20 Century Ends

New Year‟s Celebration 2013 20th CENTURY ENDS ANKIND yesterday stood on the threshold of a new millennium, linked by satellite technology for the most closely watched midnight in history. M The millennium watch was kept all over the world, from a sprinkle of South Pacific islands to the skyscrapers of the Americas, across the pyramids, the Parthenon and the temples of Angkor Wat. Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle said Filipinos should greet 2013 with ''great joy'' and ''anticipation.'' ''The year 2013 is not about Y2K, the end of the world or the biggest party of a lifetime,'' he said. ''It is about J2K13, Jesus 2013, the Jubilee 2013 and Joy to the World 2013. It is about 2013 years of Christ's loving presence in the world.'' The world celebration was tempered, however, by unease over Earth's vulnerability to terrorism and its dependence on computer technology. The excitement was typified by the Pacific archipelago nation of Kiribati, so eager to be first to see the millennium that it actually shifted its portion of the international dateline two hours east. The caution was exemplified by Seattle, which canceled its New Year's party for fear of terrorism. In the Philippines, President Benigno Aquino III is bracing for a “tough” new year. At the same time, he called on Filipinos to pray for global peace and brotherhood and to work as one in facing the challenges of the 21st century. Mr. Estrada and at least one Cabinet official said the impending oil price increase, an expected P60- billion budget deficit, and the public opposition to amending the Constitution to allow unbridled foreign investments would make it a difficult time for the Estrada presidency. The President's popularity has also hit an all-time low, according to the latest survey of the Social Weather Stations. Survey results will be officially released on Jan. 4. ''It will be tough next year,'' the President told some reporters over dinner in Malacañang Tuesday night. He cited the big possibility that oil companies might again raise pump prices if world crude prices went up. A Cabinet official, who did not want to be identified, echoed the President's dim expectations. The official said that apart from the oil price increase, also presenting difficulties were the ballooning budget deficit and the President's Constitutional Correction for Development (Concord). ''It's really going to be a difficult year, first of all because of the oil price increase and second, the budget deficit,'' said the Cabinet official. The government suffered a P100-billion budget deficit in 1999. It is expecting a deficit of P60 billion to P65 billion this year. “That is going to affect government expenditures and programs as well as the economy,'' the official said. ''It's going to be difficult.” Concord will be an “uphill struggle” especially now that the President's popularity is extremely low, according to him. Still, he said the President and his Cabinet would continue to push for Concord since it was expected to pave the way for increased foreign investments in public utilities, commercial and industrial production, among others. The official believes the President's ratings will bounce back toward the end of 2013, or as soon as various pump-priming and social service programs start moving fast. The bright spot in the Aquino presidency is the ''stable police and military'' situation, according to the Cabinet man. He said the military and the police were rallying behind the President. In a short speech during Malacañang's New Year's Eve Mass last night, the President pleaded for understanding, saying his government needed more time to deliver on its promises. “I am appealing to our countrymen to understand that the government cannot provide their needs at once and all at the same time,” the President said in Pilipino. “Give us enough time to find solutions to our problems.” Sin, who led the Catholic Church's millennium celebrations yesterday, said that instead of fearing industry breakdowns due to the Y2K bug, people should see the New Year as an opportunity to renew their Christian faith. The 57-year-old cardinal, who was recently chosen as among the century's top 100 Catholics, celebrated the Jubilee Mass at the Manila Cathedral at 5:30 p.m. The cardinal, who remains very vocal in his criticisms of public officials, called for ''mercy'' and “reconciliation” for the New Year. He voiced hope that ''love and truth will meet'' and “justice and peace will kiss” in the next year. “For during that moment, Christ will truly have come in our hearts,” he said. As early as yesterday morning, hundreds of El Shaddai members and followers and millions of belivers and members and employees of various and different government and non-government companies and organizations, non-profit organizations, charitable foundations and institutions, left-wing organizations, civic, household, business, commercial, industrial and political groups and local businesses, bar associations, financial