China launches cultural, tourism campaign to spur consumption ahead of Spring Festival

As the Spring Festival nears, China launched a month-long cultural and tourism campaign on Thursday, featuring a wide range of activities and promotional measures to better meet people's needs.

Running from late January to early March, the campaign will see about 30,000 activities held nationwide, offering seasonal cultural and tourism products and events focused on traditional New Year customs, performances, and exhibitions.

More than 360 million yuan (about 51.6 million U.S. dollars) in consumption vouchers and subsidies will be distributed, alongside measures including ticket discounts, bundled ticket incentives, and cross-regional tourism promotions.

The campaign was launched in Quanzhou, east China's Fujian Province, by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

This year's Spring Festival, or the traditional Chinese New Year, which falls on February 17, marks the beginning of the Year of the Horse in Chinese culture. It is one of the most important holidays in China, which is celebrated for family reunion and good luck in the upcoming year.

China launches cultural, tourism campaign to spur consumption ahead of Spring Festival

The legitimate rights of the Palestinian people must be respected and protected, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a press briefing in Beijing on Friday.

Mao made the remarks in response to a media query about the reports that the Israeli parliament recently adopted a new law introducing death penalty for Palestinians, and countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have expressed strong condemnation, saying such practice is "entrenching a system of apartheid."

"All legislation must conform to legal principles such as the principle of legality, fairness and justice, and must not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, nationality or political view. The legitimate rights of the Palestinian people must be respected and protected. Relevant party’s actions that escalate tensions and exacerbate confrontation must stop," said Mao.

Palestinian people's legitimate rights must be respected, protected: Chinese FM spokeswoman