TC Activities 12 Finalists Sharing Strong Messages for China-Japan-ROK Exchange at 2nd Trilateral Youth Speech Contest
2023-02-10
(Tokyo, February 10, 2023) – Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (referred to as TCS hereafter) hosted the 2nd Trilateral Youth Speech Contest on the occasion of the CJK Youth Day in Tokyo, Japan, following the inauguration of Trilateral Youth Exchange Network. GAO Chen from China was awarded as MVP of “CJK Specialist”, and GONG Mindan from Korea was awarded as MVP of “CJK Challenger” among 12 finalists.
“The three countries are close neighbors, and the three languages- Chinese, Japanese and Korean- share much interconnection, which embodies the unique feature of East Asia culture values as harmony in diversity, and coexistence in harmony and peace”, said Ambassador OU Boqian, Secretary-General of TCS, “Themed as Connect, Immerse, Discover and Realize, the 2nd Trilateral Youth Speech Contest is expected to give inspiration to the youth of the three countries to resume communication, find each other and grow up hand-in-hand in post-pandemic era.” She further said, “Against the backdrop of pandemic satiation and changing international landscape in the past year, TCS has been firmly advocating ‘Lasting Peace, Common Prosperity and Shared Culture’ of this region. Trilateral Cooperation has been contributing to the welfare of the people of the three countries steadily even under difficult situations, and I am more convinced that Trilateral Cooperation receive wider support from the three civil societies.”
The 2nd Trilateral Speech Contest received nearly 200 sign-ups at the initial stage. To meet the expectations of the youth community, TCS decided to organize this Contest offline, rather than online as of the 1st Contest February last year. Under two categories “C.J.K Specialist” and “CJK Challenger”, the contestants delivered their speeches in one foreign language among Chinese, Japanese and Korean, or using all three languages in one speech, respectively. Touch upon various topics including sports, costumes and cuisines, the 12 finalists shared their perceptions towards cultures of the three countries, voicing unanimously on strengthened mutual understandings, trust and friendship among the three countries. Diplomats, journalists and linguists from the three countries were invited as judges for the Contest.
The 2nd Trilateral Speech Contest was the first event held after the inauguration of Trilateral Youth Exchange Network and under its framework. The Trilateral Youth Exchange Network is a social networking platform newly established by TCS to support and facilitate the young people of the three countries to come together in their student’s life and career advancement. The 3rd Contest is planned to be held in early 2024.
(1) Opening Remarks by TCS Secretary-General Amb. OU Boqian
(2) 1st prize winner of C.J.K Specialist (Gao Chen)
(3) 1st prize winner of CJK Challenger (GONG Mindan)
(4) Contest ongoing
(5) Group photo of all contestants and judges