Some of our kababayans back home would like to attend the World Youth Day and were asking for our assistance. But we couldn’t help them because we did not have any contact in the Philippines at all until now. We found the missing link!
The “International World Youth Day Conference” in Bensberg was one of the traditional elements in the preparations for World Youth Day. Around 250 representatives from national bishops’ conferences of 70 countries attended the Conference. It served to inform national and regional youth coordinators about the status of planning and the concepts for World Youth Day 2005 to be held in Cologne this August.
Two Filipina participants at the Conference were able to meet with the Tropa in Bonn on 10 January. Ma. Victoria “Toyang” Tacderas from the Episcopal Commission on Youth of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and Jessica Joy Candelario of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) shared information and discussed possible cooperation with the Tropa for WYD 2005.
A number of organizations have already approached the Tropa about our fellow Filipino youth back home, who would like to attend WYD 2005. However, Tropa could not take action and assist them. Toyang was the “missing link” we were looking for in the Philippines. The office she works for screens interested delegates and provides the endorsement letter, which is required for the visa application of WYD 2005 participants at the German Embassy in Manila.
Meanwhile, Joy is our “missing link” to Asia. She is a youth coordinator for the Asian gathering during World Youth Day in August. For this afternoon-long event, WYD participants from Asian countries are preparing presentations to showcase the cultural diversity in Asia. It will be an opportunity for Asian youth to bond together. This Asian afternoon will be held in Düsseldorf and more information will be made available closer to the event.
