Previous 13 Sessions of China-ASEAN Cultural Forum Highlighting Diversified Culture

Li Min　Mo Tingting

As Chinese President Xi Jinping cited a line from a Chinese poem when he made a speech in the UNESCO headquarters in March 2014： A single flower does not make spring， while one hundred flowers in full blossom bring spring to the garden， civilizations are diversified. And culture as the external form of civilization is also colorful.

China and ASEAN countries not only boast different cultures like different languages and characters， but also see traces of cultural fusion which may be reflected on the exquisite dresses of Nyonya， and rice-farming culture behind the ochre red totems on the rock. At present， the China-ASEAN Cultural Forum （CACF） held for 13 consecutive years has yielded fruitful results on cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two sides.

Industrial cooperation and cultural exchange

As early as in 2005， cultural exchanges between China and ASEAN countries have opened up a new prospect. At the second ASEAN （10+3） Cultural Ministers Summit， China and ASEAN signed the MoU on Cultural Cooperation Between the Governments of China and ASEAN. The following year， the 1st China-ASEAN Cultural Industry Forum （CACIF）， the predecessor of CACF， was born at the right moment， forming a new platform for China-ASEAN cultural exchange and cooperation.

In 2011， the 6th CACIF was formally incorporated into the framework of CAEXPO. Over the past 6 years， China and ASEAN have conducted researches and discussions on issues related to the development of cultural industries， creating a good atmosphere for further cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two sides.

With the deepening cooperation between China and ASEAN， in 2012， the CACIF was renamed as the CACF， which has expanded the fields for cooperation， including culture and art， intangible cultural heritage protection， public cultural services， cultural human resources training， traditional arts， and so on.

Driven by the CACF， China and ASEAN have signed the Nanning Declaration， MoU on China-ASEAN Cultural Cooperation， China-ASEAN Cultural Industry Interaction Plan and other documents， put forward the East Asian Libraries Nanning Initiative to upgrade China-ASEAN public cultural services， called for the protection and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage through international cooperation， compiled the Essays on China-ASEAN Intangible Cultural Heritage and China-ASEAN Major International Art Festival List for sharing cultural and artistic resources， and reached a consensus on sharing cultural prosperity. Besides， CACF has gained popularity by cooperating with international institutions such as ASEAN Secretariat， ASEAN Foundation and ASEAN-China Centre， becoming one of the top ten brands of the CAEXPO.

One forum and multiple stages

As a platform for high-level dialogues on cultural exchanges and cooperation between China and ASEAN， CACF not only shoulders the mission of promoting communication， but also bears the responsibility of displaying excellent cultural resources in the region. Since 2015， CACF has held a series of supporting activities with corresponding themes， such as China-ASEAN Theatre Week， “Red Bronze Drum” China-ASEAN Art Education Performance， and China-ASEAN Opera Concert， which have not only enriched the content of the CACF and diversified participants， but also provided more platforms to display the outstanding culture of China and ASEAN.

Also in 2015， the 10th CACF， themed “New Normal， New Partnership： ASEAN plus China （10+1） Cultural Cooperation Pursuant to the Establishment of the ASEAN Community”， set up three sub-topics： How to Carry out China-ASEAN Cultural Exchanges and Cooperation Against the Background of Jointly Building the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road; How to Promote China-ASEAN Cultural Cooperation Pursuant to the Establishment of the ASEAN Community; and Research and Protection of “Na” Culture （Rice Culture）， which made representatives from various countries pay more attention to and think about issues in a concrete and profound way.

In fact， in addition to the innovation in the form， the theme setting of CACF has been closely related to the hot topics of China-ASEAN Cultural Cooperation.

Since the year 2016 marked the 25th anniversary of China-ASEAN Dialogue Relations and the China-ASEAN Year of Educational Exchanges， the 11th CACF was themed with “Exchange and Sharing： China-ASEAN Art Education Cooperation and Development”. In combination with the China-ASEAN Year of Innovation in 2018， the 13th CACF took “Towards Mutual Prosperity， China-ASEAN Exchanges and Cooperation across Cultural and Creative Industries” as the theme. Representatives from China and ASEAN countries held heated discussions on various topics， including in-depth integration of cultural and creative industries and promotion of innovative small and medium-sized cultural enterprises. During the forum， the Cultural and Creative Products Exhibition showcased the achievements of innovation and development of China's cultural and creative industry in recent years through 396 cultural and creative exhibits.

With those themes keeping up with the times and colorful activities forms， CACF has yielded more and more practical results. At the 13th CACF， a total of six domestic and foreign cultural enterprises signed three cooperation projects.

Meanwhile， themed “Integrated Development of Culture and Tourism Under the Belt and Road Initiative ”， the 14th CACF to be held in Nanning， China on September 19-21， 2019 will launch the China-ASEAN Cultural Tourism Week at the same time， to investigate the cultural tourism products of Guangxi. It is hoped that at the 14th CACF， the two sides will not only hear each other's thinking and experience in the integrated development of culture and tourism， but also reap more win-win cooperation results.

Diversified culture beautify Guangxi

On the Cultural and Creative Products Exhibition， a small silk scarf was exhibited， with Huashan Rock Painting， a world cultural heritage， as the inspiration， 100% silkworm silk as the material， and Chinese ink and wash painting and the heavy colors of the western countries as the soul. Visitors were full of interest in a series of exquisite exhibits such as bronze drum， brooch and refrigerator magnet.

Guangxi and ASEAN countries are geographical neighbors and culturally connected with a long history of friendly contacts. In recent years， by virtue of the CACF， Zhuang culture has drawn increasing public attention， and Guangxi has also gradually become the bond and window of cultural exchange between China and ASEAN.

It is reported that in memory of the establishment of China-ASEAN diplomatic relations， since 2008 Guangxi has undertaken eight major art performances in Indonesia， Singapore， Malaysia， Brunei， Cambodia， Vietnam and other ASEAN countries.

From 2010 to 2014， Guangxi has hosted the “Happy Chinese New Year” cultural exchange activities in Indonesia， Thailand， Cambodia， Laos， Brunei and other countries for five consecutive years， which were warmly welcomed by more than three million visitors.

Now， the cultural exchange and cooperation between Guangxi and ASEAN countries have expanded from simple performance to “culture+tourism+performance” and other fields. It is believed that there will be unlimited opportunities and potential for cultural cooperation between Guangxi and ASEAN countries in these regular， continuous， multi-level and multi-form exhibitions and exchanges.