ASEAN: China, Asean agree to boost media exchanges, deepen strategic partnership

Information ministers have exchanged views with the aim of strengthening the China-Asean strategic partnership for peace, prosperity and boosting media exchanges and cooperation.
Discussions on media cooperation took place yesterday during the China-Asean member states information ministerial meeting in Suzhou, China.

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The meeting was attended by information ministers and representatives from China and Asean countries including Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines and Thailand, as well as representatives from Chinese government departments.

Speaking at the meeting, Lao Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Prof. Dr Bosengkham Vongdara, congratulated China on hosting the significant meeting under the theme: “Enhancing Practical Media Cooperation to Build a Closer China-Asean Community of Shared Future” and voiced support for the meeting’s main statement.
“We believe that the Statement of the China-Asean Member States Information Ministerial Meeting fits well with China’s One Belt, One Road initiative in the field of information between China and Asean. This was reinforced by the statement issued by President Xi Jinping during his state visit to Laos last week which emphasised working together for a community with a shared future and strategic significance.”

“The Lao PDR highly appreciates China’s continuing assistance which has contributed to our media infrastructure improvement, particularly the digitalisation project using the DTMB system, which is in process and is expected to be successfully completed by 2020 along with all of the Asean countries,” Prof. Dr Bosengkham Vongdara added.
“The Lao PDR also highly values the continuing support in all aspects that China has provided thus far, both bilaterally and multilaterally, including through the Asean framework for advancing mutual communication technology, upgrading technical equipment, sharing information and news, and conducting regular personnel capacity building programme and media exchange activities based on win-win partnership cooperation.”

Prof. Dr Bosengkham also informed the meeting that the Lao PDR had officially launched “Visit Laos Year 2018” for which numerous tourism activities are being prepared to give visitors a deeper insight in Laos.

According to the initiative of the China-Asean member states information ministerial meeting, the meeting recognised that since China and Asean established dialogue relations in 1991, both sides have seen increased political mutual trust, significant outcomes in economic and trade cooperation, expanded cultural exchanges, and constant deepening of cooperation in various fields.

As friendly cooperation between China-Asean continuously advances, media organisations, by way of disseminating information and fostering exchanges, have been playing a pivotal role in promoting sustainable, healthy and in-depth development of China-Asean relations.

The meeting indicated that news and media authorities should increase inter-civilisation exchanges to promote harmony, inclusiveness and respect for differences so that mutual learning and exchanges among civilisations serve as a bridge to strengthen friendship among all peoples.

The meeting also stated that news and media authorities should develop media organisations into good storytellers of economic and trade development and people-to-people exchanges, among others. Their contribution would help build a China-Asean community of a shared future, featuring common ideals, common prosperity and common responsibility, and contribute to the peace, development and prosperity of the region and the world at large.

To further enhance media exchanges and cooperation, the China-Asean member states information ministerial meeting proposed priority areas of cooperation, which included encouraging news and media authorities to enhance communication and mutual visits while sharing experiences and views on policies, regulations and development strategies in the field of news and media.

Meeting participants also called for the active promotion of exchanges and cooperation among media outlets in various forms, including but not limited to programme exchange, information sharing, film cooperation, joint news coverage and personal exchanges.

The meeting also agreed to encourage media organisations to actively cover the economic, political, cultural, social and ecological accomplishments achieved by China and Asean to increase understanding and friendship among their peoples.

In the fields of press, publication, broadcasting, film, television and new media, it was proposed that media outlets enhance exchange cooperation and push forward media cooperation by increasing contacts and communication.
Ministers also recommended facilitating journalists’ access to interviewees on important occasions and the provision of training opportunities for media professionals.

They also advised boosting people-to-people exchanges, advocating dialogue among Asian civilisations, and encouraging think tanks to carry out discussions on issues of common concern including political stability, economics, society and culture.

Another priority area was the proposed establishment of a Belt and Road media cooperation alliance and the building of a platform for media exchanges, with the aim of facilitating information sharing and in-depth cooperation among media organisations.

By Times Reporters
(Latest Update November 23, 2017)

Courtesy: Vientiane Times |