China-Foreign Media Delegation of “China-ASEAN Jointly Build the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road” Launched by ACC and SCIO

On 24 June 2015, Ms. Lada Phumas, Director of Information and Public Relations Division (IPRD) of ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), led a delegation of 10 ASEAN journalists and reporters from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam to China International Publishing Group (CIPG) and joined a launching ceremony for China-Foreign Media Delegation of “China-ASEAN Jointly Build the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road”, co-hosted by the State Council Information Office (SCIO) of China and ACC, and co-conducted by ACC, CIPG and China Report, from 23 June to 2 July 2015. 

Mr. Fang Zhenghui, Vice President of CIPG, Mr. Ding Xiaoming, Director-General-level Inspector of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) of China and Ms. Lada Phumas, Director of IPRD of ACC, delivered the remarks, followed by an interactive discussion between the ASEAN journalists and Mr. Fang Zhenghui as well as Mr. Ding Xiaoming. The meeting was moderated by Ms. Chen Shi, President of China Report, and was webcast in real time by china.com.cn. For those who were interested in the event, please kindly access to www.china.org.cn. 

The opening remarks welcomed ASEAN journalists to China and highlighted a significance of the “Reporting Trip” which would be a good opportunity for the delegation to experience the development China, in particular Fujian (Fuzhou, Putian, Quanzhou and Xiamen) and Guangdong (Shantou and Guangzhou) Provinces, as they had important roles to play for joint building of the “21st Century Maritime Silk Road” with ASEAN countries. SCIO, ACC and CIPG expressed their wishes that the ASEAN journalists and reporters would be a bridge to allow ASEAN friends in their ASEAN respective countries to have more comprehensive understanding about the initiative and further explore future prospect of cooperation with the cities and provinces along the “Trip”. 

The hosts and organizers of the “Reporting Trip” wished for the success of the “Trip” and for win-win benefits to the peoples of China and ASEAN. In the remarks, Vice President of CIPG talked about CIPG's roles and works to promote people-to-people contact and understanding between ASEAN and China through information exchange. Mr. Ding Xiaoming emphasized on the importance of the "Reporting Trip" and briefed on SCIO's responsibilities to bridge China and international community. Director Lada mentioned about ACC’s roles and mandates as well as its rationale in initiating the "Trip". ACC remained committed to work closely with relevant authorities and media friends both in China and ASEAN to further promote better understanding for an everlasting friendship between ASEAN and China.

The interactive dialogue and exchanges of views between the ASEAN media delegates and CIPG and SCIO was very productive. The journalists were interested in various issues, ranging from the internal works & experiences of CIPG and SCIO, current & prospects of cooperation in media in bilateral sphere, to the roles of CIPG and SCIO in promoting China-ASEAN relations, "One Belt One Road" initiative and the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road". The meeting was in a good spirit of cooperation and in a cordial atmosphere.

The ASEAN media delegation also visited an exhibition on the History of CIPG and attended the luncheon, hosted by the Vice President of CIPG.

The group comprised 10 journalists/reporters from Borneo Bulletin (Brunei) Mr. Achong Anak Tanjong, Jian Hua Daily (Cambodia) Mr. Hao Heng, Sin Chew Daily (Malaysia) Ms. Michel Chng, Democracy Today Daily Newspaper (Myanmar) Mr. Hlaing Win, Manila Times (the Philippines) Ms. Maria Lourdes Tiquia, MediaCorp (Singapore) Ms. See Lie Ching and Mr. Chern Fook Weng, the Nation Newspaper (Thailand) Mr. Supalak Ganjanakhundee and the People’s Army Newspaper (Viet Nam) Mr. Nguyen Van Yen.