In the midst of differences on the sea, the Philippines and China sat together for almost two hours on 8 June to listen to the angelic voices of the highly-acclaimed Loboc Children’s Choir, as they sang songs of joy, peace and friendship, in a concert organized by the Embassy of the Philippines in partnership with Liwayway China, makers of Oishi snack foods.  The concert was staged to celebrate the 2012-2013 Philippines-China Years of Friendly Exchanges, and to observe International Children’s Day.  The concert also commemorated the 38th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and China on 09 June.

In her opening remarks to welcome the VIP guests of the Embassy at Beijing’s National Center for the Performing Arts, Ambassador Erlinda Basilio said, “Our children come to you from across the sea with their gift of song, to express their yearning for friendship.”  She exhorted both the Philippines and China to lay the foundations for a good future for children, and quoted a Chinese proverb that said “this generation plants trees so future generations can enjoy their shade”.

 

The Choir capped their evening concert with a moving rendition of Florante’s classic song, “Handog”, from which the concert drew its title, “Handog para sa Kaibigan”.   After the concert, most of the Chinese children watching the concert rushed to have their pictures taken with the choir members.

 

Towards midnight, after their post-concert dinner, the Choir serenaded, a cappella, Liwayway Corporation’s Chairman Mr. Carlos Chan, his wife Mrs. Priscilla Chan, Liwayway China President Mr. Larry Chan, and various Embassy officials, with a short and sweet Thank you song, to the general amazement and loud applause of Chinese late-night diners in a Chinese restaurant in Beijing’s first diplomatic district.