Integrating the Two Sides of the Strait and Seeking Common Development: A Review of the 13th Straits Forum

【Direct Access strait forum】

Guangming Daily reporter Gao Jianjin, Wang Jinhu, and Ma Yuehua

The 13th Straits Forum was recently held in Xiamen. The forum thoroughly implemented the important instructions and requirements put forward by General Secretary Xi Jinping when he inspected Fujian, continued to carry out various exchange activities with the theme of "expanding people-to-people exchanges and deepening integrated development", and adopted the combination of online and offline, centralized and decentralized. The main venue is located in Xiamen, and relevant activities are held in the relevant districted cities and pingtan comprehensive experimental zones in Fujian Province.

A total of 56 activities were held in this forum, of which the offline activities invited representatives of relevant political parties in Taiwan, representatives of Taiwan organizers, as well as 5,000 guests from all walks of life such as Taiwan industry elites, heads of associations, workers and young women, townships and villages, agriculture, fisheries and water conservancy, folk beliefs, etc., of which about 2,000 Taiwan guests were invited during the concentrated activities.

Exterior view of the 13th Straits Forum on December 11. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Lin Shanchuan

Focus on people-to-people exchanges

With the theme of "Integrating the Two Sides of the Straits to Paint a Homeland Together", the Third Creative Graffiti Grand Prix of the Straits Forum enhanced the awareness and understanding of traditional Chinese culture by young people on both sides of the strait through graffiti, which is a popular form among young people, and made cross-strait exchanges more dynamic. Since its launch in May this year, the competition has been openly solicited for papers from major universities and social organizations on both sides of the strait, and nearly 100 original design drafts have been received. Experts and scholars on both sides of the strait formed a joint jury to select five works to be shortlisted for the offline competition, and put graffiti on the wall at Jimei Taisha, adding a colorful scenery to this year's Straits Forum.

This session of the Straits Forum highlights the characteristics and needs of cross-strait youth integration and innovation, further organizes activities such as the Cross-Strait Youth Forum and the Cross-Strait Creative Graffiti Contest, and newly holds activities such as the Integrated Development of Science and Technology Education between Fujian and Taiwan, the Cross-Strait New Media Development and Exchange Forum, and the Fujian-Taiwan Youth Businessmen Forum, etc., to promote youth exchanges and constant innovation, continue to promote the deep integration of young people in Fujian and Taiwan, and encourage them to take their dreams as the sail and move forward with their dreams.

Focusing on the hot issues of people's livelihood that the grass-roots people on both sides of the strait are concerned about, this session of the Straits Forum has held forums such as the Red Cross, People's Livelihood Meteorology, Public Welfare, and People's Forum, as well as forums for workers, women, and people with disabilities, to fully demonstrate the determination and confidence that cross-strait nongovernmental exchanges cannot be stopped, cannot be broken, and cannot be reduced under any circumstances, and to promote grass-roots exchanges to go deeper and more concrete.

Focus on economic development

"Fujian and Taiwan have strong complementarity in agricultural cooperation and exchanges and have unique advantages." Wu Jiaying, executive vice president of the National Association of Taiwan Compatriots' Investment Enterprises, said: "At present, the mainland's rural revitalization strategy is fully implemented, the government's investment in agriculture and rural areas continues to increase, and the vast rural areas will provide good development opportunities for practitioners on both sides of the strait. Taiwan's excellent agricultural varieties, advanced planting and processing technology, modern business development concepts, coupled with the mainland's vast land, good policies, and huge markets, close cooperation between agriculture on both sides of the strait will certainly bring about common prosperity and development in the countryside. ”

This forum closely follows the "14th Five-Year Plan" development plan, focuses on the selected topics of current economic development hotspots, shares and displays the new achievements of cross-strait innovation and integrated development and Fujian's all-round promotion of high-quality development in the post-epidemic era, focuses on themes such as rural revitalization, scientific and technological innovation, green economy, and digital economy, holds a cross-strait urban and rural community development and social governance forum, cross-strait characteristic township exchange docking and rural industry integration development forum, etc., to discuss cross-strait township construction, forest health care, high-tech industry docking and other topics, and promote high-quality development Held the Taiwan Talents Fujian Southwest (Xiamen) Matchmaking Conference, etc., to provide more than 1,600 high-quality internship jobs for Young People in Taiwan, encourage and support more Taiwan compatriots to actively integrate into the new development pattern, take root and cultivate the "First Home", and share policy dividends.

Demonstrate the effectiveness of convergence

"At the end of last year, I came to the mainland of the motherland to develop and founded a company in Xiamen. In June this year, I went to Gansu to see the Yellow River for the first time, I felt like walking into a history textbook, I was very excited, I specially loaded a bottle of Yellow River water to bring back, many Taiwanese friends know, the first reaction is 'Is the Yellow River water really yellow'. Huang Kaijia, founder of Yunlaiji Cultural Tourism (Xiamen) Co., Ltd., said, "It can be seen from this incident that Taiwanese youth do not understand mainland culture." Therefore, through my own efforts, I hope to use the power of new media and the perspective of Taiwanese youth on the mainland to better and more completely show the real mainland I see to the young people in Taiwan. ”

Focusing on promoting integration with integration, benefiting and affection, the forum fully demonstrated Fujian's positive achievements in exploring a new road for cross-strait integration and development and building a first home for Taiwan compatriots and Taiwan enterprises. Through holding exchange activities such as the Cross-Strait Industrial and Commercial Cooperation Forum, the Straits Financial Forum, and the Taiwan Enterprise Development Summit, as well as inviting representative Taiwan compatriots and Taiwan enterprises in various fields to combine their own experiences and tell in depth their wonderful stories of employment and entrepreneurship, internship and practical training, and jointly building a first home, Taiwan compatriots' awareness of "a community of common destiny across the straits" and their consciousness and pride in participating in the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation have been continuously enhanced.

This forum also focused on the themes of ancestral culture, intangible cultural heritage, and academy culture, and held the same name and village friendship and pairing, cross-strait traditional skills (intangible cultural heritage projects) exhibitions, cross-strait academy forums, etc., especially relying on the characteristic resources of various cities, to hold folk cultural exchanges such as Mazu, Guandi, Zhuzi, Chen Jinggu, etc., to carry forward and inherit the excellent traditional Chinese culture, and promote the spiritual harmony of compatriots on both sides of the strait.

Guangming Daily (04/12/2021)

Source: Guangming Network - Guangming Daily