Society

HCM City ceremony marks traditional New Year of neighbouring countries

A ceremony was held at Pho Minh Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City on April 14 to celebrate the traditional New Year of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand.
HCM City ceremony marks traditional New Year of neighbouring countries ảnh 1Participants in the ceremony bathe the Buddha statue, a ritual of the traditional New Year festival of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) - A ceremony was heldat Pho Minh Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City on April 14 to celebrate the traditionalNew Year of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand.

Organised by the HCM City Union of FriendshipOrganisations (HUFO) and the city’s committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha(VBS), the ceremony saw the presence of representatives from theconsulates-general of the four countries in HCM City, the municipal VietnamFatherland Front Committee, the municipal Committee for Overseas Vietnamese,and the countries’ entrepreneurs and students.

The traditional New Year festival is known asChol Chnam Thmay in Cambodia, Bunpimay in Laos, Thingyan in Myanmar, andSongkran in Thailand.

Addressing the celebrations, HUFO Vice ChairwomanTran Hoang Khanh Van said the ceremony aims to further promote mutualunderstanding, cultural exchange, and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam,including HCM City, and the four neighbouring countries.

She noted that Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar,and Thailand are ASEAN members and have cooperated and assisted one another overmany years. Their peoples have stood side-by-side in fighting for nationalindependence, developing their countries, and building an ASEAN Community ofpeace, stability, cooperation, and prosperous development.

HCM City ceremony marks traditional New Year of neighbouring countries ảnh 2Most Venerable Thich Thien Tam addresses the ceremony held at Pho Minh Pagoda on April 14 (Photo: VNA) 
Most Venerable Thich Thien Tam, Vice Presidentof the Executive Council of the Central VBS Committee and deputy head of theHCM City VBS Committee’s executive board, said the traditional New Year ofCambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand reflects the similarities in culture andreligious practices among the countries, adding that it is helpful instrengthening the five nations’ solidarity in their development efforts and in ASEANCommunity building.

Echoing that view, Ratiwan Bonprakhong, ChiefRepresentative of the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s HCM City Office, heldthat the ceremony helps bring the five countries’ people closer together andalso demonstrates their solidarity and unity./.
VNA
#traditional New Year #Cambodia #Laos #Myanmar #Thailand #Vietnam Buddhist Sangha #Chol Chnam Thmay #Bunpimay #Thingyan #Songkran #ASEAN Community #updated Vietnam news #Vietnamplus #Vietnam News Agency Cambodia Laos Myanmar Thailand Vietnam
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