President Obama, in his speech at Cairo University:
“I've come here to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world, one based on mutual interest and mutual respect, and one based upon the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive and need not be in competition. …I know there are many…who question whether we can forge this new beginning. Some are eager to stoke the flames of division…. Many more are simply skeptical that real change can occur. …But if we choose to be bound by the past, we will never move forward. … All of us share this world for but a brief moment in time. The question is whether we spend that time focused on what pushes us apart, or whether we commit ourselves to…a sustained effort to find common ground…and to respect the dignity of all human beings.”
President Barack Obama, June 4, 2009
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In Focus
July 4: A Celebration of U.S. Independence and Philippine-American Friendship
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On July 4, the United States celebrates its Independence Day, and the U.S. and the Philippines celebrate Filipino-American Friendship Day. In the United States, July 4 is a day of patriotic celebration and family events throughout the |
country. The Fourth of July commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The holiday is a major civic occasion, with roots deep in the Anglo-American tradition of political freedom. Around this time, elected officials and other public figures often give speeches extolling American traditions and values. Independence Day has provided some of this nation's most stirring words of freedom. In addition to being a major civic event, "The Fourth" is a family celebration. Picnics and barbeques are common and throughout the United States, Fourth of July fireworks displays are popular. Across the nation, citizens give thanks for the freedom and liberties that the founding generation won for all Americans. [ Full Text ]
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American Art Exhibit “Picturing America” Opens
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On June 23, with U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney present, the U.S. Embassy opened Picturing America at SM City North EDSA. The exhibit displays America’s artistic |
heritage with a collection of masterpieces of art and photography by American artisans, artists, craftsmen, photographers, and architects. The artwork offers unique insights into the character, ideals, and aspirations of the United States. “The program uses art as a catalyst for the study of American history – the cultural, political, and historical threads woven into our nation’s fabric over time,” said Ambassador Kenney. “It is being made available to schools and libraries across the United States and now in the Philippines.” The exhibit will be in SM City North EDSA (June 23 – July 6), SM City Baguio (July 9 – 22), and SM City Cagayan De Oro (July 25 – August 13).
More Information About Picturing America |
U.S. Supports NBI Anti-Human Trafficking Efforts with Equipment Donation
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Ambassador Kristie Kenney on June 18 turned over to National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Nestor Mantaring the U.S. government’s donation of investigation and surveillance |
equipment to boost NBI’s efforts to combat trafficking in persons in the Philippines. Valued at $35,000, the donation includes a passenger van, bullet-proof vests, surveillance cameras, and computers. During the turnover ceremony held in Manila, Ambassador Kenney said: “I’d like to commend the NBI, to congratulate your successes in recent days, and it is our fond hope that your great efforts will be enhanced and furthered with the equipment we’re donating today.” Pointing out that human trafficking victimizes “the most vulnerable members of society, women and children,” the Ambassador said that preventing human trafficking and protecting its victims are not enough. “We have to go after those who are responsible. We must prosecute and convict them. There is really no other answer.” [ Full text ] 
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Filipino Entry Wins U.S. State Department-Sponsored Worldwide Democracy Video Challenge
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The U.S. Department of State and its partners declared Filipino filmmakers Melissa “Aissa” Peñafiel and Miguel Ocampo the East Asia and Pacific regional winners in the Democracy Video |
Challenge, a worldwide online competition that engages people around the world in a global dialogue on democracy. Peñafiel and Ocampo’s three-minute video entry, “Long Live the Fearless Man,” bested regional finalists from Japan and Singapore. The filmmakers won an all-expense-paid trip to New York, Washington, and Los Angeles in September, where they will meet with democracy groups, film and television companies, the media, and government organizations. Screenings of their films are planned in all three cities. “This is a wonderful achievement for Aissa Peñafiel and Miguel Ocampo,” U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney said. “Their three-minute video shows the real power of Filipinos increasingly in the film and creative arts industry.” [Full text]
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Read the Philippines
portion in the following U.S. Government Annual Reports:
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Arms To Farms (streaming
video)
In the southern Philippines' Mindanao region,
thousands of former combatants of the Moro National Liberation Front
(MNLF) have made the transition from fighting to peaceful and
productive civilian lives. "Arms to Farms" profiles four former MNLF
rebels and shows how USAID's LEAP program enabled them to reap the
benefits of their choice of peace over war. |
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U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney (right) and Joachim Schutte (left), general manager of the Shangri-La’s Mactan Resort and Spa in Cebu, cut a giant hamburger to launch the Fourth of July American Food Festival at the Resort on June 28. Joining them are U.S. Honorary Consul John Domingo (second, right) and Paul Fluty, President, American Chamber of Commerce -Philippines (second, right). In the same visit to the central Philippines’ premier city, Ambassador Kenney attended the opening ceremonies of a national conference of coastal municipalities, and met with the board of trustees of the American Chamber of Commerce’s Cebu chapter. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery)
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A sailor from the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and a Philippine Navy serviceman team up to ferry mixed concrete to a building that U.S. and Philippine troops were renovating at the Pavia National High School in Iloilo Province during the carrier’s goodwill visit to central Philippines’ Panay Island on June 21. A year ago, the Reagan, its five support ships and more than a dozen helicopters teamed up with the Philippine military in providing relief to Panay residents affected by the devastating Typhoon Frank. The partnership delivered nearly 520 thousand pounds of rice, fresh water and medical supplies to the typhoon victims. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery)
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U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney (right) and USAID-Philippines Director Jon Lindborg (left) congratulate Saima Sadule of Maguindanao Province after the 12-year old spoke about how the electrification of her village through the USAID-assisted Alliance for Mindanao Off-Grid Renewable Energy (AMORE) Program has helped in her studies and in her winning quiz bee competitions in science and mathematics. USAID, the Philippine Department of Energy and private energy sector firms that partner on the AMORE project celebrated the program’s seventh anniversary on June 9. AMORE has provided electric light to more than 8,000 households in 270 villages in conflict-affected and other areas of Mindanao. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery)
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Students flash smiles and wave American and Philippine flags as they welcome Ambassador Kristie Kenney at the Taluksangay National High School in Zamboanga City on June 4. The Ambassador helped paint a classroom of the school as part of the local Brigada Eskwela initiative. During the same trip to Zamboanga City, the Ambassador also visited participants in the USAID-sponsored Mindanao Youth Camp for Peace and Understanding, and joined local women leaders at the launching of the grant to the Mindanao-based Magbassa Kita Foundation from the One Woman Foundation, a joint effort by the U.S. Department of State, the USAID and private corporations to empower women to achieve global impact in Muslim countries. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery)
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Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff General Victor Ibrado (left) salutes as he and U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates pass the flags during the ceremony welcoming the Secretary at the Philippine military’s main headquarters at Camp Aguinaldo. Secretary Gates visited Manila on June 1 to discuss bilateral security and disaster response matters with Philippine Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro. Secretary Gates visited Manila after attending a ministerial level conference on regional security in Singapore. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery)
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