SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, THE HON. JESMOND MUGLIETT, AT THE CHINESE EMBASSY
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26/07/2001
| Your Excellency Mr. Yang Guirong, Chinese Ambassador for Malta and | distinguished guests, |
| It is a pleasure and an honour for me, as | Parliamentary Secretary for Youth, to welcome you all here today to inaugurate two events, both events have the Republic of China as their main subject; firstly the presentation of financial help to the Malta-China Friendship Society and secondly introducing the two groups of young people that will be visiting China in the coming days. |
| In these last days Malta and China signed the | Memorandum Of Understanding implementing the decision by the Chinese authorities to consider Malta a destination country for Chinese tourists. Both countries are seeing tourism as an important means to achieve economic, social and political benefits. Two years ago whilst on a visit in China the Director of Youth and Sports, and myself, signed an agreement to facilitate Youth Exchanges between the two countries. This summer, in the coming days, two groups of young people will be visiting China and will be attending a Youth Conference. These visits are part of the Department of Youth Exchanges 2001. Our Youths have a long tradition of youth exchanges and voluntary services. My department is kept very busy during the year organizing exchange visits between Youths groups. The number of young people participating in these visits is very encouraging. All those attended expressed great satisfaction at the benefits accruing from these visits. The benefits achieved from exchanges are countless but its imperative to mention the modern day values such as mobility, solidarity and lifelong learning that are dominating the scene. |
| Despite the massive distance between the two | countries, they are bound with very related historical experience and had the same eagerness for peace as a determined factor to be achieved in the entire sphere. Such situation proof rights the statement by the poet Zhang Jiuling that "Distance cannot separate true friends, even when they are thousands of miles apart". The diplomatic ties between us goes back to almost thirty years ago where both countries treated each other equally and supported each other. This long friendship relationship is sufficient evidence that Malta and China are all weather friends and could not be jeopardized by changes in the environment and the global political arena. |
| It is a pleasure for the Maltese people to | accommodate the Chinese dancing troupe, made up of 18 boys and girls aged between eight and fourteen, from a municipality of Beijing, Tianjin, that is to perform in Malta later this month, in various social activities including the Farsons Beer Festival and at the Chinese Garden in St. Lucia. Activities of this sort will definitely strengthen the ties between the two countries and also serves to increase the awareness on their culture amongst the Maltese people. |
| The Department of Youths, which I am directly | responsible for, recognized this initiative and is supporting the events by giving a financial help to the Malta-China Friendship Society to make up for the expenses involved in such events. This is not the first time that my Department is supporting events organized by the society and strongly believes that this has to be an ongoing process. |
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