Myanmar President Min Aung Hlaing has praised Chinese President Xi Jinping as a leader who wholeheartedly devotes himself to his country.
In an interview with China Media Group during his five-day state visit to China, which ended on Friday, Min Aung Hlaing discussed his impression about Xi, with whom he has held many talks, both bilaterally and multilaterally.
"President Xi Jinping is a leader truly dedicated to the nation. Peace, stability, security, and development are the key topics in every meeting we have. I have visited China many times. Through these visits, I have witnessed with my own eyes the tremendous changes that have taken place across the country. China is a vast country with 1.4 billion people, accounting for nearly one-fifth of the world's population. To lead such a big country towards common development is an extremely arduous task that requires extraordinary leadership. Therefore, I hold profound admiration for President Xi," he said.
President Xi truly dedicated to country: Myanmar president
A special screening of the Chinese mainland's acclaimed film "Dear You" in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Thursday has struck a deep chord with the audience via its tender emotional portrayal and heartfelt core storyline.
The Chaoshan(Teochew)-dialect film was released on the Chinese mainland on April 30. The low-budget film, featuring a largely unknown cast, centers on the tradition of "qiaopi", letters and remittances sent home by earlier generations of overseas Chinese in the 19th and 20th centuries, which serves as the emotional thread linking the film's central characters.
For generations, people from the Chaoshan region in today's Guangdong and Fujian provinces left for Southeast Asia to escape war, poverty, and natural disasters in search of better fortunes. Between 1864 and 1911, nearly three million people departed the region, according to local customs records.
"For Malaysian audiences, this film will surely resonate even more deeply, because at the heart of this touching story are those 'special family letters' that embody the sentiment of when the heart is connected, distance disappears," said Ouyang Yujing, Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia.
The qiaopi also forged bonds between countries.
"Looking back at this history, we can see that one qiaopi connected one family, while countless qiaopi connected two societies. It is precisely these countless connections that formed an important foundation for the long-standing friendly exchanges between the peoples of Malaysia and China," said Chiew Choon Man, Malaysian Deputy Tourism Minister.
A museum in Kuala Lumpur well preserves some of the qiaopi. In 2013, UNESCO inscribed the qiaopi archives onto its Memory of the World Register. These historical documents provide an intimate look into the lives, struggles, and emotional resilience of overseas Chinese communities.
Film about migrants to Southeast Asia resonates in Malaysia
