China.com, December 26 (Reporter Li Zhi) On December 22, local time, the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution to identify the Spring Festival (Lunar New Year) as a United Nations holiday, and made it clear that "United Nations agencies located at headquarters and other duty stations celebrating this holiday should avoid holding meetings on this day".
It is understood that the holidays celebrated by the United Nations Headquarters and offices around the world are approved by the United Nations General Assembly and generally last 10 days a year, including official holidays and important religious holidays in the host country. Previously, the Secretary-General of the United Nations also delivered a congratulatory message every year during the Spring Festival, extending holiday greetings and blessings to China and all the people of other countries celebrating the Spring Festival.
Chinese New Year is an important holiday celebrated by one-fifth of the world's population. The United Nations believes that the inclusion of Chinese New Year in the floating holiday list will allow delegates and staff to better enjoy the holiday, and it will be a better example of the United Nations' commitment to diversity and inclusion.
For a decade, Chinese staff at UN Headquarters and the Permanent Mission of China to the United Nations have been actively promoting the inclusion of the Spring Festival as a floating holiday. Dai Bing, Chargé d'affaires a.i. of the Permanent Mission of China to the United Nations, said after the adoption of the UN General Assembly resolution: "As a traditional Chinese folk festival, the Spring Festival is not only a day for family reunions, farewell to the old and welcome the new, but also carries the common values of all mankind, such as peace, harmony and harmony, as well as family harmony, social tolerance, and harmonious coexistence between man and nature. ”
He stressed that China's promotion of the Spring Festival as a United Nations holiday is a pragmatic action to implement the Global Civilization Initiative and advocate respect for the diversity of world civilizations. The Spring Festival has officially become a United Nations holiday, which fully demonstrates the communication power and influence of Chinese civilization, will effectively promote exchanges and mutual learning among different civilizations in the world, and actively reflect the cultural values of diversity and inclusiveness advocated by the United Nations.
The Spring Festival is the oldest and most important traditional festival in Chinese culture. **Spokesperson Mao Ning said at a press conference held on the 25th: "The Spring Festival is for China and the world. ”
According to incomplete statistics, nearly 20 countries regard the Spring Festival as a legal holiday, and the Spring Festival folk activities have entered nearly 200 countries and regions, becoming a global cultural event, bringing joy and experience to people from all over the world.
During the Chinese New Year, celebrations are held all over China. At present, many countries also hold Chinese New Year celebrations, including Vietnam, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Mauritius, etc. Among them, Mauritius is the only African country that treats the Spring Festival as a statutory holiday, and it is closed on the first day of the first lunar month.
During the Spring Festival last year, more than 2.87 million people entered and exited China, with a daily average of 410,000. The overall orders of Chinese tourists for outbound travel have increased significantly. At that time, the Swiss ski resort Jungfrau decorated the Chinese Year of the Rabbit decorations and traditional red lanterns at the starting station of the cable car, and the airport in Bali, Indonesia, prepared a lion dance performance with Chinese characteristics on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and all countries warmly welcomed Chinese tourists to travel and vacation during the Spring Festival.
The Spring Festival is festive and peaceful, representing the blessings and warmth of spring, and also embodies the spiritual core of Chinese culture of harmony, harmony and peace. "We are willing to celebrate the Spring Festival with the world, and hope that different civilizations will coexist in harmony, achieve each other, exchange and learn from each other, and that the people of all countries will know each other and walk hand in hand to jointly build a community with a shared future for mankind. Mao Ning said.
Editor: Jiang Xinyu, Zhang Yanling.