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Fitial proclaims CNMI-RP Friendship Week
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Posted on Jun 02 2008
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial yesterday proclaimed June 8 to 14, 2008 as Northern Mariana Islands-Philippines Friendship Week.
The Philippines will mark the 110th anniversary of its independence from Spanish colonization on June 12, 2008.
The governor called on the Commonwealth’s residents to help the Filipino community on island in commemorating the event.
“As governor of the CNMI, I [would] like to recognize the important cultural and economic contributions of the Filipinos and those of Filipino ancestry to the socio-economic progress of the Commonwealth,” he said in the proclamation.
“In [an] unmistakable demonstration of our timeless appreciation for the many valuable contributions, we extend our hands in a spirit of goodwill, friendship, and understanding to further strengthen and enhance our harmonious and mutually beneficial relations,” he added.
For centuries, Fitial noted, Chamorros, Carolinians, and Filipinos have shared parallel histories, customs, traditions, and values. He said the people of the CNMI and the Philippines now “enjoy the best relations, and a healthy exchange of goods and services abounds between our two Pacific island communities.”
Fitial also used the proclamation signing to defend his opposition to immigration “federalization,” which he said is often misconstrued as against foreign workers.
Although the recently enacted law does not offer an improved immigration status for the guest workers in the Commonwealth, many in the foreign workers community are hoping that the federal government’s imminent takeover of CNMI immigration would eventually lead to their being granted the right to permanent residence.
Fitial said his opposition to the measure was mainly for economic reasons.
