Philippine Consul General Gina Jamoralin received the new Consul General of Israel to Hawaii Mr. Sam Grundwerg at the Philippine Consulate in Honolulu on June 21, 2017. Consul General Grundwerg, who is based in Los Angeles, California, is visiting Hawaii for the first time which is under his consular jurisdiction.
Consul General Grundwerg was appointed Consul General of Israel in Los Angeles by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in April 2016 and assumed his post in August 2016. Consul General Grundwerg is the senior representative of the State of Israel to the Southwestern United States.
Consul General Jamoralin, who is also the current Dean of the Consular Corps of Hawaii, warmly welcomed the Israeli diplomat and invited him to join Hawaii’s consular corps. They exchanged views on issues related to bilateral relations between Philippines and Israel. Consul General Grundwerg, whose grandparents were victims of the Holocaust, expressed deep appreciation, on behalf of Israel for the important role played by the Philippine government in saving Jews from the Holocaust .
Consul General Jamoralin said that a small Jewish community is living in the Philippines, some of them descendants of the original Jewish families who arrived in the Philippines as a response to President Quezon’s open-door policy towards the Jews fleeing the Nazis during World War II.
At the end of the call, Consul General Grundwerg handed over to Consul General Jamoralin a book entitled, “ Israel: A concise history of a nation reborn” by Daniel Gordis as a token of appreciation. END
