Taiwan youth urged for more participation

A senior official from the Chinese mainland has called on young people in Taiwan to actively participate in cross-Strait exchanges, contributing to peaceful development across the Strait and the country's modernization drive.

Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, attended a cross-Strait youth summit in Beijing on Thursday. The event attracted approximately 700 participants, including young people from both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

"In recent years, an increasing number of Taiwan youth have come to the mainland to exchange, study and develop, and they feel pride and a sense of belonging as Chinese," Song said, welcoming more to pursue their aspirations.

The summit consists of forums on technology, traditional Chinese medicine and youth development, an internship and job fair for young people from Taiwan, and a lifestyle festival showcasing popular food from both the mainland and Taiwan.

Shenzhou XVI astronaut Gui Haichao and Winter Olympic short-track speedskating champion Wu Dajing were among keynote speakers from various fields who met with young attendees from across the Strait.

Hsiao Hsu-tsen, executive director of the Ma Ying-jeou Culture and Education Foundation based on the island, said, "Although the Democratic Progressive Party administration in Taiwan has placed many obstacles to cross-Strait exchanges, the public strongly supports such interactions."

Hsiao noted that the journey of Taiwan internet influencer Chen Chih-han, also known as "Guan Zhang" or "gym boss", to the mainland in June and his online livestreaming to millions of viewers have helped those who had never visited the mainland break free from the "information cocoons".

With the further deepening of cross-Strait exchanges, negative perceptions of the mainland, spread by certain separatist forces in Taiwan, are gradually being recognized by Taiwan people, he said.

Hsiao, who has brought Taiwan students to visit the mainland frequently, said he was delighted that the students, while riding the high-speed trains on the mainland, actively seek out the truth and understand the technological advancements behind the high-speed rail on their own.

"I hope they will witness firsthand the mainland and, at the same time, come back and tell their friends based on their own judgment, to invite more to come and see for themselves," he said.

A participant surnamed Tseng, an art graduate student from Taiwan, said she and other art students from Taiwan will visit Beijing's hutong with their mainland counterparts. Following their visit, they plan to engage in artistic creation and hold an exhibition themed around hutong.

"The hutong architecture exudes a charming ancient style. I look forward to exploring those streets on shared bicycles," she said.