H.E. Sir Silas Atopare, Governor General, the Independent State of    
                 Papua New Guinea,
The Hon. Andrew Baing, Minister for Fisheries,
The Hon. Melchior Pep, Minister for Health,
Colleagues from Diplomatic Corps,
Mr. Simon Poraituk, Acting Director of the National Museum
                and Art Gallery,
Mrs. Ni Yumei Cragnolini, President of the Chinese Association,
Fellow Chinese,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my great pleasure to welcome all of you to the opening of the Chinese Arts and Crafts Exhibition. I am extremely grateful to H.E. Sir Silas Atopare, Governor General of Papua New Guinea, for his kindly accepting my invitation to join us in inaugurating this exhibition.

The successful opening of the exhibition is a result of cooperation between many partners, including the National Museum and Art Gallery, the Chinese community and the Chinese Embassy.  It is gratifying to see that the National Museum is playing a significant role in the preservation of PNG's cultural heritage as well as the promotion of cultural exchanges with foreign countries. The Chinese Association has also contributed its share in organizing and preparing for this exhibition. Some of the Association members have displayed remarkable artistic talent in decorating this exhibition hall and arranging exhibits together with the Museum staff. So please allow me, on behalf of the Chinese Embassy, to express our sincere thanks to the National Museum and the Chinese Association for their excellent cooperation. Without their contribution and hard work, the exhibition would not have been made possible.

This exhibition is intended to give all the visitors a better understanding of the brilliance of China's ancient civilization and the richness of the traditional Chinese culture and promote the cultural exchanges between China and Papua New Guinea.

China is a country with time-honored history, splendid tradition of civilization and abundant archaeological resources.

In the first part of the exhibition, visitors will see a total of 100 valuable photos of China's major archaeological discoveries in the 20th Century. Geographically, these discoveries cover almost every corner of China and chronologically they cover from the Yuanmou Man of 1.7 million years ago to the Ding Mausoleum of Emperor Wan Li of Ming Dynasty of the early 17th Century. Each photo will lead visitors to pass through the tunnel of time and space, to be back in the remote past and to taste the magnificence and splendor of ancient Chinese civilization.

The second part of the exhibition will show visitors many works of Chinese arts and crafts including kites, paper-cuts, wheat-straw pictures, metal-strip-patterned ceramics, ancient bronze, lacquer-ware, cloisonne and tapestries etc. These exhibits reflect the wisdom and craftsmanship of the Chinese people and enable visitors to have a glimpse of the sophisticated Chinese artistry and its national flavor evolved through ages.

From ancient times, the Chinese people have developed their unique aesthetic philosophy centered on the idea of "harmony between man and nature". Based on this concept, many art works bear the distinguishing feature of unity between beauty of the nature and that of the mind. We all know that art speaks a language transcending the national boundaries, and good art works appeal to peoples with different cultural background. Therefore, I hope all our guests present here today take your time and enjoy every piece on display.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this exhibition is held at the time when Papua New Guinea new cabinet has just sworn in to office. Today the Acting Prime Minister Dr. Allan Marat is kind enough to have sent the Hon. Minister for Fisheries to be with us as his representative. At this time of change in the government, we all have great expectations. As Chinese Ambassador to Papua New Guinea, my expectation is to see more fruitful exchanges between China and PNG in the fields of culture, trade, health, education, fishery, agriculture and so on. In short, I hope that through concerted efforts by both sides, China and PNG will maintain the strong momentum of growth in our multi-faceted relationship in the years ahead.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am happy to note that on the day of the formation of the new government on August 5, Sir Michael, the Prime Minister reaffirmed PNG government's commitment to the one-China policy, which is the key to the stable, sound and long-term relationship between our two countries. I am quite confident that PNG's amicable relations with China initiated by Sir Michael 26 years ago will be further strengthened.

Finally, I would like to thank the Governor General once again, for his presence today at this ceremony has greatly graced the occasion.

Thank you very much.