CPAFFC 2011 Spring Festival Party

As the Spring Festival (Chinese Lunar New Year) approached， the CPAFFC sponsored the second annual China International Spring Festival Party to extend new year greetings to people all over the world and express the Chinese people’s wish for friendship and common development. The evening party was held at the Banquet Hall of the Great Hall of the People on January 24. CPAFFC Advisors Jiang Shusheng， Chen Changzhi and Sang Guowei， Vice Chairmen of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC); Abdul’ahat Abdulrixit， Vice Chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC); Tomur Dawamat and Ms. He Luli， former Vice Chairpersons of the NPC Standing Committee; Wang Wenyuan and Xu Kuangdi， former Vice Chairmen of the CPPCC National Committee joined some 1，800 guests， including foreign diplomats from 127 countries， among them 69 ambassadors， members of the CPAFFC National Council in Beijing and personages of all circles to watch a performance with the theme of “embracing the world” reflecting the CPAFFC aim of “friendship， cooperation， peace， development”.

Spreading the Idea of Harmonious World

That evening， the Banquet Hall of the Great Hall of the People was lit up by colorful bright lanterns and filled with laughter and exchanged greetings， a pleasant scene of joyful celebration. At 7:30， Jiang Shusheng， Chen Changzhi， Sang Guowei， Abdul’ahat Abdulrixit， Tomur Dawamat， He Luli， Wang Wenyuan， Xu Kuangdi and other leaders entered the hall amid welcoming music， as Ji Xiaojun and Shi Binxian， two well-known CCTV anchorpersons， announced the beginning of the party. Li Xiaolin， Vice President of the CPAFFC， delivered a speech in Chinese and English. She said: “The Spring Festival， the most important traditional holiday of the Chinese people， is approaching. At this wonderful moment when people are looking forward to a better future， the CPAFFC hosts this International Spring Festival Party to express the Chinese people’s aspirations for upholding friendship and harmonious development through songs， music and dances， and their best wishes to the people the world over for a happy new year.” CPAFFC President Chen Haosu could not attend the party as he was on a visit abroad. Through a video clip， he extended sincere gratitude and warm festive greetings to friends of all circles who had supported the cause of people-to-people diplomacy and those foreign friends who had given sympathy and valuable support to the Chinese people. He said: “The first decade of the 21st Century has passed. In the last ten years， human society has made great advances while also meeting serious challenges， yet we have remained optimistic and confident of the future of the world. China and the Chinese people uphold the idea of world harmony and will make our contributions to helping humankind overcome any crisis and achieve further progress.”

Performances Centering on the Theme of Peace and Friendship

The evening party presented a repertoire of 17 items by both Chinese and foreign artists in various art forms such as singing， dancing， acrobatics， musical instruments playing， Peking Opera， hand shadow play， etc.， highlighting its international features. Ms. Tang Can， a famous Chinese singer， sang two of her best-known songs Happiness Forever and Blossom of Kapok， expressing people’s pursuit and longings for a better life. Ukrainian singer Jimmy， who has lived in Beijing for years and loves the city deeply， performed My Second Hometown especially composed by him to express his love of China and his true feelings of regarding China as his home. Wuzhouchangxiang group consisting of singers from five different countries on the five continents with varied musical styles presented a joyous song Happy New Year to warm applause. Before the party ended， all the Chinese and foreign singers came up to the stage and sang the theme song Embrace the World， fully expressing Chinese people’s open- mindedness in cherishing friendship for all， their sincere wishes for peaceful coexistence with people of all countries in the world and their desire for world brotherhood and common development.