China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) on Wednesday held a flag-raising ceremony and a reception to celebrate the 24th anniversary of its return to the motherland, the SAR government announced Wednesday.
Ho Iat-seng, chief executive of the Macao SAR, called for further efforts to open up new development paths for the region during the reception. The Macao SAR government "had united the collective efforts of people from all walks of life, to improve continuously the legal framework and enforcement mechanisms for safeguarding national security," said a release by the Macao SAR government.
The SAR had comprehensively and accurately upheld the "one country, two systems" policy, to safeguard national sovereignty, security, and development interests, Ho noted.
The region has continuously improved and maintained its legal system and enforcement mechanisms for safeguarding national security over the past 24 years, which has effectively maintained long-term prosperity and stability and laid a solid security buffer for the successful practice of "one country, two systems" in the region, China's Ministry of State Security said in an article published on Wednesday.
The Law on Safeguarding National Security consists of 15 articles, which stipulate seven criminal acts and their corresponding punishments, including treason, secession, subversion against the Chinese central government, and theft of state secrets. It explicitly grants and regulates the rights of law enforcement agencies to conduct investigations and handle such cases, effectively enhancing Macao SAR's capability to combat activities that endanger national security, the ministry said.
The law has filled the legislative vacuum with regard to safeguarding national security in the SAR and has become the backbone and core of the region's national security legal system, reads the article.
In May, the legislative assembly of the Macao SAR passed a bill containing amendments to the Law on Safeguarding National Security, in response to the new requirements of the overall national security concept and the emerging new challenges in safeguarding national security.
The Macao SAR government has made efforts to optimize related legislation and law enforcement mechanisms in order to support the national security system. Ensuring the principle of "patriots administering Macao" is a guarantee for the successful implementation of the "one country, two systems" policy, according to the ministry.
People mourn victims after an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on Dec. 12, 2023. The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced on Tuesday that the Palestinian death toll in the Palestinian enclave has exceeded 18,400 since the eruption of the Hamas-Israel conflict on Oct. 7.(Photo: Xinhua)
On December 13, the tenth national memorial day for the victims of the Nanjing Massacre, The Museum of the War of Chinese People's Resistance Against Japanese Aggression held a memorial ceremony to mourn the 300,000 victims of the Nanjing Massacre. University students and teachers in Beijing attended the ceremony, conveying their condolences. (Photo: Li Hao/GT)
The world's elite track and field competition is returning to China.
Xiamen, Southeast China's Fujian Province, will host a meeting of the 2023 World Athletics Diamond League on September 2, which will mark the world premier one-day athletics series' return to China for the first time in four years, according to a press conference held on Wednesday in Beijing.
The meeting, which will take place at Xiamen's newly built Egret Stadium, will be the only Diamond League event in China in 2023. Athletes will compete in 13 disciplines, with the men's 110m hurdle scheduled to be the finale of the day's competition.
Feng Bin, the women's discus gold medalist at the 2022 World's Athletics Championships, and Zhu Yaming, the silver medalist for the men's triple jump at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, are among the Chinese athletes who will participate in the Xiamen event.
Starting from 2023, Xiamen will host the Diamond League for the next 10 years in a row, according to the press conference.
Inaugurated in 2010, the Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising 14 invitational athletics meetings across the world. The 14th edition of the Diamond League began on May 5 in Doha, Qatar. This year's Diamond League Final will take place in Eugene, the US in September.
Team China found itself in a perilous position after an 89-69 defeat to South Sudan in the second round FIBA World Cup Group B game, despite China's first naturalized player Li Kai'er's 22 points leading China's box score, a sharp bounce-back from his scoreless debut.
Having losing two games in Group B, Team China is on the brink of elimination in the tournament held in Manila, the Philippines and even worse, risks losing a place at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games after Japan bagged a victory over Finland coming from 18 points down on Sunday. China needs to be the best-performing Asian team in order to win direct qualification for the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Li, the 206-cm-tall Minnesota Timberwolves forward known to the National Basketball Association (NBA) as Kyle Anderson, broke his scoreless run early in the first quarter, as he drove and banked a floater in his rhythm. He then showed his basketball intelligence by drawing a foul with his shooting form ready. He bagged 22 points, three assists and five rebounds, the all-round player's chemistry with the team was increasingly noticeable.
