Once upon a time, in the late 1960s and early '70s, friendship organizations in what was then known as Red China, actively invited Filipino students to visit their country. This was before diplomatic relations between the Philippines and China was established so the students had to leave Manila surreptitiously. When Ferdinand Marcos suspended the writ of habeas corpus in 1971 and came out with an arrest list of dissidents, some student leaders who were in China then were stranded. One of them was Jaime FlorCruz, then the editor of the student newspaper of PCC (now PUP); the two others were Chito Sta. Romana, the president of the De La Salle Student Council, and Eric Baculinao, UP Student Council president.
The three lived in exile in China for more than a decade, unable to return to their homeland because they faced arrest. Their exile years weren't wasted years though: they all learned to read, speak and write Mandarin like a native; produced books in Chinese; and gained very deep and valuable insight into Chinese culture and politics. All three became international journalists: FlorCruz with CNN, Sta. Romana with ABC and Baculinao with NBC.
Their China expertise didn't go unnoticed by the Philippine government. Sta. Romana became the Philippine ambassador under Duterte, until his untimely passing in 2022. Now, under Marcos Jr., FlorCruz is the ambassador. But he remains a journalist at heart. In our lead story this week, Ambassador Jimi writes about some Filipinos who have found their niches and thrived in China, where almost 13,000 of our kababayans now live.
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One man's dream of a retirement place surrounded by trees has evolved into a showcase of rare Philippine trees. Victor O. Ramos, former secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, now spends his time in his arboretum in Pangasinan, where PF contributing writer Rene Navarro, an old college friend, visited and was amazed. Here's what he saw.
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Quilters are a rare breed and a mother-and-son quilting partnership is rarer still. But Mik Gaspay and his mother May are not just any other quilter. They are artists who see themselves as documentarians of memories. Read this enlightening feature on quilting and history by first-time PF contributing writer, Liana Garcellano.
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Want to join a Filipino Simbang Gabi online? Scroll down to our list below of In The Know links. Rappler is live streaming the daily dawn mass of the Archdiocesan Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Mandaluyong City.
