President Li Xiaolin Leads CPAFFC Delegation to Thailand

ACPAFFC delegation headed by its president Li Xiaolin visited Thailand from March 28 to 30 at the invitation of Thai Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and attended the launching ceremony of the publication of the Thai version of the Chinese novel Her City translated by the Princess herself as well as the opening ceremony of the China Hubei Food Festival. The Princess was present at both activities.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and President Prem Tinsulanonda of the Privy Council met with the delegation， and Phongthep Thepkanjana， Deputy Prime Minister， hosted a welcoming dinner. The Thai-Chinese Friendship Association （TCFA） and the Thai-Chinese Culture and Economy Association （TCCEA） also entertained the delegation.

Wang Junzheng， Deputy Governor of Hubei Province， led a Hubei food culture delegation to visit Thailand at the same time.

Princess Sirindhorn’s Love of Chinese Culture

The launch ceremony of the Thai version of the novel Her City was held in Bangkok on March 28， at which Princess Sirindhorn gave an introduction to the novel.

The novel， by Chinese writer Chi Li， depicts different experiences of three women living in Hubei Province and their attitude towards life. At the recommendation of her Chinese teacher， the Princess translated the novel in the hope that it would help Thai people understand Chinese society and culture， as well as the life and emotions of ordinary Chinese people.

The Princess had previously translated works by Chinese writers including Wang Meng， Fang Fang， Yan Geling， and Wang Anyi. In the hall where the ceremony was held， display boards with introduction and photos showing the Princess’ love of Chinese literature were placed. She showed the Chinese guests round， stopping from time to time to share her experience in translation in Chinese.

In translating Her City， the Princess developed a strong interest in the Hubei food mentioned in the book. At her proposal， the Hubei Food Festival and the book launch ceremony were held on the same day. The Princess cut the ribbon for the food festival and accompanied by CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin， Hubei Deputy Governor Wang Junzheng and Chinese Ambassador Guan Mu， visited the Hubei culture exhibition. She wrote an inscription in Chinese in praise of the province at the end of her visit.

Afterwards， the Princess tasted delicious Hubei dishes together with the guests from both countries. She took a picture of each dish and was full of praise after sampling every one. She also listened attentively to the introductions of Hubei delicacies and stories behind local snacks， and watched Hanju， the traditional local opera of Hubei.

The Hubei Food Festival， jointly sponsored by the CPAFFC， the Foreign Affairs Office of the Hubei Provincial People’s Government and the Chinese Embassy in Thailand， was held at the Shangri-La Hotel， Bangkok from March 28 to 30. The provincial government， attaching great importance to the activity， organized and sent top chefs of the East Lake Guest House， Hanju performers and reporters to Thailand to demonstrate from different angles the Hubei culture to the people of Thailand.

Thai Leaders’ Positive Appraisal of the Sino-Thai Relations

In her meeting with the delega

tion， Prime Minister Yingluck first extended congratulations on Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang being elected China’s President and Premier respectively. She said， Thailand and China were close neighbors and the friendly relations between them stretched back to ancient times. The deep affection between the two peoples had laid a solid foundation for the development of state relations. The leaders of the two countries exchange visits frequently， the two governments have close contact and the people-to-people exchanges rich contents. The comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership established between the two countries in 2012 further promoted the bilateral cooperation in all fields.

The Prime Minister said， the Chinese film Lost in Thailand， which was a hit recently， drew many Chinese tourists to Thailand. She hoped that more Chinese films would be shot in Thailand in the future and that culture would serve as ties to enhance mutual understanding between the people of the two countries. She emphasized that the Thai government attached great importance to people-to-people contact and would actively support the work of the CPAFFC to promote the continuous growth of friendly relations between Thailand and China.

When meeting the delegation， Prem Tinsulanonda described Thailand and China as good brothers and friends since ancient times. The two countries were close neighbors and culturally connected， and the concept of “Thailand and China being the members of one family” had taken deep roots in the hearts of the people. China had over the years provided great assistance to the construction of Thailand， for which it would always be grateful.

Prem also extended congratulations on China’s successful convening of the First Session of the 12th National People’s Congress （NPC） and the First Plenary Session of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference （CPPCC）. He praised Chinese President Xi Jinping as a young， energetic， wise and open-minded leader and believed that led by the new generation of Chinese leaders， the people of China would have a better life and Thai-Chinese friendship would develop continuously.

In his welcoming address at the dinner party， Deputy Prime Minister Phongthep said， some historians held that Thailand was founded by the ethnic Dai people of China’s Yunnan Province who moved southward and this was supposed by the close link between the Dai and Thai languages. At present， Chinese descendants constitute 70% of Thailand’s population and this blood relationship was inseparable. He believed that President Li Xiaolin’s visit would further consolidate and develop the friendship between the people of Thailand and China.

Friendship Conveyed by Li Xiaolin

It was the first visit to Thailand by

Li Xiaolin in her capacity as president of the CPAFFC. During her short stay of less than 50 hours， she participated in eight formal functions， enthusiastically conveying the message of SinoThai friendship.

Li learned during her conversation with Princess Sirindhorn that her father Li Xiannian， then Chinese President， visited Thailand in 1985. When departing from Thailand， King Bhumibol went to the airport to send him off and helped him up the ramp. This had become a much-told story in the history of Sino-Thai friendship. Li Xiaolin was much moved and thanked the Thai royal family for the great importance it attached to the bilateral relationship. She pledged to ensure that Sino-Thai friendship would be passed on generation after generation by carrying on the cause of friendship forged by the older generation of leaders.

Li expressed her appreciation and admiration of Princess Sirindhorn’s perseverance in studying Chinese culture and spreading Sino-Thai friendship on several occasions. Through the visit， she had the personal experience of the friendship of the Thai people and the kinship between the people of China and Thailand.

Li Xiaolin also gave a brief introduction to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the just concluded “Two Sessions”. She said： “To achieve the great renewal of the Chinese nation is the common aspiration of the Chinese people. China has to follow its own path to achieve development and has every confidence in its path， in its theories and in its system. No country in the world can develop in isolation. Therefore， all countries need to be inter-dependent and share benefit. China stresses mutual benefit， cooperation and win-win results and will not seek hegemony and China’s development will not pose a threat to neighboring countries. China advocates that neighboring countries resolve differences and conflicts through peaceful consultation.”

Li emphasized that the friendly Sino-Thai relations would be conducive to the development of relations between China and the ASEAN countries and between China and ASEAN as a whole. She hoped that Thailand would play a constructive role in promoting peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

During her stay in Thailand， Li Xiaolin held meetings respectively with chief members of the TCFA and the TCCEA. The two sides had in-depth discussions on how to elevate SinoThai people-to-people friendship to a new level.