However, China standing in 27th place in the FIBA ranking, failed to match the firepower of opponent South Sudan, which is ranked a 62nd in the FIBA ranking during the Monday game. Even though China seemed to figure out how to play its game in the right way, South Sudan responded quickly with long shots behind the arc. Led by Carlik Jones, who just had a magnificent finish of 35 points and 11 assists against Puerto Rico, the World Cup debutants nailed a jaw-dropping 15 three-pointers with 50 percent shooting percentage during the whole game.
Team China had its chance to come back and beat the opponent as many would have predicted, and the young squad did force their game within a chasing range almost levelling at 49-50, meaning only one bucket behind in the third quarter.
However, the Chinese squad seemed choked at both offensive and defensive end on the court, making the game end up in a drastic 20 points defeat.
"I wish we could have come out with the win, more importantly than scoring 22 points," Li said during a post-game interview, stressing that the team has to figure it out how to play hard for 40 minutes rather than only 20 minutes in the game.
China would take on the last Group B rival Puerto Rico, only a win of 36 points or more will propel Team China out of the group and enter the next elimination game, a scenario which now seems unlikely.
Following their 20-point loss against South Sudan Monday, China head coach Aleksandar Djordevic said that the goal remains the same for the team to get to the Olympics.
And to win the 2024 Olympic ticket, China would have to hope that none of the other Asian teams makes it to the next elimination stage and China have to win both games in the ranking game after falling out of the group to secure a ticket to Paris.
The team has now lost not only the two games but also its own control of future destiny.
However, we should have faith in the Aleksandar Djordevic, a proven winner in international basketball, Li Kai'er, a veteran NBA player, and more importantly the never-give-up spirit of Team China.
Team China should keep their heads up and keep hold of the good momentum the young squad has built in the second game, just like Zhao Rui, who delivered 13 points on Monday with hot hands, said after the game, "stay focused as a team and we want to play in the Olympic Games."
Chinese tennis players got off to a strong start at the ongoing Hangzhou Asian Games as four participants in the women's and men's singles progressed to the third round on Monday.
There are five golds on offer in the tennis events at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre, attracting 11 Chinese athletes to participate. The winners of the two singles events will qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
In the women's singles, top seed Zheng Qinwen breezed past Maralgoo Chogsomjav of Mongolia with a 6-0, 6-0 clean sweep.
Earlier, second seed Zhu Lin also marched to the third round with a straight-sets victory over Ushna Suhail of Pakistan.Zheng, who made it to the US Open quarterfinal in September, and Zhu were tipped to continue China's grip on the women's singles title since the 2006 Doha Asian Games in Qatar. However, resting only three hours after the singles match, Zheng and Zhu suffered a 6-7, 3-6 defeat to Momoko Kobori and Ayano Shimizu of Japan in the first round of the women's doubles.
In Zhu's third match of the day, she and Buyunchaokete eased past Shakhnoza Marimova and Amir Milushev of Uzbekistan 6-0, 6-0 in the mixed doubles in 43 minutes.
Liu Yu, a Beijing-based sports commentator, told the Global Times that China has fielded its strongest team for this Asian Games and the top two singles players in the men's and women's singles will fight for a spot at the Paris Olympic Games.
"Chinese players are a favorite to win the women's singles title. But playing on the home court, our players will be under enormous pressure. It's important for them to forget their world rankings, stay composed and take it one game at a time," she said.
As the women's doubles champion in 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, Yang Zhaoxuan will team up with new partner Wang Xinyu to have a crack in the women's doubles this year.
Liu Feng, head coach of the Chinese national women's tennis team, said forging the new partnership is a bold attempt to prepare for the Paris Olympic Games.
"We want to try and find the best partners for the Paris Games. Wang is skilled in serving and baseline rallies, while Yang is good at attacking the net. The Asian Games is like a trial run for this new pair," said the coach.
In the men's singles, Zhang Zhizhen coasted to a 7-5, 6-2 win over Faleh Alhogbani of Saudi Arabia.
Wu Yibing, who won the men's singles silver medal in the Jakarta Games, edged past Justin Barki of Indonesia 7-5, 6-1. The Hangzhou native has set his sights on becoming the first man from the Chinese mainland to win the singles title since the 1990 Beijing Asian Games.
Meanwhile in the men's doubles, Zhang and Wu reached the men's doubles quarterfinals after overpowering Mashari Naif and Mubarak Alharrasi of Qatar 6-3, 6-4. The Chinese duo seeks to become the first pair from the Chinese mainland to claim the men's doubles title since China's last triumph in 1990.
In addition to the men's singles and doubles, Zhang, who reached the third round at this year's French Open and US Open, also competes in the mixed doubles with Yang.
China won two golds and two silvers in tennis events at the Jakarta Games in 2018.
