Dances, dialogues and diplomacy: Pacific youth discover China beyond the headlines

Participants of the 2025 Program for Youth Representatives from Pacific Island Countries pose for a picture with Guangdong lion dancers at the graduation ceremony in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province, on April 10. (Photo: Liu Xiaodi/GDToday)

In a hall filled with music, dance, and heartfelt farewells, 33 young representatives from Pacific Island countries (PICs) marked the end of their three-week journey in South China's Guangdong Province with a graduation ceremony in the provincial capital, Guangzhou, on April 10.

The 2025 Program for Youth Representatives from Pacific Island Countries, hosted by the Foreign Affairs Office of the People's Government of Guangdong Province and organized by Sun Yat-sen University, offered participants a firsthand look at China's development path, governance, and cultural heritage.

For the young delegates, the experience was more than just educational. "What we experienced here was far more than a program," said Ketan Kirit Lal, a member of parliament from Fiji, in an emotional speech on behalf of the group.  

He noted that the journey had opened their eyes and dispelled the cloud of misinformation and propaganda that has long shaped many people's perceptions of China. Too often, he said, Western media presents an incomplete and unfair picture — one that fosters suspicion instead of understanding.

Over the course of 20 days, the participants traveled across six cities in Guangdong province—including Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, and Jiangmen—engaging in policy lectures, site visits, and cultural workshops. They explored topics ranging from China's economic transformation and disaster mitigation strategies to traditional martial arts and tea ceremonies.

At the ceremony, Li Hongzhi, deputy director-general of the Guangdong Foreign Affairs Office, described the program as a symbolic "sowing of seeds" in spring. He said they had planted seeds of knowledge and friendship that, despite the short three-week duration, would grow under the sunshine and rain, eventually bearing fruit in the participants' home countries.

Li, who has been involved in the exchange program for a decade, emphasized the importance of building long-term people-to-people ties. He expressed hope that wherever the participants' careers might lead them, they would "continue to champion exchanges and cooperation" between China and PICs and contribute to a shared future between the two sides.

The graduation ceremony itself reflected this spirit of mutual appreciation. Delegates performed traditional dances and songs from their home countries, then invited Chinese guests to join them on stage. In a moment that drew loud applause, several PIC participants donned traditional Chinese qipao dresses and sang the folk classic Jasmine Flower (Molihua) in Mandarin.

For some, the journey also brought unexpected emotional resonance. Tanusia He Lotu Folaumahina, an official from Tonga's Ministry of Tourism, became visibly emotional as she recalled visiting the Jiangmen Qiaodu Museum of Overseas Chinese. There, she learned about the experiences of Chinese railway workers who left their homeland in search of better lives for their families.  

The stories, she said, reminded her of the hardships her own people had faced, and made her reflect on how PICs might also rise through perseverance, just as China had done.

He Xiaozhong, dean of the School of Continuing Education at Sun Yat-sen University, called the graduates "ambassadors of goodwill" and said that the program marked not an end, but a new beginning. He expressed hope that in their future endeavors, the participants would continue to promote openness, inclusiveness, and win-win cooperation.

Reporter | Liu Xiaodi

Editor | Yuan Zixiang, James, Shen He