Mrs Rebecca Akufo Addo (left) congratulating one of the acrobatic team members after the cultural event in Accra. Those looking on include Mr Shi Ting Wang (2nd left) Mr Ismael Ashitey and Mr George Andah. Picture: GABRIEL AHIABOR.
The Chinese embassy in Accra held a cultural display last Tuesday to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
Organised by China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism at the National Theatre in Accra, the cultural display — dubbed “Glory of Shaolin Temple” — had the Zhengzhou Cultural Exchange Troupe of China treat the mixed audience of Ghanaians, Chinese and other nationals to a live display of the famous Chinese Kung Fu as seen in Chinese movies and television dramas.
Dignitaries and performance
It also involved a display of Chinese culture and martial arts on an enthralling evening for an excited crowd.
Among the guests were the First Lady, Mrs Rebecca Akufo-Addo; the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Mr Ishmael Ashitey, and a Deputy Minister of Communications, Mr George Andah.
The Zhengzhou Troupe, dominated by teenagers, took the audience down memory lane as they showcased different martial arts techniques, including the unusually fluid fighting style portrayed in the Hong Kong action comedy movie “Drunken Master”.
At the “Glory of Shaolin Temple” show, the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Shi Ting Wang, said “Chinese Kung Fu is a valuable cultural heritage accumulated and enriched by Chinese working people in long-term social practice”.
He said “Chinese Kung Fu stresses both hardness with softness, both inside and outside. It implies the spiritual temperament of the Chinese who love peace, pursues justice, self-improvement and social commitment”.
Mr Wang noted that currently, people in more than 200 countries and regions were learning Chinese Kung Fu.
“It has become an important part of exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese civilisation and other civilisations. It serves as an important brand to promote mutual understanding among the people of the world,” he added.
The ambassador reiterated China’s commitment to promoting cultural exchanges between Ghana and China, saying “the Chinese embassy is ready to work with Ghanaian friends to make unremitting efforts to promote people-to-people exchanges, carry forward China-Ghana traditional friendship and push our relations to a new height”.
Martial arts
The Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Mrs Cynthia Mamle Morrison, said the influence of martial arts on civilisation and modern society could be built in poetry, fiction and other disciplines.
She stressed the need for Ghana to promote its culture, beliefs and norms through socialisation.
Mrs Morrison said in the long run, her ministry intended to embark on a cultural exchange programme with China.
Source: graphic.com.gh
