CHEONAN, 15 September 2014 – More than 1,000 foreign residents, including Filipinos, gathered on Sunday, 14 September 2014 in celebrating an event to encourage Korean and foreign residents to live in harmony on the occasion of the 2014 Together Day at the Munseong-dong Community Center in Cheonan City, some 85 km south of Seoul.

Philippine Ambassador Raul S. Hernandez joined his counterparts from Cambodia and Vietnam as well as Philippine Embassy Labor Attaché Felicitas Bay and other labor attachés of Employment Permit System (EPS) sending countries at the 4th Foreigners’ Festival, which was organized by the government-accredited Cheonan Support Center for Foreign Workers. “While we have different skin color, language and culture, we are one, we are brothers and sisters – let us cooperate and understand each other. Korea is your second home, and Koreans should take this chance to accept the foreign residents with an open mind,” South Chungcheong Province Governor Ahn Heejung said in his welcome remarks. “Together Day is celebrated to bridge the gap between the local population and the foreign community in Korea,” Cheonan City Mayor Goo Bon Young, adding “let us get together and share our culture.” “Having a Together Day shows the importance Korea places on harmonious co-existence despite individual and cultural differences. Workers and migrants from various countries who are living and working in Korea join in the celebration of the on-going journey of Korea as a multi-cultural society,” Ambassador Hernandez stated in his congratulations. The annual event was also attended by members of the National Assembly, led by Philippine-born Rep. Jasmine Lee, the first naturalized Korean to become a member of parliament, Rep. Seung Cho Yang, and Rep. Wan Ju Park. Participants could enjoy an array of services such as counseling, culture and food experience, consular service, information fair and medical service. The program featured musical performances of the local Nanta group, a belly dance troupe, an all-girl Korean band and multicultural transnational chorus Montant, featuring Filipino singer Erick Christian A. Robles. The event organizer, headed by chairperson Yoo Young hwan and accredited by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea (HRD Korea), has been working in improving the rights and benefits of foreign workers who in most cases experience difficulties due to language barrier and cultural differences. Together Day is a yearly event of the Cheonan Support Center that has become a popular and significant addition to the event calendar of foreign workers in South Chungcheong Province. As of June 2014, 2,087 Filipinos are known to live and work in the province.