French Embassy in Manila closed on June 20

The French Embassy in Manila will be closed on Monday, June 20, it announced on its website Thursday. While June 20 is not in the list of legal holidays and non-working days observed by the embassy, President Benigno Aquino III declared Monday a special non-working day. Aquino had earlier issued Proclamation 154, which made June 20 a special non-working day to mark the 150th birth anniversary of national hero Dr. Jose Rizal. Rizal’s birth anniversary is on June 19. Proclamation 154 made June 20 a special non-working day “to give all Filipinos the opportunity to commemorate Rizal’s patriotic deeds and sacrifices for the country, to rekindle their admiration and respect for him, and to celebrate this milestone with appropriate ceremonies." It added the National Historical Commission of the Philippines had requested that “Monday, June 20, 2011, be declared as special non-working holiday instead of June 19, 2011, which falls on a Sunday." Next holidays Meanwhile, the next holidays the French Embassy is expected to observe include:

• Bastille Day, July 14 (Thursday),
• Feast of the Assumption, August 15 (Monday), and
• National Heroes Day, August 29 (Monday).

France’s embassy and consulate in Manila is located at the 16th floor of the Pacific Star Building in Makati City. It also has an honorary consulate in Cebu at the QC Pavilion Building in Cebu City. Its Economic and Commercial Department is located at the 34th floor of the Rufino Pacific Tower in Makati City. The embassy lists its emergency number as +63-917-532-0756. — JE, GMA News