The Philippine Embassy in Brussels, Belgium celebrated the 125 years of Philippine Independence and Nationhood with a week-long series of events.
The Independence Day celebrations started with the Philippine Culinary Week, 05 to 12 June, at the Sofitel Brussels Europe. The hotel’s dinner patrons were treated to a plated feast of kinilaw, chicken inasal, kare-kare and tsokolate, all prepared by Filipino celebrity chefs Rolando and Jacqueline Laudico. Cocktails using Don Papa Rum were also served during the week.
On 09 June 2023, the Embassy, the Philippine Trade and Investment Center–Brussels, and the Office of the Agriculture Attache organized a business-to-business networking event at the Sofitel Brussels Europe, wherein company executives of Belgian company Coosemans Import-Export listened as representatives of seven Filipino fruit companies briefly introduced their products for possible export to Belgium, the EU, the United States, Canada, and Japan, countries where Coosemans regularly distributes fruit and vegetable products. The Coosemans executives were later treated to a special Filipino lunch prepared by the chefs Laudico.
The Embassy celebrated Independence Day with Filipino community leaders on 09 June 2023 at the garden of the Chancery. The art exhibit “Viaje - Filipinism : What Makes Art Filipino” by guest artists of the Kapatiran at Ugnayan ng Natatanging Sining at Talento (KUNST) was also formally opened on that day. Former Deputy Speaker Rose Marie J. Arenas; Hon. Maria Rachel J. Arenas, Chair of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and Representative of the 3rd District of Pangasinan; Hon. Lorna C. Silverio, Representative of the 3rd District of Bulacan; and Hon. Linabelle Ruth R. Villarica, Representative of the 4th District of Bulacan, who were in Brussels for the Women Political Leaders (WPL) Summit 2023, joined the festivities.
The Embassy joined the Independence Day event organized by the Koalisyon para sa Kalayaan (KPSK) and the Knights of Rizal - GOMBURZA Chapter on 11 June 2023 in Deinze, East Flanders. The festivities started with a Holy Mass at the Church of Our Lady in Deinze, followed by a parade and a program in Brielpoort, where guests were treated to Filipino food served by Filipino community members in different stalls.
Finally, on 12 June, the Embassy officers and staff led by Ambassador Ledda, as well as the Philippine Trade and Investment Center, Philippine Agriculture Office, and the Migrant Workers’ Office – Berlin, held a flag raising ceremony at the Embassy, followed by a simple salo-salo of pandesal and coffee. In the afternoon, the Embassy hosted a diplomatic reception at the Sofitel Brussels Europe. At the reception, Ambassador Jaime Victor B. Ledda led the toast for the nation and Ambassador John Cornet d’Elzius, Director for Asia and Oceania of the Belgian Federal Public Service – Foreign Affairs, gave the response.
The week-long celebrations closed with an appreciation dinner for the sponsors of the Philippine Culinary Week — Emirates Belgium and ASEANA Travel, which gave a pair of round-trip tickets to Manila as raffle grand prizes; Don Papa Rum, which gave bottles of rum as daily raffle prizes for the duration of the culinary week; catering company IFS, which lent the services of Filipino chef Ryan Pitong to assist the chefs Laudico; and Sofitel Brussels Europe, the venue of the Culinary Week and home of the chefs for the duration of the event.
