Fifth Seychelles-China Day promises more variety |07 February 2018

The organisers of the fifth Seychelles-China Day celebrations, which will run from February 8 to 10, has said this year’s event promises more excitement and variety than previous ones.

The festival coincides with this year’s Chinese New Year which, according to the Chinese Lunar calendar, is the year of the dog.  According to Chinese folklore, the dog symbolises protection of the home, ensures security, is trustworthy and is full of integrity and devotion.

This was revealed during a recent press conference to officially launch preparations for the event. Present were the Minister for Youth, Sports and Culture Mitcy Larue; the ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Seychelles Yu Jinsong; chairman of the Chinese Association of Seychelles Charlie Ng Ping Cheun and the deputy chief executive of Cinea Gustave Decommarmond.

Activities for this year’s event start tomorrow with the official opening ceremony at the Eden Bleu Hotel, Eden Island. The activity will feature   performances by the Gui Zhou & Dance Theatre from China.

The troupe will perform again on Friday February 9 at the ICCS but this time they will be joined by the National Choir and the National Troupe. A Chinese bazaar will be held on Saturday February 10 in the ICCS car park starting at 11am. The Chinese embassy is putting up a special stand there selling paper products, toys and other items, proceeds of which will be donated to charitable organisations to be used for needy people.

“This festival is not only a celebration of the Chinese New Year but also the celebrations of the Chinese merchants and traders who travelled from far to our shores and today they are an integral part of our nation and our culture. It is also a celebration and recognition of the historical links to China through our strong bilateral cooperation between our two countries,” said Minister Larue.

She added the Chinese government has contributed towards the development of our small nation for which we are forever grateful.

“This celebration is also an exchange of two cultures living in harmony and ready to share the best of us,” she said.

As for Ambassador Yu, she said due to the combined efforts of all parties concerned, this year’s China Day celebrations will be more abundant and marvellous.

And to mark the Chinese New Year, a day she described as the most important for the Chinese people, the cultural and artistic group from Guizhou province will share the best wishes from the people of China to the Seychellois nation through their performances.

“For the past years, Seychelles-China Day has been organised successfully in Seychelles and has been considered a favourite in the China-Seychelles cultural exchange. We hope this activity will continue to reinforce the understanding and friendship between the two peoples and will ensure friendly relations and cooperation between the two countries,” she said.

Chairman Ng Ping Cheun said everyone is invited to the bazaar.

“Lots of Chinese items will be available including food which will be enough for everyone,” he said.

Mr Decommarmond said after taking stock of the criticisms in relation to last year’s event, Cinea has worked out how it can assist in improving this year’s event to make it more enjoyable and exciting.

“We have come up with the idea of putting up more decorations, activities so when a person enters the bazaar they can really feel the Chinese spirit, a ‘Little China’ as it is generally described,” said Mr Decommarmond.