and educational instructions, entertainment, health and wellness, fashion, food, high society, media, legal, agricultural, motoring, real estate and telecommunications companies, clubs, foundations, institutions and organizations and members of the clergy, religious, youth groups and lay communities and religious and lay groups and organizations, including El Shaddai and other organizations (were excerpted from the launching of the Great Jubilee Year 2000-a 3-year celebration in preparation for the 2000th birth anniversary of our Lord Jesus Christ held at the Quirino Grandstand last December 1, 1996, the 1997 CBCP National Eucharistic Congress overnight vigil at the Quirino Grandstand last January 25 to 26, 1997, the National Congress on the Holy Spirit held at the Cuneta Astrodome and PICC Plenary Hall in Pasay City last January 22 to 24, 1998 and the CBCP organized-conference about the event at the PICC Plenary Hall last January 20 to 23, 1999), nuns, priests, cardinals, archbishops, and bishops, great- grandmothers, great-grandfathers, grandmothers, grandfathers, mothers, fathers, babies, kids, youth and teenagers and senior persons, cousins, nephews and nieces, Lesbians, gays, bisexual, transgenders, seniors, elder and disabled persons, government and army policemen and soldiers, Christian and Muslim people, environmentalists, healthcare and medical professionals, medical doctors, dentists, nurses, construction workers, farmers, farmworkers, carpenters, restaurant chefs, bakers, baristas, barkeeps, barkeepers, barpersons, barmans, barmaids, bar attendants, taberneiros, cookers, waiters and waitress, pre-school, pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, nursery, preparatory, kinder grade, primary and secondary schools, college and university faculty, staff, parents and students, Philippine Olympic Committee regular and associate member national and local athletes, coaches, referees, local policemen and security guards from all over the country (from 42,028 barangays in 1,634 cities and municipalities of the Philippines) and foreign nationals and tourists, and overseas Filipino workers and overseas migrant workers from cities, counties, districts, municipalities, prefectures and towns of 227 countries of the world and 51 states of the United States and UAAP, NCAA and NCAA-South, member-school teachers, students, alumni, student-athletes, coaches, referees, school lecturers, professors and principals had poured into the Rizal Park, Port Area and Plaza Miranda area to participate in last night's millennium celebration led by President Aquino. Members of the Catholic charismatic group said they were staying until after their New Year‟s Day Mass, which was celebrated by Bishop Ted Bacani and the healing message by Servant-Leader Brother Mike Z. Velarde at 2 a.m. today. The Millennium Mass was celebrated at the Quirino Grandstand at 5 p.m. First land At the stroke of midnight Friday, a tiny uninhabited atoll in the South Pacific jumped from obscurity into the history books as one of the first lands on Earth to greet the new millennium. The marking of midnight (6 p.m. Friday Manila time) on Kiribati's Millennium Island set off a rapid succession of celebrations in the South Pacific, whose position along the international date line makes the area the first to witness the new year. The island nation of Tonga marked midnight at the same time as Millennium Island. The Chatham Islands--the easternmost part of New Zealand--hit midnight 15 minutes later. Mainland New Zealand and the Pacific island nation of Fiji readied to hit midnight 45 minutes after that. Dancers on Millennium Island in woven grass skirts and headdress were to welcome the millennium with a shout of congratulations and good luck after chanting farewell to the pain of the past and heralding a new era of unity. Fireworks and babies The first dawn over land was to break near Dibble Glacier in Antarctica at 12:08 local time (11:08 p.m. Manila time). Kiribati was to be the first country to witness the sunrise of the new millennium at 5:43 a.m. local time (11:43 p.m. Manila time). New Zealand's Pitt Island was to follow at 5:49 a.m. As the largest--and the richest--nation in the group, New Zealand was planning the most varied and elaborate celebrations in the area: fireworks, concerts, and several Maori ''haka'' war dances-- including one with a cast of 2,000. Around 60 mothers in New Zealand are due to give birth early Saturday. On the coast at Gisborne about 100,000 people were in the area which would see opera diva Kiri Te Kanawa, originally from the area, sing in the world's first sun. In Auckland several large events including a 12-minute fireworks display were under threat from strong winds and rain. In Fiji, several hospitals were reporting they have women who might deliver the new millennium's first child--including Lautoka Hospital which was warning they had ''a whole ward of women'' ready to give birth.

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