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Philippine site thrills

(The text of this article appeared in The Australian, Wednesday, November 29, 2000 and is being reprinted here for the benefit of our international members and visitors. emanilateam)

EMANILA.COM was established to fulfill a young man's dream and has gone on to win the technology section of the 2000 National Multicultural Marketing Awards.

Having arrived in Australia as a 10-year old, this young man grew up wondering how he could help other young Filipinos to re-learn their languages, re-discover their past and link this with their future.

In February 1998, emanila.com was born.

Its translation service was offered free for all. Requests for basic and survival translations came mostly from young second-generation migrants.

It also serviced students of Asian and Philippine studies.

In April 1998, while Philippine community groups in Sydney were preparing for the centennial celebration of the Philippine independence, emanila.com received a commission to design and host the official website of the Philippine centennial in Sydney.

Primarily, the centennial website was aimed at capturing and sharing the spirit of this event with the rest of the Filipinos all over the world.

For emanila.com, the centennial celebration opened up new horizons to export its Philippine-related services to the rest of the world.

Since its official launch on June 30, 1998, it advanced from being a translation service and web-based email services to Australia's largest portal for Philippine related news and promotional services on trade, travel and other topics.

Filipino-Australians numbered 150,000 two years ago. There were 40,000 households in the country. Households that were internet-connected made up about 15% of this number.

Filipinos grouped themselves by associations with emphasis on their ancestral provinces or dialects or religious affiliations.

According to the Philippine Embassy in Canberra there are 350 registered associations in Australia, with the main concentration of Filipinos being in NSW.

As a cultural entity, Filipinos traditionally hold various cultural events such fiestas, village festivals, sports events and annual Independence Day celebrations.

Emanila.com considered the need for Filipinos in Australia to integrate and interconnect with mainstream Australia. It has put emphasis on two events:

Staging of the Olympics in Sydney, and

• Celebration of Australia's Centenary of Federation next year.
• The service is aimed at Filipino youths and then their families.

After two years, emanila.com has more than 250 registered businesses and associations.

It has been recognised in the Australia Internet Awards 1999 and 2000; by the International Webmasters Association; and is rated as a child-safe internet site.