Kenya’s UN office marks Chinese New Year
A gala was staged at the United Nations compound in the Kenyan capital Nairobi on Wednesday to mark the Lunar New Year, showcasing traditional Chinese culture to participants from different countries.
Students and teachers from the Confucius Institute at the University of Nairobi put up a traditional Chinese cultural show, performing lion and dragon dances, playing traditional Chinese musical instruments and Peking Opera. Participants also had the opportunity to try out calligraphy, traditional Chinese painting and paper-cutting.
More than 200 people attended the event, including UN staff members and diplomats from countries such as China, Russia, Malaysia, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Iran.
Zainab Hawa Bangura, undersecretary general and director-general of the United Nations Office at Nairobi, conveyed her wishes for the festive occasion while delivering her remarks at the ceremony.
This year is the first time in the history of the UN that the Lunar New Year is formally recognized as a floating holiday, she said.
“My message on behalf of the United Nations family in Kenya is to say that, may this Lunar Year of the Dragon bring peace, joy and prosperity to all,” she said.
This year’s Lunar New Year, also called Spring Festival in China, falls on Feb 10. It is the most celebrated traditional festival in China, when families gather for reunions and set off firecrackers. The Lunar New Year is also celebrated in many other countries.
In December, the 78th General Assembly adopted a resolution by consensus to list the Lunar New Year as a UN floating holiday, which means the Lunar New Year will be celebrated at the UN too.
“The Spring Festival symbolizes joy, harmony, unity and prosperity, and embodies the core values of harmony, love and peace in the Chinese culture as well as Chinese people’s bond and responsibility to their family and the country,” Zhou Pingjian, Chinese ambassador to Kenya, said.
The Lunar New Year is a public holiday in almost 20 countries and celebrated in various ways by about one-fifth of humanity, he said, adding that the festival has become a global cultural event, bringing joy to people around the world.
“Now it’s officially listed as a UN floating holiday, demonstrating values of inclusiveness and diversity which have always been advocated by the UN,” he said.
Pujades Alexandre, a consultant at UN-Habitat in Nairobi, said although he has seen the Lunar New Year being celebrated by the Chinese community in Spain, this was the first time he participated in such a celebration.
Alexandre said he learned to write the Chinese character fu, meaning luck, with this being his first time trying out calligraphy.
Gichimu Loise, a Kenyan staff member from UNEP, said she hopes to see the Lunar New Year celebrated in Kenya every year, so that people can become familiar with traditional Chinese culture.