Filipinos celebrate Independence Day

In the Philippines Fiestas are used to celebrate patron saints, the passage of seasons and other special days.

On Sunday, hundreds of local Filipinos turned out at the Western Development Museum for the Parkland Filipino-Canadian Association's 5th Annual Pinoy Fiesta in celebration of Independence Day.

On June 12, 1898, the Philippines declared independence from Spain following two years of revolutionary war. Later that year, Spain turned the country over to the United States which led to the three-year Philippine-American War. The U.S. granted Philippines independence July 4, 1946 and that date was celebrated as Independence Day until 1962 when President Diosdado Macapagal declared June 12 Independence Day and changed the July 4 holiday to Republic Day.

In the past five years, the local Filipino population has grown by 10 times to more than 600.