Award Ceremony of “Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence Friendship Award” Held in Pakistan

It was April in Islamabad. Everywhere was permeated with the breath of spring， and neat and spacious roads lined with colorful flowers vying to outshine each other were further enhanced by the portrait of Chinese President Xi Jinping and welcome banners such as “China and Pakistan Are Faithful Friends”.

On April 20， 2015， the CPAFFC hosted an award ceremony of the “Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence Friendship Award” in the Islamabad Serena Hotel. President Xi and his Pakistani counterpart attended the ceremony presided over by CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin.

President Xi conferred the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence Friendship Award on four groups and three individuals for their long-term commitment to China-Pakistan friendship. The awardees included the All Pakistan China Friendship Association （APCFA） that works hard to facilitate people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two countries， the National University of Modern Languages which， in cooperation with China’s National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language， set up the first Confucius Institute in Pakistan， the National Management College promoting communication between the two governments and peoples， the Pakistani medical team that participated in China’s Wenchuan earthquake relief in 2008， APCFA Chairman Mushahid Hussain Sayed， who has been actively publicizing China in Pakistan， Ali Ahmad Jan， voluntarily guarding the Gilgit China Martyrs Cemetery for the past 37 years， and former Pakistani Ambassador to China Masood Khan， a long-time advocate of China-Pakistan friendly cooperation. President Xi and President Hussain shook hands with the awardees and extended their congratulations.

CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin met with the recipients before the ceremony. She expressed her congratulations and appreciation of their long-term dedication to enhancing mutual understanding and friendship. “China and Pakistan are good neighbors， friends， partners and brothers. The China-Pakistan relationship， fostered with care by successive leaders of both countries， has seen sound and steady development， setting an example for bilateral relations，” she said.

Representatives of the honored groups and individual recipients expressed their deep appreciation. APCFA Chairman Mushahid Hussain Sayed said excitedly： “Many thanks to the Chinese government and people for this award. The recipients are all outstanding representatives of various fields in Pakistan that have made prominent contributions to China-Pakistan friendship. In 1970， I visited China for the first time at the invitation of the CPAFFC and was honored to be received by Mao Zedong， Zhou Enlai， Li Xiannian and other Chinese leaders of that generation. Their great contributions to the development of China-Pakistan friendly relations inspired me. Over the past decades， I have been to China more than 40 times and witnessed its fast development. I truly rejoice at the great achievements of our Chinese brothers. So， I am very enthusiastic about publicizing China’s achievements in Pakistan so as to boost the development of my own country.”

Muhammad Ismail Qureshi， Rector of the Pakistan School of Public Policy affiliated to the National Management College expressed his thanks to the CPAFFC for receiving his school’s delegations on study tours. He said， among all the overseas study programs of the school， China was the only country receiving two delegations every year. The study tours had further strengthened understanding between Pakistan and China， especially the exchanges and communication in public service and government functions. “Members of the delegations said upon their return that they benefited much. We hope to further our cooperation with the CPAFFC and also welcome it to organize delegations to visit Pakistan.”

Although the 60-year-old Ali Ahmad Jan didn’t speak English， he carefully prepared a three-page speech about the heroic deeds of Chinese construction workers building the Karakoram highway. He said solemnly： “In order to build the Karakoram highway， 110 Chinese workers sacrificed their lives and 88 are buried in Gilgit China Martyrs Cemetery.” He went on after a brief pause to say， “The construction on the Karakoram highway began in 1966. Working conditions at that time were extremely difficult. I once saw a Chinese worker working on a bridge who fell off a cliff. I felt very sad and asked Chinese workers， ‘why did you come to build the highway？’ They told me， ‘China and Pakistan are good neighbors. Building this highway shows the Chinese people’s deep sentiments towards the Pakistani people and the highway also symbolizes the friendship between China and Pakistan.’ I was deeply moved by Chinese workers’ spirit of sacrifice and their friendship for the Pakistani people. So， when I heard that a cemetery for the Chinese workers would be built， I decided to be a guard though I was only 19 years old. Over the past 37 years， I have been guarding it voluntarily. I will stick to this glorious post and hand it down from generation to generation.”

President Li Xiaolin expressed CPAFFC’s willingness to strengthen cooperation with all friendship groups and individuals in Pakistan and organize more events that would enhance mutual trust and benefit both peoples in more creative ways to push the bilateral relations to a higher level. After the meeting， Li presented recipients with certificates of the “Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence Friendship Award”.