Canadians celebrate upcoming national day in Taipei

Taipei, June 25 (CNA) The Canadian community celebrated the Canadian national day in Taipei on Saturday for the first time in two years, with live performances, games and food stalls selling Canadian specialties.

It is the first Canada Day celebration that has been held in Taipei since 2020, said Jordan Reeves, the outgoing executive director of the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei (CTOT), adding that the event was a wonderful way to wrap up his four-year tenure in Taiwan.

CTOT represents Canada's interest in Taiwan in the absence of diplomatic relations.

 According to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan, which organized Saturday's event, the annual celebration of Canada Day, which falls on July 1 every year, in Taiwan before the COVID-19 pandemic had been the largest such event in Asia, attracting more than 9,000 people each year.

However, the number of people attending Saturday's event, which began at noon and will last until 9 p.m., was much less, likely due to the COVID-19 situation in Taiwan and the thundershower that hit the capital in the afternoon.

Also at the event, Deputy Foreign Minister Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) described the celebration as demonstrating the determination of the Canadian community to "bring our lives back to normal."

He added that Taiwan's government would continue to "open up" border controls and loosen COVID-19 protocols in the near future.

The Canadian community is deeply involved in Taiwan's economic and cultural development, Tseng said. "Taiwan and Canada are like-minded partners; we both value and cherish freedom and democracy, and respect human rights and the rule of law."

Looking forward to the post-pandemic era, Tseng noted, "I believe Canada and Taiwan should be working even more closely together to bring our bilateral relations to a new height."