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Hawke’s Bay March 2012 Newsletter

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NEXT MEETING:

Date:  23 March 2012

Time: 7.30pm

Where:  Hastings District Council        Chambers in Lyndon Road.

The Branch AGM will be held at  7.30pm sharp and is expected to last 30 minutes.

What is a Prominent Persons and Society Leaders Delegation to China?

Who goes on them?

Where did the 2011 delegation go?

Heiko Lade and Sally Russell share their delegation’s experiences in Beijing, Shandong and Fujian Provinces.

Heiko Lade and members of the delegation at the Shandong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine
Heiko Lade and members of the delegation at the Shandong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine

 

 

NZCFS 60th ANNIVERSARY NATIONAL CONFERENCE & ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

18-20 May 2012      Owen Glenn Building,  University of Auckland

“By honouring our past, we find our future”

Auckland  Branch President George Andrews says they are “pulling out all the stops” for the 60th commemorative conference.  George and renowned set designer John Parker are combining their skills to prepare a spectacular reminder of what a magnificent story NZCFS has.

The conference opening on Friday evening includes a screening of the classic 1957 documentary “Inside Red China”, by director Rudall Hayward, in which Ramai Hayward gifts a cloak from King Koroki to Mao Zedong.

On Saturday, film footage, photographs and participants from Auckland and China will take us through this story.  Sharing the celebration as keynote speakers will be VIPs from China and New Zealand, celebrating our past, and looking to the future.

Go to the home page of our website for the full programme.

 2012 was the first time in 13 years that the International    Cultures Day was cancelled.  The weather forecast was        terrible and the Metservice told us their advice was not to hold anything outdoors.  Thank you to everyone who helped in the lead-up to the day, to Nina Siers and Sally Russell who co-organize the event, to Dave Bromwich and Mike Earle in  Hastings and the Ethnic Association in Napier for putting up (and taking down) billboards, and to Lou Klinkhamer for putting up posters in shops around Hastings

Thank you to all the performers and stall holders who were so understanding when we had to cancel.

Hastings Guilin Board

Over the last year the Hastings Guilin Board has been reviewed and updated and is now called the International Advisory Group.  It’s Mission Statement is:

The Hastings District International Advisory Group will actively promote a diversity of people-to-people contact between international communities and Hastings District. This will include education, trade, business investment, scientific research, migration and culture. By practicing this locally we will contribute to better understanding and co-operation globally.

In doing this we will:

-Uphold the Sister-City relationship with Guilin, a foundation which will provide the vitality and resources for ongoing activity;

-Seek widespread community involvement and promote business to business contact in Hastings District with international communities.

The Education Link group is a sub-committee of the International Advisory Group and held  it’s first meeting of the year on 12 February.  Sue Stove-Padfield was elected as Chairperson taking over from  Geraldine Travers, Principal, Hastings Girls’ High School. 

The current Education Link Group activity includes:

  • Student exchange programmes
  • Developing and promoting activities between sister schools
  • Supporting the possible development of an international school in the Hastings District
    • A teacher–exchange programme to build teacher enthusiasm and knowledge-sharing with colleagues and students.

 

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao speaks during a press conference after the closing meeting of the Fifth Session of the 11th National People’s Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.  (Xinhua/Chen Jianli)

BEIJING, March 14 (Xinhua) — Premier Wen Jiabao said that China needs not only economic reform but also political structural reform, especially the reform of the leadership system of the Party and the government.

At a press conference after the conclusion of the annual parliamentary session Wen said:   “Now reforms in China have come to a critical stage,” warning: “without a successful political reform, it’s impossible for China to fully institute economic reform and the gains we have made in these areas may be lost, and new problems that popped up in the Chinese society will not be fundamentally resolved, and such historical tragedies as the Cultural Revolution may happen again in China.”

He noted although after the crackdown on the Gang of Four, the Party adopted resolutions on many historical matters, and decided to conduct reforms and opening-up, the mistake of the Cultural Revolution and feudalism have yet to be fully eliminated.

Wen said he had addressed the topic of political structural reform in China on many occasions in recent years, giving his views on the topic in full and in detail.  He said his long interest in political reforms comes from “a strong sense of responsibility.”  As the economy continues to develop, Wen said, such problems as income disparity, lack of credibility and corruption, have occurred.

“I’m fully aware that to resolve these problems, we must press ahead with both economic structural reforms and political structural reforms , in particular reforms on the leadership system of the Party and the country,” he said.

The premier said he believed any member of the Party and government officials with a sense of responsibility must fully recognize that further reform is “an urgent task” for China.

“I know very well that the reform will not be an easy one and will not be able to succeed without the consciousness, support, enthusiasm and creativity of our people,” Wen said.

To conduct such reforms in a big country with 1.3 billion population, Wen noted, people must always keep in mind China’s national circumstances and develop the socialist democracy in a step-by-step manner.

The premier said he knows the people take an interest in not only what he has to say and what his ideas are, but also what results his efforts can bring.

The premier said China will unswervingly implement the rural villagers’ self-governance system and protect their legitimate rights of direct election. The practices in many villages showed farmers can succeed in directly electing village committees. Wen said if the people can manage a village well, they can do well in managing a township and a county.

“We should encourage people to follow the path to experiment boldly and withstand tests in practice,” he added. “I believe China’s democracy will develop in a step-by-step manner according to the national circumstances and the trend is unstoppable by any force.”

 Premier Wen

Premier Wen held a wide ranging discussion at this press conference

7.5 % GDP target not low

China to take further steps to address income disparities:

Premier Wen urges further   promotion of social justice

China has no self-interests in Syrian issue

Go to the Links and Resources page on our website, click on Xinhua News and then on their China page