At the recent 2023 Dalian International Marathon that was recently held in Dalian Northeast China's Liaoning Province, an atypical yet dangerous scene took place when a random pickup truck accidentally ran onto the competition's racetrack.
While no one was physically hurt, the accident had major repercussions for veteran Chinese marathon athlete Yin Shunjin. The pickup truck drove uncontrollably onto the track and blocked Yin's way just as the athlete was heading toward the finish line.
Yin managed to beat his best personal record despite the accident, finishing with a time of 2 hours and 11 minutes and 50 seconds. Although he did not manage to win the championship, his record was merely 30 seconds behind the competition's gold medal winner.
Taking into consideration the fact that Yin had to go an "extra mile" to avoid the truck, Xiao Bingxin, a sports expert in Shanghai, told the Global Times that the accident may lead to "a re-evaluation of Yin's record and performance."
The organizing committee of the current Dalian International Marathon quickly made a public announcement following the incident. It revealed that an investigation found that the accident was caused by the vehicle's driver. The organizing committee also apologized to the runners and guaranteed it would work to prevent similar accidents in the future.
Following the organizing committee's announcement, a representative of the Chinese Athletics Association (CAA), also said that the CAA noticed the incident and has organized meetings aimed at "finding solutions for the accident."
"The final resolution to the incident will be announced through the official platform of the CAA. The competition's organizing committee will also provide related information to the public," the CAA member said.
Having its first game organized in 1987, the Dalian International Marathon is one of the most mature marathons in China. The 2023 session has attracted athletes from 25 countries and regions around the world, including Russia, Belgium and Australia. The competition embraces runners of a wide age range, with the oldest competitor 78 years old and the youngest runner just 6 years old.
Chinese competitor Yin Shunjin is 38 years old. He has won multiple championships at marathons, including the marathon competition at the Jiayuguan Great Wall that was held merely two weeks before the Dalian competition.
The incident has also sparked criticism from netizens concerning the "professionalism" of the marathon organizers.
On China's X-like Sina Weibo, some netizens expressed their concern for the runners' safety and more people have said that they 'felt sorry for Yin.'
"The whole thing wasn't a mere accident; it speaks a lot about how professionalism and a good attitude are critical to sports competitions. Athlete don't get a second chance," a netizen posted on Sina Weibo.
The World Memory, Peaceful Vision - Exhibition on the Historical Facts of the Nanjing Massacre exhibition organized by the Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders was held in Madrid, Spain, and Budapest, Hungary, showcasing the atrocities committed by Japanese invaders in Nanjing and an international tribunal's prosecution of Japanese war criminals.
Featuring more than 100 historical pictures and nine replica exhibits, the exhibition consists of three parts: The Calamity in Nanjing, Justice Trial and The City of Peace.
The exhibition also quotes Western media reports and Western diaries and letters, describing history from a third-party perspective. These include photographs shot by Hungarian-based war photographer Robert Capa during the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1931-45). These works were published through US magazine Life, which focused on the international community's attention toward the Chinese battlefield.
On May 16, 1938, Life featured a famous cover photo showcasing a young and fearless Chinese soldier taken by Capa in Hankou, Central China's Hubei Province. Capa arrived in China in 1938 and documented the Chinese resistance against the Japanese invasion and the wartime lives of the people.
In addition, on December 13, 1937, the Japanese army occupied Nanjing, East China's Jiangsu Province, committing atrocities over the next six weeks that included massacring civilians, looting, sexual violence, and destruction of buildings. These actions resulted in the death of over 300,000 Chinese people. The killing competition carried out by the Japanese army in Nanjing was exposed to the world by Spain's El Diluvio newspaper.
The atrocities committed by the invading Japanese army in China were heinous and exceed the red line of civilized humanity, former Hungarian prime minister Peter Medgyessy said in a speech at the exhibition. "Such an exhibition allows young people to learn about peace and living together," he noted.
"War is like a mirror, allowing people to better understand the value of peace," Zhou Feng, director of the Memorial Hall, said.
He also expressed the hope that the painful memories of history would evoke people's yearning for peace and inspire them to more firmly defend diverse civilizations and maintain world peace, and work together to create a better future.
The Nanjing Massacre Archives were included in the UNESCO Memory of the World on October 9, 2015. To date, the Memorial Hall has organized exhibitions in cities such as Los Angeles in the US, Moscow in Russia, Florence in Italy, Manila in the Philippines and Aarhus in Denmark.
