Chile to bring Pinoy smiles to other countries

MANILA, Philippines - The beauty of the Filipinos’ smiles will soon be exported abroad.

Chilean Ambassador Roberto Mayorga told The STAR yesterday that bringing Filipinos’ smiles to other countries is one of their expansion plans for the Calidad Humana project this year.

Mayorga said that since 2011, the Calidad Humana (loosely translated as human compassion) project has been limited to Metro Manila, but he believes that it is time to let the world know about the Filipinos, their smiles and their strength of character.

By next month they will inaugurate the project in his home country and in the Asia Pacific, he said, adding that they will tap Filipino communities abroad to help promote the project.

Mayorga, who initiated the Calidad Humana project, also said that after establishing 120 small groups called CH guilds in Metro Manila, they will form guilds in the Visayas and Mindanao.

Awareness drive

In yesterday afternoon’s CH Forum at the University of Santo Tomas (UST), he encouraged the audience to preserve the Filipino characteristics such as resiliency, sense of friendship, love of family, love of friends and hospitality. 

“The problem is if you do not take care about these characteristics, you might lose it just like what happened to other countries. The call of the CH project is a call to consciousness,” he said.

“One of the ways you Filipinos express Calidad Humana is your smile. That is the Calidad Humana smile for the world... It is a sincere smile that comes from the heart,” he added.

UST public affairs director Giovanna Fontanilla said UST is one of the core partners of the project, which “aims to inspire the people to bring out the best in them.”

The UST is hosting the traveling exhibit of the Calidad Humana Forum and Smiles for the World photo exhibition until Friday.

The CH events are in partnership with The STAR and other organizations.– Evelyn Macairan