Beijing summer camp welcomes 1,000 Taiwan youth

The 20th Youth Summer Camp organized by the All-China Federation of Taiwan Compatriots opened in Beijing on Tuesday, attracting about 1,000 participants from Taiwan, with about 35 percent of them being first-time visitors to the Chinese mainland.

During the opening ceremony on Tuesday night, Zheng Jianmin, the federation's president, expressed hopes that the young participants from Taiwan would delve into the mainland's cultural history and witness new changes and achievements made in the mainland's socioeconomic development.

He encouraged cross-Strait youth to enhance their communications, understanding and friendship through the summer camp.

The camp also features related activities that are being held across 28 provincial-level regions, in Taiwan and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, and even in overseas regions.

Wu Yu-ting, a college student from Taiwan, said she was eager to visit some landmarks such as the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, which she had previously learned about in textbooks.

She said she also learned a lot about the mainland's culture and food on social media networks before arriving in Beijing and hoped to experience them firsthand.

Wang Chenbai, a mainland college student and a volunteer at the camp, said she hopes Taiwan participants will explore the ancient, profound and vibrant charm of Beijing and work together to forge a better future for both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

The annual event has been held since 2004 and has facilitated youth exchanges across the Taiwan Strait, with over 20,000 Taiwan youth having participated.