Immersive cultural tourism has experienced a surge in popularity in recent years. This new form of experiential travel has tapped into the growing consumer demand for interactive and sensory-rich experiences, creating a fresh dynamic in the tourism industry. The success of immersive cultural tourism can be attributed to its ability to meet people's evolving expectations and its capacity to breathe new life into cultural heritage and narratives.
"Immersive" has become a buzzword in recent years, primarily due to the advancement of technologies such as the internet, big data and virtual reality. At its core, immersion refers to being deeply absorbed or engrossed in a particular environment or activity.
This concept has been applied in various contexts, encompassing two main forms: one involves constructing real or virtual environments that transport individuals into entirely new worlds, like walking onto a stage as real-life performances are going on, while others utilize online platforms such as livestreaming, videos, and augmented reality (AR) to immerse people in specific scenarios or events.
The explosive popularity of the immersive trend can be attributed to its inherent interactivity and experiential nature, which cater to the evolving desires of modern-day travelers. Superficial tourism or passive learning experiences have lost their glamour as tourists seek more accurate, deeper and more engaging participation and immersion. In response to this demand, immersive cultural performances, night tours and immersive exhibitions have sprung up, breathing life into cultural and educational experiences.
Immersive experiences integrate technology, intelligence and creativity. They recreate historical settings, depict fantastical dreamscapes, design experiential spaces for both old and new items, and create real-time interactive platforms. Immersion offers sensory experiences involving sight, sound, touch, and smell, as well as narrative and emotional experiences, along with the pursuit of values, making them multi-dimensional and all-encompassing experiences that affect both body and mind.
The immersive cultural tourism wave is transforming the essence of travel by offering deeper, more meaningful experiences. It goes beyond the traditional elements of "traveling, shopping and entertainment," and focuses on in-depth exploration and interactive leisure. Recent examples of immersive cultural tourism demonstrate its ability to enrich travel experiences.
In Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, the slogan "Xi'an during the day, Chang'an (the ancient name of Xi'an) at night," welcomes visitors to the Tang Dynasty Everbright City, a place that transports tourists to the splendors of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) at its prime. The interactive game Tang Dynasty Treasure Box has also gained immense popularity for its immersive nature.
In Yangzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province, the China Grand Canal Museum offers a lifelike experience, digitally showcasing the history and culture of the Grand Canal in its entirety. Visitors can explore the canal's history and culture from every angle, across all time periods, and from various perspectives.
In Pingyao, North China's Shanxi Province, a large-scale immersive theater production titled Revisiting Pingyao introduces a unique walk-through viewing experience. The audience is not confined to seats. Instead, they move along with the storyline, witnessing different scenes as the narrative unfolds, making them both spectators and participants in the story.
In Dunhuang, Northwest China's Gansu Province, a high-profile immersive cave performance Ancient Sound of Dunhuang offers visitors an opportunity to explore the mural paintings of the Mogao Caves in an immersive manner. Dubbed the "living No.736 cave of the Mogao Caves," it illustrates the story of ancient music through the use of traditional Chinese instruments, injecting new vitality into the city, especially in slack winter seasons.
By adopting immersive experiences, these attractions have unlocked the potential of cultural and tourism resources, reviving traditional culture in the modern era and presenting it in a fresh light.
In essence, tourism involves temporarily leaving one's usual place of residence and experiencing a change in one's surroundings and relationships. Immersive cultural tourism offers a much more enriching experience, reflecting the integration of culture and tourism.
From a content perspective, immersive cultural tourism caters to a wide range of cultural elements, including historical, revolutionary and ecological themes. These experiences allow tourists to immerse themselves in the past, present, and even the realm of their imagination.
From a technological perspective, immersive cultural tourism leverages innovations like 5G, ultra-high-definition screens, augmented and virtual reality, artificial intelligence and the metaverse. These experiences break free from traditional viewing methods, allowing visitors to walk through and immerse themselves in a storyline.
Immersive cultural tourism is transforming the way people travel by offering in-depth exploration, interactive experiences and meaningful learning opportunities. It elevates tourism from the superficial pursuit of sightseeing to a holistic engagement with culture and history. Additionally, it plays an irreplaceable role in promoting cultural heritage, sharing China's stories, enhancing cultural confidence, and fostering cultural development.
By offering interactive, sensory-rich experiences that transcend traditional tourism, it has brought new life to cultural heritage and narratives. As travel is no longer just about sightseeing but also about experiencing, learning and connecting with culture and history, immersive cultural tourism has found its place. It has not only enhanced the tourism experience but also contributed to cultural preservation and revitalization.
