China News Service, Beijing, January 13 (Liu Dawei, Lu Mei) The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council held a regular press conference in Beijing on the 13th.
Spokesperson Zhu Fenglian said that the mainland has recently approved the establishment of four exchange bases across the strait, namely, the Hakka capital of Tingzhou, Changting, Fujian, Qingshuiyan, Anxi, Quanzhou, Huai'an, Jiangsu, and the Ancestral House of Wenchang, Zitong, Mianyang, Sichuan.
Zhu Fenglian said that these four exchange bases have their own characteristics. Some of them carry the common historical and cultural memory of compatriots on both sides of the strait, some show the close kinship of compatriots on both sides of the strait, and some are important places for exchanges and interactions between grassroots people on both sides of the strait.
Zhu Fenglian pointed out that the development of exchanges and cooperation among compatriots on both sides of the strait in various fields is an important driving force for the development of cross-strait relations.
Since 2009, the Taiwan Affairs Office of the CPC Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council have approved the establishment of 79 exchange bases in 24 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities including Shandong, Hubei, and Fujian.
Currently, there are 18 exchange bases in Fujian, 6 in Jiangsu and Hubei, 5 in Shandong, Zhejiang, and Guangdong, and 4 in Yunnan and Sichuan.
She said that these exchange bases provide compatriots on both sides of the strait with more opportunities for exchanges and cooperation, reviewing history, taste and culture, recounting affection and common development; since the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, they have also become an important platform for people on both sides of the strait to conduct "cloud exchanges".
For example, Zhu Fenglian, from February to March 2020, the Matsu Temple in Meizhou, Fujian and related Matsu Temples and groups in Taiwan jointly organized the "God Bless China, Pray for Wuhan-Mazu Temples on Both Sides of the Taiwan Strait Join Hands to Pray for Blessings on the Anti-epidemic" activity. Taiwan has More than 120 Matsu temples, more than 3,000 believers participated live, and 200,000 people watched the live broadcast.
Xiamen Haicang Qingjiao Tzu Chi Palace and the relevant Taiwan Baosheng Emperor’s Palace jointly organized the 13th Cross-Strait Life Saving Tzu Chi Cultural Festival, with the theme of "Promoting Life Saving Tzu Chi, and the whole people fighting the epidemic with one heart," and facing millions of people on both sides of the strait. Broadcast relevant short films.
The Zhang's Marshal Mansion Museum in Shenyang, Liaoning also cooperates with Zhang Xueliang's former residence in Hsinchu, Taiwan to host a live broadcast once a month.
Zhu Fenglian said that the establishment of the exchange base shows that we unswervingly implement our policies on Taiwan, actively expand cross-strait exchanges and cooperation, continue to deepen cross-strait integration and development, and continue to promote the spiritual harmony of compatriots on both sides of the strait.
We welcome more and more Taiwan compatriots to visit and exchange here. We also hope that relevant places will build and develop exchange bases and play a positive role in promoting cross-strait exchanges and cooperation.
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