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German envoy on island
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Posted on Nov 16 1999
A visiting German diplomat paid a courtesy visit yesterday to Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio in which they discussed ways of enhancing relations as well as boosting tourism between the Northern Marianas and its former colonizer.
Dr. Wolfgang Gottelman, German ambassador to the Philippines and the Micronesia, arrived Sunday night on Saipan to meet with island officials and open an exhibit at the CNMI Museum tomorrow.
During his talks with Tenorio yesterday, Gottelman underscored the social and historical ties that have linked the Northern Marianas and Germany for so many years. The island was once occupied by German forces before the outbreak of World War II.
According to the governor, they discussed the possibility of increasing tourism and trade which he said he had brought up earlier when a group of German media people visited Saipan last month.
“We did discuss about tourism, (but) from the information we received it’s very expensive to travel from Germany to CNMI, especially (when) there’s no direct flight,” Tenorio told reporters in an interview.
“There was a visit made by German radio people where we discussed about the possibility for some of the people from Germany to visit the CNMI because of our history,” he explained. “For 14 years they had occupied the CNMI.”
The governor declined to provide details of the meeting, although he said the primary purpose of Gottelman’s visit was to open the German exhibit.
Called Tiempon Aleman, the exhibit will showcase old photographs from both the island and Germany highlighting the historical connection of the islanders to the German people. It is open to the public.
