Chen Entian: Remember the Merits of Patriotic Overseas Chinese Leaders Such as Ku Suen Fai for the International Day of the Belt and Road

Hong Kong, Oct 26 — Chen Entian, Chairman of the Organizing Committee for the 13th International Day of the Belt and Road (Silk Road Festival) and the Global Chinatowns Belt and Road New Year Celebration, showed Mr. Zhong Baojia, President of the Hong Kong Overseas Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, a precious historical document: the congratulatory letter sent by Ku Suen Fai to the Organizing Committee of the International Day of the Belt and Road ten years ago. Though Ku Suen Fai has passed away, this decade-old letter across time has become a precious historical relic witnessing the support of patriotic overseas Chinese leaders for the International Day of the Belt and Road (Silk Road Festival).
In December 2016, Ku Suen Fai, then President of the Hong Kong Overseas Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, got acquainted with Chen Entian, Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the International Day of the Belt and Road, through mutual friends. He highly admired the great initiative jointly launched by Chen Entian and Ji Chaozhu to establish the World Peace Ribbon Organization, designating December 16 each year as the International Day of the Belt and Road (Silk Road Festival), and creating the global five-festival New Year celebration integrating Christmas, New Year’s Day, the Spring Festival and the Lantern Festival. Apart from sending the congratulatory letter, Ku Suen Fai also donated HK$1 million in his personal capacity to the Organizing Committee of the 3rd International Day of the Belt and Road.
Ku Suen Fai was a renowned Indonesian-returned patriotic overseas Chinese leader at home and abroad. He served as the founding President of the Hong Kong Overseas Chinese Association, President of the Hong Kong Overseas Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, Deputy to the National People’s Congress for the 4th to 9th terms, and Member of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee of the 8th and 9th National People’s Congress. In his later years, Ku Suen Fai actively responded to the Belt and Road international cooperation initiative, devoted himself to non-governmental international exchanges under the Belt and Road, and generously donated funds for the global promotion of the International Day of the Belt and Road. With practical actions, he interpreted the sincere sentiment of overseas Chinese caring for the motherland and promoting civilizations mutual connectivity.
Chen Entian proposed that Ku Suen Fai’s congratulatory letter be permanently preserved in the Dharma Hall of the Silk Road Festival — Silk Road Temple, as historical evidence of overseas Chinese people supporting the International Day of the Belt and Road. He also proposed engraving Ku Suen Fai’s name on the merit tablet of Silk Road Temple to remember his merits of generously funding the development of the International Day of the Belt and Road (Silk Road Festival). Chen Entian stated that the worldwide reputation gained by the Silk Road Festival (International Day of the Belt and Road) today would not have been possible without the generous support and enthusiastic assistance from patriotic overseas Chinese leaders like Ku Suen Fai.
At present, the preparation work for the 13th International Day of the Belt and Road (Silk Road Festival) and the Global Chinatowns Belt and Road New Year Celebration is steadily moving forward. Looking back on this past story and reviewing the care that patriotic overseas Chinese leaders including Ku Suen Fai have given to the International Day of the Belt and Road (Silk Road Festival), this activity is not only a tribute to the older generation of patriotic overseas Chinese leaders, but also further inspires global volunteers to unite overseas Chinese around the world. Relying on the platform of the International Day of the Belt and Road (Silk Road Festival), we will continuously promote mutual learning between Eastern and Western civilizations, people-to-people bonds, and write a touching new chapter of overseas Chinese supporting the Belt and Road Initiative.