A month of cultural exchanges between young people from Taiwan and the Chinese mainland has opened in Suzhou. The program involves students, business people, artists, designers and scholars. Yang Shanshan has more.
A beautiful Chinese folk song, Jasmine Flower, kicks off a cultural exchange month betweenyoung people from Taiwan and Chinese mainland.
The girl who played the guzheng, a Chinese harp-like instrument, grew up in Taiwan, but chose to settle down in Suzhou. She plays with passion and believes in music's power.
WANG YUZHEN Taiwan Performer "The music can be shared across the world. I hope through music I could bring peace to cross-strait relations."
More than 158-thousand Taiwan people live in Chinese mainland. Many of them married to a local partner. At the opening cultural exchange ceremony, many couples shared their love stories and hope that communication can be enhanced to reduce mistrust.
QIAN YONGCHANG Taiwan Entrepreneur "I'm still very positive now for cross-strait relations. Taiwan and Chinese mainland shared the same root, the same ancestor. We have the same tradition, the same festival, like the spring festival and Mid-autumn festival, the same language, and the same culture. This can't be wiped out. My father always taught me you should remember your roots. You can't forget where your ancestor comes from. I just hope we can resume the communication. I come from Taiwan, and I really want to tell people in Taiwan about my real life here. It's different from what they imagined."
Chinese officials vow to help Taiwan youth in Chinese mainland better adapt to local life, particularly to help them when it comes to education, housing and medical care service.
YANG WULIN Taiwan Affairs Office of Suzhou City People's Government "We started this event last year in Suzhou. At first, we wanted to introduce Suzhou local culture to Taiwan youth. But now we hope this event could become a platform for communication and integration, where more Taiwan youth could learn about Chinese mainland."
YANG SHANSHAN Suzhou "The cultural exchange month between young people from Taiwan and Chinese mainland is underway with a series of concerts, art performances and exhibitions across China. In a world full of uncertainties where the COVID-19 pandemic cut off traveling and meetings for a long time, culture may be the bridge to resume communication and trust. Yang Shanshan, CGTN, Suzhou."
