China News Service, Beijing, February 8 (Reporter Xiao Xin) The Spring Festival of the Year of the Dragon will be the third Spring Festival that Vanno Noupech, the representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in China, has spent in China. He will also usher in the "year of his life". . On the eve of the Spring Festival, Lu Peihe fulfilled his childhood dream of learning lion dance.
"I have been fascinated by lion dance since I was a child." Lu Peihe went to the Capital Institute of Physical Education to learn from the teachers and students there. He learned the lion dance moves step by step and watched his classmates perform traditional Chinese martial arts. He praised, "The students here are very good in sports and martial arts!"
A few Spring Festivals ago, Lu Peihe also learned how to make dumplings and cut window grilles in China.
Talking about New Year wishes, Lu Peihe said that the 2024 Lunar New Year is the Year of the Dragon. In Chinese culture, the dragon is a symbol of strength and luck. In 2024, he hopes that forcibly displaced people around the world can find peace, security and solutions.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees congratulates everyone on the New Year in the Year of the Dragon and wishes them “strength in the Year of the Dragon”. Photo courtesy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in China
2024 is another "Olympic year". Lu Peihe also invited Chinese Olympic short track speed skating champions Yang Yang and Wu Dajing, as well as world chess champion Xie Jun to wish everyone a happy New Year.
Yang Yang said, "Sports is not only a competition, but also an important force in building peace." She said, "It makes the world a better place. This is the Olympic spirit that I admire most. It also inspires me to devote myself to the United Nations humanitarian work." Work."
"Sports also have the power to do good." Wu Dajing said, "During my sports career, I have long realized the importance of cooperation. Around the world, we need to work together to help people in need through sports, including the 114 million forced laborers around the world. Displaced people bring hope and build a better life.”
Xie Jun said that chess helped him open the door to the world. She hopes to work with the United Nations Refugee Agency in 2024 to help more people through sports, especially those who are forcibly displaced. "Sports make the world a brighter place," she said.
Lu Peihe, the representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in China, learned lion dance on the eve of the Spring Festival of the Year of the Dragon and sent New Year greetings to the Chinese people. Photo courtesy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in China
Lu Peihe sincerely thanked the Chinese government, businesses and people from all walks of life for their support of UNHCR’s global operations, and looked forward to continuing to work together in the new year to bring peace, strength and hope to the 114 million forcibly displaced people around the world.
On behalf of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, he said, "I am in Beijing. I wish you a happy, safe and prosperous New Year!" (End)