Rain puts a damper on LibDay parade

The 2011 Liberation Day celebration on island was greeted with heavy downpour early yesterday morning before the start of and toward the end of the ceremony, drenching marchers and the few hundred spectators lined up on Beach Road to watch the annual parade.

A portion of Beach Road was closed to traffic as various marching groups took part in the parade that is billed as the largest crowd-drawing community event in the CNMI.

This year’s festivities, which commemorate the 65th anniversary when Camp Susupe was liberated on July 4, 1946, had the theme “A Band of Arms Liberating Communities to Freedom, the Island Way.”

Deafening police sirens around 10am signaled the start of the parade, which snaked from the National Office Supply up to the Liberation Day carnival grounds at the Garapan Fishing Base, according to Parade Committee chair Donald Crisostomo.

The parade lineup was led by Saipan Mayor Donald Flores and 2011 Liberation Day Committee overall chair Jonas Barcinas, who both came out of the car to shake hands with spectators.

Next in the lineup were Gov. Benigno R. Fitial, Lt. Gov. Eloy S. Inos, other government officials, and this year’s grand marshals: Ruth Coleman of Saipan, Mayor Ramon Dela Cruz of Tinian, Mayor Melchor Mendiola of Rota, and Daniel O. Kaipat of the Northern Islands.

The dignitaries were followed by at least 22 marching groups, some of which gave performances for the crowd at the Garapan Fishing Base.

These groups included the Department of Public Safety Color Guards, Public School System JROTC Multiple School Units, CNMI Boy Scouts of America, New Generation, Hopwood Jr. High School Leadership Corps, Man’amko King Jesus Pangelinan and Queen Siyau Muna with their Royal Court, Saipan Football Association, Seventh-Day Adventist Pathfinders Club, Saipan Falun Dafa Association, Uncle Ben’s Academy with United Filipino Organization, Saipan Little League and Big League all-stars, Saipan Awaodori Team, Japanese Society of the NMI, CNMI Red Cross, Emergency Response Vehicles from multi-government units, and Disturbed Car Club.

Some of the groups had their own gimmicks, such as the loud maneuvers of the Matua Riders, Hog and Manelo Riders; traditional dances, songs, and chants by the Chuukese Catholic Association; the Rainbow Little Singers from Daejeon in Korea; and the 3,000 items given away by Coca-Cola and Foremost Foods Saipan.

Five groups also participated in the float competition. They are the KKMP Radio Station with the Domatsuri and Domanaka Teams from Japan; the Saipan-Palau Residents Club; Choll a Beluu Club; the Santa Remedios Youth Club; and the Saipan and Music Dance Studio.

The Liberation Day program, which was scheduled after the parade, had to be put off due to the heavy rain, prompting the audience to seek shelter in buildings and at the booths in the carnival grounds.

After the downpour, the celebration proceeded with the program that involved mostly messages from government officials present at the event.

In his remarks, Fitial said Liberation Day celebrates the idea of freedom and individual rights as well as the Commonwealth’s reaffirmation and renewed commitment to the principles of a free society.

The governor noted the “overwhelming transformation” of the islands over the past 67 years, with the closure of Camp Susupe denoting “a new beginning for the indigenous people.”

“So today, let us pay tribute to the men, women, and children of Camp Susupe, and to their enduring legacy,” said Fitial. “Their trials and tribulations are the true hallmarks of the way of life we have come to know in our islands.

For his part, Flores emphasized that lives have been sacrificed to attain the freedom that people enjoy today and he thanked the soldiers who died liberating the islands, their families, and friends.

As he called on the people to reflect on the occasion and remember the hardships that came with the islands’ freedom, Barcinas expressed hope that the community will strive to succeed despite the economic challenges ahead.