Cebu city: Creative and cultural capital of ASEAN

MANILA, Philippines - Cebu, the gateway to the Visayas and Mindanao, has always taken pride in its ability to offer the best of both worlds. An amalgam of diversity in many aspects of life, the island has consistently proven its worth as a key element in keeping the Philippines in the international limelight.

In 2007, Cebu took up the challenge of hosting the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit, a move that attracted both immense criticism and praise. This year, ASEAN affirmed Cebu’s reputation as a premier destination when it conferred upon its capital, Cebu City, the honor of being “ASEAN City of Culture” for its rich cultural heritage and creative industries.

Cebu City shares the distinction with nine other cities in the Philippines, including Manila, Angono in Rizal, Taclac City in Tarlac Province, Angeles City in Pampanga, Batangas City in Batangas, Roxas City in Capiz, Tagbilaran City in Bohol, Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis Oriental, and Dapitan City in Zamboanga del Norte.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama accepted the plaque of conferment from Ambassador Olivia Palala, executive director of the Office of ASEAN Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs, last July 15. Among the dignitaries who attended the ceremony at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Cebu City were the ambassadors of Brunei Darussalam, Malay Halimah Yussof; Indonesia, Yohanes Kristiarto Soeryo Legowo; Laos, Malayvieng Sakonhninhom; Thailand, Prasas Prasasvinitchai; and Vietnam, Nguyen Vu Tu.

Palala says Cebu City is a complete package because aside from its rich history and culture, it also boasts of growing creative industries in furniture and fashion. She also credits the Cebuanos’ excellent command of the English language, a factor that makes the city a practical choice for foreigners to visit and explore and the backbone of a dynamic industry in business process outsourcing.

“Cebu has it all,” Palala says.

CREATIVE AND CULTURAL CAPITAL: Dancers from different schools in Cebu City perform in a grand finale number at the acceptance ceremony

Eva Marie Salvador of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) Cultural Resource and Communications Services says Cebu belongs to the three core cities alongside Angeles City and Manila, as declared by the national committee of the ASEAN of which CCP is a member. What places Cebu City at the top, however, is that the city has been the first choice since the program was hatched in Myanmar four years ago.

“When the project was broached in Myanmar in 2008, they said the Philippines should be the first to hold the ASEAN City of Culture and then they were saying, what city? One of the representatives of the Philippines said, it would probably be Cebu…and most ministers said, yes, Cebu. In other words, there was clear validation at that time,” Salvador says.

She explains that Pampanga became a “natural” choice by virtue of its efforts in hosting the ASEAN Ministers of Culture meeting. Manila, meanwhile, is the country’s capital. The national organizing committee also realized that with its rich heritage as a country, the Philippines cannot just declare one city of culture, thus, the addition of the seven other cities.

“We have a lot of cities for culture, cities for heritage, but when we talk about creative industries, there’s one and that’s Cebu,” Salvador says.

With the declaration, Cebu City can expect to host upcoming activities organized by ASEAN, Salvador says. Likewise, with ASEAN planning to develop a region-wide creative industry, she believes Cebu City will be in a prominent position to collaborate with fellow cities of culture in pushing local brands further into the international market.

Apart from physical “indicators” – historical sites such as the Magellan’s Cross and the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño; vibrant cultural celebrations such as Sinulog; and gastronomic offerings like its delectable mangoes, appetizing dangit and succulent lechon – the national committee for ASEAN also believes that Cebu City breeds a philosophy that renders it a cut above the rest.

Josef Decker chairs by APY CANE Inc. (far left). Creations by noted designer Philip Rodriguez (left).

City Councilor Margarita Osmeña, chair of the City Council’s committee on tourism and culture, calls this the “Can Do!” attitude – an inherent, culturally entrenched desire in every Cebuano never to disappoint no matter the circumstances.

Salvador recalls the time city representatives presented to the national committee of ASEAN the blueprint of Cebu City’s preparation for the acceptance ceremony. The plan, she says, awed the committee members.

