Philippine Friendship Delegation in China

A visit by a Philippines delegation to major Chinese cities last October provided an opportunity for some longstanding friends of China， some preceding the establishment of diplomatic relations， to see and appreciate the great changes the country has undergone in recent decades. They were greatly impressed and full of praise for the many obvious achievements.

At the CPAFFC’s invitation， a 34-member Philippine friendship delegation led by Gwendolyn F. Garcia， Governor of Cebu Province， and composed of leading members of the Association for Philippines-China Understanding (APCU) and representatives of political， business and media circles of Cebu visited Beijing， Nanjing and Shanghai from October 23 to 30， 2009. Gu Xiulian， President of the China-ASEAN Association (CAA)， Ding Xiangyang， Vice Mayor of Beijing， and Zhou Taitong， Vice Chairman of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference， separately met with or entertained theparty.

Enhancing friendship and exploring cooperation. The APCU was founded before the establishment of diplomatic relations and is a cooperative partner of the CPAFFC in the Philippines. The delegation returned the visit CAA President Gu Xiulian made to their country in July 2009， and was visiting for the first time in four years. The incumbent leaders， council members and the founders of the APCU were all amazed at the tremendous changes in China and expressed admiration of China’s development and progress. Ms. Charito Planas， one of the founders of the APCU， declared that what she saw this time was completely different from 1971 when she visited China with a Philippine women’s delegation. At that time， there were few motor vehicles in the streets and people were drably dressed. But， now， Beijing had become a cosmopolitan city full of vigor and vitality. The Chinese people lived an affluent life. The only thing that she noticed had not been changed was the Chinese people， from the leaders to ordinary people， who were always friendly， warm and kind-hearted to foreign friends.

The APCU delegation had discussions with the CPAFFC on strengthening cooperation and expanding fields for exchanges. They agreed that they would take the opportunity of the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2010 to further expand cooperation and carry out exchanges in the cultural， sports and art fields， particularly youth exchanges so as to get more young people engaged in the cause of China-Philippines friendship and allowing the torch of friendship to pass from generation to generation.

Promoting exchanges and cooperation between the local governments of the two countries. Among the members of the delegation were representatives from political， business and media circles of Cebu Province led by Governor Garcia. Most were visiting China for the first time. Through the visit， they came to know more about China and through meetings， investigations and visits they established relations and explored ways for exchanges and cooperation with Chinese local governments.

When meeting with Beijing Vice Mayor Ding Xiangyang， the delegation listened to his briefing about the city’s infrastructure construction， experience in management， development of tourism， environmental protection， energy conservation， care of the elderly people， etc. and discussed areas where they intended to cooperate with Beijing in the future. Governor Garcia said that she wanted to learn advanced experience in city management from the Beijing Municipal Government such as using energy-saving lamps in all schools and hospitals and other public places， and the project of choosing through public appraisal ten thousand middle-aged and young persons who show reverence and care for their parents， etc.

In meetings with the leaders of Jiangsu Province and Shanghai， Governor Garcia said， Cebu was a province with the fastest economic development in the Philippines， and it welcomed Chinese friends and entrepreneurs to visit and would give good service to both tourists and investors.

Carrying out economic cooperation and building ties between the Chinese and Filipino entrepreneurs. Among the members of the delegation there were council members of the APCU from trade and economic circles and entrepreneurs and representatives of chambers of commerce from Cebu. On October 26， the CPAFFC specially held a party for entrepreneurs to promote economic and trade cooperation. The representatives of 20 Chinese organizations present included the China Association of Women Entrepreneurs， China North Industries Corp (NORINCO)， the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) Universal Industry and CPAFFC council members from various enterprises， discussed ways to deepen understanding and promote cooperation between the two sides. The Philippine side introduced Cebu and invited Chinese friends to travel and invest in the province. The representatives of NORINCO and Sicong Group also gave briefings about their enterprises and welcomed Filipino entrepreneurs to cooperate with them.