Multi-ethnic groups celebrate Chinese New Year in Wellington

The opening ceremony for the 2018 Chinese New Year festivities was held in Wellington, New Zealand on Jan 30.

Co-organized by the China Cultural Center in New Zealand and the Multicultural Council of Wellington, the event kicked off this year's Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in the country.

Qu Guangzhou, the charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy to New Zealand; Jenny Salesa, minister for Ethnic Communities in New Zealand; Guo Zongguang, director of the China Cultural Center in New Zealand and many other Chinese and New Zealand officials attended the event, along with over 300 locals with multiple ethnic backgrounds. 

Qu addressed the opening ceremony, saying that China has become New Zealand's largest trading partner, thanks to the increasingly growing bilateral political trust and closer people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two nations.

Salesa wowed the audience with her "Happy Chinese New Year" greetings in Mandarin. She said that New Zealand boasts over 200 ethnic groups and 160 languages and the Chinese community has become a major ethnic group that adds to the richness of New Zealand society.

The China Cultural Center in New Zealand and the Multicultural Council of Wellington signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation for 2018 to promote multicultural prosperity in Wellington.

The ceremony featured a variety of performances presented by the China Cultural Center in New Zealand, including dances, Taiji sword performance and a paper umbrella show.

A photo exhibition on the 2017 global Happy Chinese New Year celebrations was held at the event.