06 December 2021, Seoul. Christmas spirit embraced the Filipino Community in South Korea as the Philippine Embassy in Seoul, in cooperation with the various Filipino Community leaders, led the first ever virtual Christmas celebration on 05 December 2021 dubbed "2021 Paskong Pinoy sa Korea."

The Seoul Filipino Catholic Community (SFCC), Ilokanos in South Korea (ISK), Gwangju Jeonam Philippine Community (GJPC) and the United Filipinos in South Korea (UFILKOR) together with POLO-OWWA in Seoul served as the organizing committee that put together a program which featured Christmas greetings in different dialects from Filipinos from all over Korea and their moving messages on the true spirit of Christmas. Talented performers representing the various community rendered songs that warmed the hearts of the virtual attendees while others joined in on-the-spot games and fun-filled creative competition such as the Best in Christmas Head Dress.

In her Christmas and Year-end Message, Ambassador Theresa Dizon-De Vega underscored the importance of unity of the Filipino Community as they gathered to celebrate together, albeit online, one of the most special and celebrated seasons in the Philippines. "Despite the present challenges, we as a people can surmount difficulties when we are together and remain dauntless in our resolve", she said. The Ambassador informed the community on the gradual entry of EPS workers which started with the deployment of the first group from the Philippines on 30 November 2021 after almost two years of entry restriction, and the anticipated arrival of more batches. She also announced the resumption of the Embassy's operating hours to the pre-pandemic schedule, as well as the operation of an enhanced global online appointment system centrally managed at the DFA head office in the Philippines before the end of the year. "For 2022, in addition to intensifying the values formation seminars, training sessions, financial literacy and reintegration programs, the Embassy will be launching the Know-Your-Rights Seminars starting with a webinar on Philippine family relations law, and will be offering programs for migrant Filipinos and Filipino children with multicultural backgrounds. We are planning for the resumption of our consular outreach missions when the conditions permit, undertaking information dissemination on overseas absentee voting in the coming months, and to increase our Filipino Community engagement, alongside our efforts in strengthening bilateral relations with the host country", the Ambassador added.

The virtual celebration also featured the book launching of "Katatagan: Tales of Faith, Strength, and Resilience of Filipinos in South Korea" which is another community collaboration project by the Embassy's POLO-OWWA office with the Association of Filipino Educators in Korea (AFEK), and the Filipino Photographers Association in South Korea (FILIPOS). The book was presented as a special Christmas gift to the Filipino Community during the event and a tribute to the remarkable strength, unity, and resiliency they exemplified during the pandemic.

A special guest performance by Ms. Chelsea Emata, a Filipina international artist, further enlivened the event while special prizes were drawn in the spirit of the Filipino gift-giving tradition during the season. The Embassy officers and heads of attached agencies as one-country-team supported the community event with their special participation.

"With the continued support of the Filipino community, we will endeavor to make Paskong Pinoy an annual tradition to promote unity, friendship, and the well-being of our overseas Filipinos in South Korea", Ambassador de Vega said. -END-