published in Korea.net

The Hangang River in Seoul was clean and clear, and the sun was shining bright. It was a perfect day for a shoot. I was with a professional video production team to film a video on President Moon Jae-in’s first two years in office. As a Korea.net Honorary Reporter who had joined the team in January 2018, this was a big day for me as I’d been chosen to share my views about a man with the most important position in Korea.

I was deeply honored and took it as my responsibility to represent my country and fellow Philippine Honorary Reporters well while remaining honest in my views. The shoot wasn’t hard and it was better than I expected, probably because the kind production crew didn’t make me feel uncomfortable or amateur and were respectful and encouraging. I spoke my native tongue and they trusted me, never showing any doubt in my capability.

While my selection as one of the five Honorary Reporters in the video was special enough, I grew even more excited after I was asked to include my sons in the project. Though I had to keep details of the shoot under wraps, the opportunity to appear with my sons made this video far more memorable and special to our family, making it a fond memory we’ll treasure forever.

The other Honorary Reporters appearing in the video were Majid Mushtaq from Pakistan, Ana Isabel Ferrer Ramirez from Spain, Imatitikua “Titi” Aiyanyo from Nigeria and Fabien Delcambre from France. Majid, Ana and I had appeared in a video on President Moon’s first year in office, and I found that getting to know more Honorary Reporters was an additional perk. I then reached out to them to ask how they felt and how their experiences were in filming the video.

Majid said he immediately called his dad after learning he was going to be in the video. He knew it was something to be proud of, especially after being one of just five people chosen. Titi said she felt honored to share her views about Korea, which she says is changing. Ana was in disbelief at first but when she confirmed her selection, she said she was happy to know that her views of President Moon’s two-year-old government were important.

Fabien said, “It was the first time I did this kind of thing with professionals, and it was a memorable experience. I really enjoyed it.” Ana talked about the traffic when they changed locations and how hard the shoot was, but she called that day “perfect” because of how professional the production team was and how she loved working with the crew. Majid’s experience took a more personal turn while he was filming at Imjingak Resort, located near the border with North Korea. “I saw a train there that was destroyed during the Korean War, and that was for people to see and feel how bad war can be. Since I’m from Pakistan and unfortunately, we’re having the same problem with India, I really hope people on both sides of the border will also start thinking like people here and start spreading messages of love than war,” he said. And for me, the experience was made all the more extraordinary after sharing it my sons.

In the video, I said Koreans question the president on things we foreigners cannot fully comprehend, but peace is very important and that’s what I admire about him.

Apparently, it’s not just me. My fellow Honorary Reporters seem to feel the same way, with most of us agreeing that his administration’s policy toward peace between the two Koreas is highly admirable and that he’s doing a wonderful job in this respect.

The experience we all had during the shoot was reflective of how we are treated in Korea as foreign residents and as Honorary Reporters by the Korea.net staff. We felt appreciated and taken care of, and thus feel inspired to do even better in promoting to and sharing Korea with the world.

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