There is a saying that a history of Zhejiang's literature is half a history of Chinese literature.
In Beijing's National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature (NMMCL), the permanent exhibition about the contemporary Chinese literature is dominated by writers and works from East China's Zhejiang Province.
Now Zhejiang has its own venue to showcase its profuse literary resources.
On September 25, 2023, two important events in the history of Chinese literature were celebrated: the birthday of Lu Xun, a 20th century literary giant from Shaoxing, Zhejiang, and the establishment of Zhejiang Literary Center (ZLC) in Hangzhou. It was the 142nd anniversary of Lu Xun's birthday.
Opening to the public in late October, ZLC is the second largest literature museum in China with a total of nine exhibition halls, only surpassed by the capital's NMMCL.
As a new landmark of Zhejiang, the museum is the brainchild of generations of people in Zhejiang's literary sector as it carries the responsibility of cultural inheritance and promotion of Zhejiang literature, whose writers takes up over 60 percent of the exhibitions at the NMMCL.
More importantly, the museum is designed to meet the public's needs for literature. Its big data platform and use of digital technologies brought classic literature scenes to life and added new dimensions to literature appreciation.
Cheng Shiqing, curator of ZLC, told the Global Times that the museum is committed to creating a year-round literature-sharing platform that caters to individuals of all ages.
"We will try to host themed lectures every week and curate featured exhibitions every quarter of the year to foster a love for literature among the public, and deepen their understanding and appreciation of the literary world," said Cheng.
On the one hand, the museum will bring together excellent literary resources from home and abroad. On the other hand, it will promote more outstanding Zhejiang writers to the national and international stage. These are the two missions of the museum.
In a bid to bring the development of literature to a new height, the museum is on course to build three research centers, one dedicated to Chinese literature big data, one to contemporary children's literature research, and one to China's international collaborative translation.
"The translation center is dedicated to promoting exchanges with foreign writers and we welcome foreign counterparts to Hangzhou to experience the rich history of Chinese literature," Cheng said.
Three-dimensional exhibits
In addition to the conventional way of displaying exhibits, one of the highlights of the museum is to present classic scenes of literary works by means of digital technology, giving readers an immersive experience into the process of creation.
Having refined 129 photos from Lu Xun's life, the modern literature hall of the museum pulled together a dynamic view of the literary giant's journey in writing.
A towering 14-meter-high space is meticulously designed to connect the four distinct landscapes of Zhejiang with their corresponding poems and poets. This provides visitors with a poetic perspective of how the region's breathtaking natural beauty inspired a series of classic rhymes.
Paintings in the Song Dynasty (960-1279) were used as symbols to show the boldness and gracefulness of the poems written in that period.
Scenes from some classic works such as Lu Xun's Hometown, Mao Dun's Spring Silkworms, and Dai Wangshu's Alley in the Rain, were reproduced and presented at the museum.
"Leveraging the massive amount of data, we have applied digital technology in presenting a Chinese literary geography and various informational graphs. The smart devices added a new dimension to the conventional exhibits," said Cheng.
"Taking a big step in the application of digital innovations, we are trailblazers in digitizing Chinese literature. We hope to set an example for the industry," the curator said.
Interactive space
Since its official opening on October 28, the museum has received about 3,000 daily reservations, and some well-designed events and exhibitions have drawn floods of visitors on weekends.
One of the most popular exhibitions pays tribute to Louis Cha (Cha Leung-yung), also known as Jin Yong, another literary legend from Zhejiang.
The show is dedicated to commemorating Jin's 100th birthday in 2024. Born in Haining in 1924, Jin was regarded as one of the greatest and most popular martial arts writers.
Xu Jing, an official with ZLC's publicity department, told the Global Times that the exhibition sheds light on Jin's life and works, and it's also the first time that some manuscripts of the writer has been presented to the public.
Swords, bows and arrows, which are featured in Jin's novel, were replicated and installed in the hall to give visitors an interactive experience of Jin's "martial arts world," and a digital reading space was set up to allow people to read or listen to his novels.
Various versions of Jin's novels are on display, including the earliest versions originally serialized in newspapers, which were widely circulated in the Chinese mainland, as well as abroad through versions in English, French and Japanese.
Younger readers have been captivated by a space dedicated to children's literature.
"We wish to make the children's literature space into a parenting space, where adults and children can interact and develop a love for reading and writing. It will also evoke adult readers' childhood memories," said Cheng.
"We want to have relics find their home in our museum. Most importantly, we want literature lovers to find their home in the museum," Cheng said.
