As another major move of the East-West Cooperation, Dongguan City organized a group to help Tongren, and the two places joined hands and interacted closely. From August 26 to 30, the 5-day Dongguan-Tongren Friendship City Basketball League was held in Tongren. The basketball league, which opened at the Yanhe National Stadium and was held in the cave of Yangnan Village, Siqu Town, Yanhe Tujia Autonomous County, built a unique stage for in-depth exchanges between the people of Dongguan and Tongren, and was a powerful witness to the cooperation and mutual support between the mountains and seas of Dongguan and Tongren.
The Dongguan-Tongren Friendship City Basketball League is composed of ten groups from 32 towns and streets and four parks in Dongguan City, Guangdong Province. They form joint teams with ten districts and counties that Tongren supports, forming a relationship between the counterparts of the East-West cooperation and turning them into teammates on the basketball court, allowing the people of the two places to interact more frequently, communicate more deeply, and connect more closely. Inside and outside the court, the collision of Eastern and Western cultures and the exchange of Cantonese and Guizhou languages make teammates closer and “opponents” more cordial. In the wide and cool “hole” basketball game scene, no matter which side scores, they will be greeted with warm applause and cheers from the audience.
Photo by Li Huili at Huangqi Mountain, Dongguan
As the “A-shaped” geometric center of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Dongguan is a world-renowned manufacturing base, an important foreign trade export base in China, a “double ten thousand” city with a GDP of over one trillion yuan and a population of over ten million, a city that attracts the surplus labor force of Tongren, and an existence that amazes the people of Tongren.
Tongren, an important transportation hub connecting Guizhou with the eastern region, is the “bridgehead” for Guizhou’s eastward and northward development. It is a representative of Guizhou’s majestic mountains and beautiful waters and a typical example of green ecology. The good natural ecology and rich and colorful ethnic culture here amaze the people of Dongguan.
Yang Minhua and Wang Jiayi, members of the Dongguan team who are participating in the Dongguan-Tongren Friendship City Basketball League, are full of praise for the stadium and the event: This is their first time in Tongren, Guizhou, and their first time participating in a basketball game held in a cave. They feel fresh, excited and surprised. The natural temperature of 25 degrees in August is also something they have never experienced before. This basketball game brought them a very cool and refreshing feeling, and they hope that more people will come to Tongren to experience “cave” basketball.
On the basketball court, the people of the two places exchanged ideas and communicated with each other. Outside the basketball court, there are countless examples of the two places working together, sharing what they have, learning from each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and interacting closely:
In mid-April, several departments in Tongren organized a delegation to participate in the 8th China Food Expo and Pre-Expo in Dongguan;
On April 22, the 29th “World Book Day”, the “Dongguan-Tongren City Public Reading Space” was unveiled and opened to the public in the Tongren Zhongnanmen Historical and Cultural Tourism Zone, becoming an important window and cultural name card for promoting the achievements of the Dongguan-Tongren cooperation.
On June 22-23, the dragon boat team of Bijiang District, Tongren City, participated in the Dongguan “Dragon Boat Race”;
In early July, several departments in Tongren organized a delegation to participate in the 5th China Food Innovation Exhibition in Dongguan;
In early August, the cultural and tourism department of Tongren organized a team to go to Dongguan to hold cultural and tourism exchanges and promotion activities;
By the end of July, Dongguan had purchased and helped sell 2.35 billion yuan of Tongren’s agricultural and special products, built a total of 16 industrial parks, and guided 46 new companies to invest in Tongren, with actual funds in place for the companies reaching 1.64 billion yuan.
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Basketball Laura sculpture – Photo by Luo Weiliang
It is worth mentioning that in June this year, Dongguan launched the theme planning of “Looking for one in 200 million – Dongguan East invites you to revisit the old place”, looking for people from all over the world who have worked in Dongguan in the 46 years of reform and opening up. On June 23, as a Dongguan builder of “One in 200 million – Dongguan East invites you to revisit the old place” and a typical representative of “Dongguan-Tongren Friendship”, Yang Guangzhu was invited to return to Dongguan to revisit his old place. Together with other representatives from all over the country, he was received with the highest courtesy by the Secretary of the Dongguan Municipal Party Committee and the Mayor. This is an honor for Yang Guangzhu, an honor for thousands of Tongren people who have worked in Dongguan, and a pride for the 11,200 Tongren people currently employed in Dongguan. It is also a reflection of the understanding, tolerance and respect of the city of Dongguan for ordinary people, ordinary people and workers.
Yang Guangzhu, who worked in Dongguan for many years and has now returned to his hometown of Tongren Jiangkou to serve as a village official, said that it was his work experience in Dongguan that made him finally choose to return to his hometown to be a “village official.” He hopes to bring his work experience in Dongguan back to his hometown and help his fellow villagers get rich together.
As one of the “one in 200 million”, Fu Fen, who was born in the rural area of Yanhe Tujia Autonomous County, Tongren City, worked in Dongguan for more than ten years, where she grew up and made friends. It was the experience she accumulated while working in Dongguan that allowed her to successfully establish Yanhe County Hengtaiyuan Garment Co., Ltd. after returning home. In August this year, Fu Fen was surprised when she received an invitation to watch the 2024 Dongguan-Tongren Friendship City Basketball League. “I didn’t expect that after so long, Dongguan still remembers an ordinary worker like me.” At the scene, watching the wonderful performances of the players, Fu Fen couldn’t help cheering for them. She said, “I think this kind of event is very meaningful. It reminds me of the days when I worked hard in Dongguan. In the future, I will bring my family and employees back to Dongguan often.”
The Dongguan-Tongguan Friendship City Basketball League held at home brought back memories for Fu Fen. “My growth was all given by Dongguan. Without everyone’s help, I wouldn’t be who I am today.” Recalling her struggles in Dongguan, Fu Fen, now the chairman of a company, was very emotional.
At present, the Dongguan-Tongguan Friendship City Basketball League is in full swing, and the story of “Guangdong-Guizhou Cooperation·Dongguan Loves Tongxing” is continuing and deepening. Through interactive events and activities, the friendship between the people of Dongguan and Tong has become more and more long-lasting…
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