reisha L. Olavario of the Political and Economic Section of the Philippine Embassy, Tourism Director Ma. Corazon Jorda-Apo, Commercial Counselor Jose Ma Dinsay and Agriculture Attaché Ma. Alilia Maghirang.

FOCUS Philippines is a joint project of the Philippine Embassy in Seoul, in collaboration with the Philippine Department of Tourism in Korea, the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Seoul, the Philippine Agriculture Office in Seoul, and the Migrant Workers Office designed to promote Filipino food, food products, and agricultural products in Korea. END

Chef Belgium Villanueva presents the Filipino-style lechon belly roll before carving. Guests also enjoyed chicken inasal with mango salsa, sisig served in wanton cups, and Filipino-style halo-halo.