UNESCO recognizes festival's promotion of harmony
China DailyChildren perform a dragon dance at a kindergarten in Xianju county, Zhejiang province, on Jan 18 to welcome Spring Festival. On Wednesday, UNESCO inscribed Spring Festival — the social practices of the Chinese people in celebration of their traditional new year — on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Reacting to the UNESCO honor, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Thursday that Spring Festival embodies the values of peace, harmony and unity cherished by the Chinese people and the Chinese civilization. Rao Quan, vice-minister of culture and tourism, who led the Chinese delegation at the UNESCO session, emphasized that Spring Festival has provided lasting spiritual strength to the Chinese people, promoting family and social harmony, economic development, environmental protection and global cultural exchanges. Wu Xin, a cultural expert, said the Taibo Temple Fair, a Spring Festival celebration in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, during which locals worship their ancestors on the ninth day of the Chinese New Year, will gain greater visibility and influence following the UNESCO inscription.