Folk dances reflect the traditional life of the people. All over the world, folk dances are showcased and used as a form of cultural exchange among nations. Folk dancing is usually associated with social activities. That’s why no fiesta or festivity in the Philippines is complete without folk dancing.   Yearly, the Bayanihan Folk Arts Foundation hosts the Fiesta Folkloriada, an international festival of folk dance held in December at the at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). Under the auspices of FIDAF (Federation of International Dance Festivals), The Fiesta Folkloriada of the Philippines, a project of the Bayanihan Folk Arts Foundation in partnership with the Ambassador Alfonso T.  Yuchengco Foundation, gathers a select group of five dance companies from the different parts of the globe to conduct cultural exchanges in various parts of the Philippines, teach and learn from each other and perform in a grand finale with the Bayanihan, the...

Do you know that it’s a French woman who has spawned the act for the protection and rehabilitation of sexually abused girls in the Philippines? Cameleon Association Inc. Founder Laurence Ligier has been living in the country for 24 years and tirelessly ‘adopt’ these girls until such time they are equipped and ready to face the world. Laurence Ligier (seated, leftmost) with Zonta members during the media launch of  No to VAW Campaign  on November 15 at the Diamond Hotel. The gastronomic campaign was held in partnership with several food establishments in the country. “One child is raped every 53 minutes. We have more cases reported now because people are voicing out,” Ligier, who first came to the Philippines for a humanitarian mission in Aklan in 1992, said.  Ligier did another one month mission in 1993 and two years after, she was invited to join the educational program for disadvantaged children in Barrio Obrero, Iloilo, and spent half a year as ...