Ambassadors Arias, Wali forge linkages with RP / Manila International Book Fair

Spanish Ambassador Luis Arias Romero sends a letter along with a magazine Perro Berde — Berde here denotes the Tagalog spelling — containing essays, poems, critiques by established writers. Mr. Arias graciously requests that I contribute to Perro Berde but, continuing deadlines and commitments prevent me from doing so.

The magazine is a tremendous incentive for us to keep Spanish alive. We were under Spanish colonial rule for over 300 years, and before its close, Rizal, Del Pilar and scores more wrote in Spanish as eloquently as their Spanish peers. And even long after the Spanish era ended, Recto, Briones, Apostol, Guerrero, Bernabe, Kalaw, Sabido proved their mastery of the language.

Spanish gradually gave way to English during the American regime, and English continues to be the dominant language. Spanish today is the second most-widely spoken in the world, and there is logically considerable interest in reviving it. (In my own modest way, I have tried to promote Spanish through essays that, to my surprise, garnered the Premio Zobel, the Isabela la Catolica award and the first prize in the first Quijano de Manila Contest in 2007.)

The Instituto Cervantes under Jose R. Rodriguez is promoting Spanish so vigorously that students learn it after relatively brief study.

Perro Berde, the only cultural magazine in Spanish today, was launched at IC last June under the initiative of certain Filipino and Spanish writers “as a link”, in the words of Juan Echanove, “between the Philippines and the Hispanic world, providing for cultural dialogue which, despite a common history, has not been very fruitful in the last decades.”

Supported by the Spanish Embassy, Perro Berde is the latest in the tradition of Philippine publications in Spanish, the idiom of the first Filipino newspaper, Aviso de Noticia, in 1806. Since then, many publications followed and closed, the last being Nueva Era in 2008.

Actually, Perro Berde is in Spanish, English, Pilipino and 16 dialects. Shirley Lua is the editor in Filipino and English; Juan Alamo, in Spanish, illustrators are Cesar Caballero and Felix Miguel. In tribute to the late Sid Hildawa, some of his poems are translated in Spanish. Contributors include Lito Zulueta, Salvador Malig, Jr., Pedro Aullon de Haro, Joi Barrios, Wyston de la Peña, Edyta Garcia, Begoña Esteller, Marjorie Evasco, Genaro Cruz, David de la Fuente, Mara Lanot, Clarisse Lukban, National Artist Bienvenido Lumbera, Francis Macansantos, Mathilde Mouquet, David Sentado, John Teodoro and Roland Tolentino. Jose Ma. Fons is among the editorial advisers.

The magazine reflects a positive administrative change toward Spanish, which change coincides with its social demand after decades of its abandonment.

Spanish books on sale at the Manila International Book Fair from Sept. 16 to 20 at the SMX Convention Center, Bay Area (10 a.m. to 8 p.m.) will help to disseminate Spanish.

The personable Ambassador Mohammed Ameen Wali kindly sent me a copy of the Official Newsletter of the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia.

It contains items which point to cordial RP-UAE relations which Ambassador Wali assiduously promotes. It also has a story and pictures of President Arroyo’s significant visit to Saudi Arabia (which she is again visiting) and the calls on her by Ambassador Wali, the Saudi Agricultural Minister, businessmen and investors, and news items on Prince Khalid’s meeting with Sen. Edgardo Angara, former Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, Mayor Alfredo Lim.

Filipinos get an insight into Saudi Arabian culture, life and cuisine at diplomatic gatherings in the new embassy building which Prince Khalid inaugurated.

King Abdullah’s statement at the G-20 Summit in Washington, DC, in 2008 conveys the sympathy of Saudi Arabia toward developing countries like ours by ensuring, in the current global crisis, the stability of the international oil market.