PH Embassy and Comité Général des Associations Philippines en France Host Pista sa Paris
Filipino organizations assemble early in the morning at Trocadero before proceeding to Stade de la Muette (Photo: Lorenz Castro)
PARIS 07 August 2023 – The Filipino community (FilCom) umbrella organization Comité Général des Associations Philippines en France (CGAPF) in cooperation with the Philippine Embassy celebrated Pista sa Paris on 01 to 02 July 2023 at the Stade de la Muette in the French capital. The event commemorated the 125th Declaration of Philippine Independence and Nationhood.
This year’s Pista sa Paris was a two-day event which began with a sportsfest on 01 July 2023 among competing teams in men and women’s basketball and volleyball. In addition to the sportsfest, CGAPF also held the first “CGAPF Got Talent Competition” on the first day.
The Pista lent a festive and vibrant atmosphere to an otherwise somber backdrop of civil unrest marked by pockets of rioting besetting Paris and other cities in France at the time. Local authorities and police allowed Pista sa Paris to proceed on 02 July 2023, including the traditional parade led by a marching drum band from the Place du Trocadero to the Stade de la Muette. Participants from various Filipino organizations, including beauty pageant contestants, trooped to the Stade with a number of vloggers livestreaming the event on their social media platforms. The parade line stretched almost a kilometer long.
The Independence Day Messages of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Secretary for Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo were shared with the community and Philippine Ambassador to France Junever M. Mahilum-West exhorted the community to continue to uplift the image of the Philippines in France and reminded everyone to be vigilant and mindful of the current situation in the country.
A variety show featuring Filipino, English and French songs and dances and a beauty pageant followed.
Adding to the festivities and public services offered at the Pista were the stalls of DOT Frankfurt featuring the new tourism travel incentive program “Bisita, Be My Guest,” SSS, Pag-ibig and the Migrant Workers Office.
Stalls selling Filipino delicacies, accessories, clothing and services such as balikbayan boxes filled the Stade. Several real estate companies presented investment opportunities to FilCom members who visited their stalls.
Pista sa Paris began as a small gathering in a community church in the early 1990’s mostly in collaboration with the Philippine Embassy and the chaplaincy.
This event is the flagship project of CGAPF which was founded in 2007 and is the umbrella organization of over 20 Filipino community groupings in France. END
Photo on the left Ambassador Mahilum-West (left) with CGAPF President Jireh Lasta (left of the Ambassador).Photo on the right Deputy Chief of Mission Eric Gerardo E. Tamayo (left) and Police Attache Col. Rodolfo D. Castro Jr at the parade (Photos: Lorenz Castro)
The parade line of participants during the event (Photo: Lorenz Castro)
Adding to the festivities and public services offered at the Pista were the stalls of DOT Frankfurt featuring the new tourism travel incentive program “Bisita, Be My Guest,” SSS, Pag-ibig and the Migrant Workers Office. (Photo from Paris PE)
A variety show featuring Filipino, English and French songs and dances and a beauty pageant followed.
(Photo from Paris PE)
(Ambassador Mahilum-West and Embassy Officers visiting the stalls at Stade de la Muette. Photos: Lorenz Castro)
For more information, visit https://www.parispe.dfa.gov.ph, http://www.facebook.com/PHinFrance, https://twitter.com/PHinFrance or https://www.instagram.com/phinfrance/.