True to form, the acceptance ceremony exceeded expectations and was a visual feast. At the arrival area, members of different performing groups in the city dressed in intricate costumes welcomed attendees with warm, affectionate smiles. As the ceremony began, guests were ushered into the venue through a formal parade of colors with cadets from the University of Cebu Norwegian Shipowners Association bearing the flags of ASEAN and the ASEAN member countries.  

The ceremony itself was a showcase of Cebuano musicality with performances by, among others, the Lumad Basakanon, three-time national champion and Hall of Fame awardee of the Aliwan Festival National Street Dancing Competition; and the Mandaue Children and Youth Chorus, gold medalist in the 1st Asian Choir Games in Jakarta, Indonesia and champion in the Grand Prix for Choirs in South Korea.

On the same day, too, the city pulled together a handful of its creative talents to showcase works that are distinctly Cebuano – jewelry by Janice Minor; art pieces by Arden Classic Inc., Debbie Palao, Italkarat18, Stonesets International Inc., Obra Cebuana Inc., and Accessoria Inc.; furniture by Apy Cane Inc., Nature’s Legacy Eximport Inc., and Pacific Traders and Manufacturing Corp.; and creations of noted fashion designers Philip Rodriguez and Cary Santiago were highlights of the exhibit at the SM City Cebu.

Cebu also takes pride in its homegrown talent, Kenneth Cobonpue, whose creative masterpieces have earned Cebu international recognition in the furniture industry. His designs adorn major hotels in Europe and the United States, including the homes of Hollywood power couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

The celebration, however, did not end at the acceptance ceremony. Already, the city government has lined up activities for a year-long affair, including a lecture-forum on Southeast Asian civilizations in September, a series of forums on ASEAN arts and literature in October, a gathering of festival organizers in November, and the much anticipated Sinulog in January. The city aims to cap the celebration in July next year with the launch of a guidebook for tour guides, which will feature landmarks of the city.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama receives the plaque declaring Cebu City as ASEAN City of Culture from Ambassador Olivia Palala together with representatives from the different ASEAN member countries (left) and gives an acceptance speech in behalf of the city.

Ricky Ballesteros, executive director of the Sinulog Foundation Inc., says the gathering of festival organizers in November, undertaken in partnership with the CCP and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), is the very first to be organized in the country. Cebu City came to be a natural choice to spearhead the gathering – what with its reputation of unprecedented success in holding the “mother of all festivals” in the Philippines year after year, the Sinulog.

The Sinulog, while primarily a religious event in honor of the child Jesus, has evolved into a massive cultural spectacle with dancing contingents across the country seeking participation every year. Aside from performers, attendees troop to the city by the thousands every third week of January to experience the religious and cultural activities. Many often compare the street parade on last day of festival to the famous Mardi Gras in Brazil because of the grandiose costumes and performances of participating contingents.

January 2012 will prove to be a significant month, Ballesteros says, because the Department of Tourism (DOT) has also declared it “Philippine Culture Month” with a special highlight on the Sinulog festival. Because of this, the city anticipates more contingents participating in the Grand Parade.

Participants of the Grand Parade train for months to perform their routines in the city’s streets practically the entire day. The cash prize of P500,000 is hardly the motivation since it does not even compensate for the P3 million a contingent of at least 50 people needs to stage their performance. 

Perhaps performing before the enthusiastic crowd simply brings a different level of euphoria.

Ballesteros explains that aside from their devotion to the child Jesus, out-of-town groups have always loved participating in the Sinulog because of the hospitality of Cebuanos. Performers hit the streets at 7 a.m. and perform until nighttime, rain or shine.

“The usual feedback I receive is that performing for the crowds in Cebu is different. The entire parade route is packed with spectators and the spectators never fail to applaud to show appreciation,” he says in Cebuano.

Now, with Cebu City declared ASEAN City of Culture, much more is expected from the grand festival and from the Queen City of the South. Yet from its history of never stepping back from a challenge – shown as early as the time the brave Lapu-Lapu defeated Magellan in the battle of Mactan – Cebu can be expected to face these bigger expectations with greater resolve and greater aplomb.

The author is copy editor of Freeman newspaper in Cebu.