Asia Pacific Lasallian Youth Congress returns to PH for its 11th year

28 years after the Asia Pacific Lasallian Youth Congress (APLYC) debuted in the Philippines, APLYC returns to the country, with DLSU-D as this year’s host to more than a hundred delegates from across the Asia Pacific region. In the 11th series of the Lasallian youth gathering, APLYC catered to an estimated 125 delegates from December 3 to 9 with the theme “Lasallians without limits.”

APLYC, an initiative by the Pacific Asia Regional Conference (PARC), debuted in 1989 in the Philippines, followed by the second congress in 1991.

The event, which takes place every two years or so, aims to gather young Lasallians around the world to establish a network among themselves and build “camaraderie”, according to APLYC spokesperson and Presidential Management Office Director Jose Ritchie Bongcaron.

“It’s a gathering of young Lasallians where they are actually given an opportunity to learn and establish camaraderie, build a network among young Lasallians in Asia and the Pacific and have the opportunity to work together towards serving the communities as well,” Bongcaron said.

 

Among other objectives of this year’s APLYC is to deepen the delegate’s understanding on Lasallian identity and spirituality in the Asia Pacific context, appreciate different cultures and realities in the region, and provide action to the poor and neglected.

In line with these objectives, the week-long event offered activities such as community exposure, teambuilding, talks, and cultural presentation.

Some of the estimated 125 Lasallian delegates came from countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, Myanmar, New Zealand, Pakistan, India, Japan, Hong Kong, Australia, and Indonesia. From the Philippines, representatives from almost all Lasallian schools in the country were present.

Bongcaron added that APLYC’s objective resonates in its theme “Lasallians without limits”, which is focused on creating a network and a family that APLYC plans to build across.

Bongcaron furthered that APLYC is joined by delegates not only of different cultures but of different religions as well, with the event aiming to send the message on Lasallian identity to delegates notwithstanding cultural, language, and religion barriers.

“The message is simple… Lasallians are not confined to his or her own country, Lasallians are part of a big, big family… We’re not even bonded by religion, we’re not bound by culture, we’re not bound by color, we’re bonded by a common Lasallian spirituality that forms part of the identity of all the Lasallians in the world,” Bongcaron expressed.

 

Lasallian delegates on APLYC

Delegates from different secondary and tertiary levels of various countries shared their thoughts on APLYC.

Viran, a student from St. Joseph’s Institution Independent in Singapore shared his learnings on having initiative to care for other people after learning the realities shared by participants from third and second world countries.

“What I learned was how Singapore is very sheltered and very blessed… it just made me have an understanding as how blessed we are as Lasallians but also how much we have an ability to provide hope and care for the people around us,” Viran said.

Similarly, Dennis Tan of St. George Institution in Malaysia shared his community exposure experience and how it made him more aware of what still needs to be accomplished in different communities.

“The exposure we went to, we went to the communities [of] ‘the forsaken, the last, and the least’ so this experience enlightens you in a sense that there’s so much more to be seen and so much awareness that needs to be going on in regards to our community,” Tan said.

Meanwhile, Justin Moreno of University of St. La Salle Bacolod shared how the event overcame language, culture, and religious barriers towards the participants’ united Lasallian mission.

“I’ve learned that even though we have differences such as language barrier, some even, religion, or culture, what is common among us is our belief in the same mission that St. John Baptist De La Salle was able to give to us which is to be person for others, to be the change that we want to see in the world,” Moreno shared.

 

With a report from Patrik Aboy.