Cebu City, Honolulu renew sisterhood

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City and the city of Honolulu in Hawaii recently renewed their sisterhood agreement, which was forged almost two decades ago.

Last Wednesday, Mayor Tomas Osmeña signed the document to renew the sister city relationship at the Mactan Cebu International Airport where he met briefly with Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann shortly before flying to Manila.

Some members of the Trade Mission delegation from Hawaii also came with Hannemann to witness the reaffirmation of the sister city relationship.

After both mayors signed the renewal documents, Osmeña proceeded to Manila while Hannemann and his party proceeded to the Cebu City Hall. There, they were welcomed by Vice Mayor Michael Rama and some City Councilors.

“Cebu is the center of the Visayas region of the Philippines, ancestral home to the second largest Filipino ethnic group in Hawaii,” Hannemann said.

Hannemann said “Hawaii’s culture and economy are closely linked to our Asia Pacific neighbors, and we all benefit from our strong ties to communities in the Philippines.”

Honolulu’s official website said Cebu was a leading area of pioneering Filipino migration to Hawaii in the decades before World War II.

“From 1909 to 1928, the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association recruited over 20,000 migrants from the Central Visayan provinces. These immigrants and their descendants have contributed to the inter-cultural, socio-economic and political fabric of Hawaii,” the website also cites. — Rene U. Borromeo/JMO   (FREEMAN NEWS)