The Confucius Institute at the Durban University of Technology, in collaboration with Suncoast Cine Complex, celebrated the 3rd Global Confucius Institute Day with the hosting of the Fourth Chinese Film Festival at the Suncoast Cinema recently.

The event was aimed at celebrating Global Confucius Institute Day which is usually celebrated during September or October. The day is celebrated by more than 500 Confucius institutes and more than 1000 Confucius classrooms around the world to promote the cultural communication and exchange endeavours between China and other countries.

Dr Eddie Chaobo Fu, Co-Dean at the DUT-CI, said the purpose of the Day is to teach about Chinese culture language. “The Confucius Institute Day also serves as a bridge to bring the Chinese community and local communities together, to promote cultural cohesion in cities where Confucius Institutes are located,” said Dr Fu.

He also mentioned that this year’s film Song of the Phoenix matches the 2016 theme for South African Heritage month which was titled Celebrating the Human Treasures by Asserting the National (African) Identity.

“This screened film Song of the Phoenix is specially chosen to be cohesive with the theme of the South African Heritage Month this year as the film focuses on the adherence to and heritage of a nation’s traditional folk art. The conflict and collision, the symbiosis and co-existence between Chinese traditional folk art and modern culture, together with the beautiful rural scenery and great historical transformation in northern China in the past 20 years, the thousand-year traditions and beliefs in Chinese marriage and funeral rituals, and the long-preserved Chinese mentoring practice, as well as the Chinese concept on family, are all well showcased in this movie,” he said.

“In 2017, our DUT-CI will continue to contribute more to the cultural, educational and academic communication and exchange between DUT and Chinese universities, and between South Africa and China, with a series of language and cultural projects to be designed and fulfilled,” added Dr Fu.

According to him, 2017 will mark a new era as Mandarin will be introduced at DUT as part of the new General Education (Gen E) curriculum offering. “Mandarin will be introduced as a Gen E course at DUT from 2017, and Mandarin programmes from the DUT Confucius Institute will reach more universities and secondary schools in Durban and the province of KwaZulu-Natal. We expect that by more diversified projects and programmes, the CI can be a broader platform for producing more benefits for its partner universities and for both countries in the fields of education, culture and scientific cooperation,” concluded Dr Chaobo Fu.

-Siphephelo Sibiya

Pictured: Deva Govindasamy, Che Songhua, Professor Sibusiso Moyo and Dr Eddie Chaobo Fu at the Festival.