SVG celebrates 44th anniversary of independence
The Caribbean community came together Friday in downtown Taipei to celebrate Saint Vincent and the Grenadines' (SVG) 44th Independence Day with song and dance.
The SVG embassy in Taiwan held a "Street Festival" event Friday at the plaza across the street from Xiangti Avenue Plaza in Taipei's Xinyi District to celebrate the 44th anniversary of achieving independence from the United Kingdom on Oct. 27, 1979, as well as the fourth anniversary of the establishment of the SVG embassy in Taiwan, which was the country's first in Asia.
Holding SVG national flags, participants started the event by singing "Saint Vincent, Land so Beautiful," the Caribbean country's national anthem.
"This occasion is significant for us," SVG Ambassador Andrea Bowman told CNA.
She said Taiwan and SVG have 42 years of formal diplomatic relations, adding that she hopes Taiwanese people see, hear, understand and recognize her country.
Commenting on participants of different ethnicities at the event, Bowman said: "I must say I'm very, very pleased with the kind of support we are getting from so many different countries in Taiwan ... Most of them are here to represent and stand with Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as we all stand with Taiwan."
Also in attendance were St. Christopher and Nevis Ambassador Donya Francis, St. Lucian Ambassador Robert Kennedy Lewis and Belizean Ambassador to Taiwan Candice Pitts.
Several members of the SVG community in Taiwan paid tribute to their home country by giving musical performances, while a question-and-answer session about SVG was also held.
The commemorative event was also attended by Cheng Li-Cheng (鄭力城), director-general of the Taiwan foreign ministry's Department of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs, who praised SVG as a "staunch diplomatic ally and a steadfast friend of Taiwan."
Over the years, SVG has firmly and consistently supported Taiwan's international participation, as evidenced by SVG Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves' call for Taiwan to be included in the United Nations' system during his speech at the 78th session of the U.N. General Assembly this year, Cheng said at the event, adding that he hopes the two countries' "vital partnership" will continue to flourish.
Eric Yu (余振華), executive director of the Taipei City government's International Affairs Advisory Council, said the SVG embassy is a regular at events held by the city government, such as Smart City & Expo and the Taipei Lantern Festival.
Likewise, whenever the embassy needs to rent a public space to hold an event, the Taipei City government has always done its best to guide it through the necessary procedure, Yu said.
Taipei City government has initiated talks with the SVG capital of Kingstown to explore the possibility of signing an agreement to become sister cities so the two cities can engage in more tangible exchanges. This goal he hopes will soon be realized, Yu said.
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