Ｓｅｃｏｎｄ Ｃｏｕｎｃｉｌ Ｍｅｅｔｉｎｇ ｏｆ Ｃｈｉｎａ－Ａｒａｂ Ｆｒｉｅｎｄｓｈｉｐ Ａｓｓｏｃｉａｔｉｏｎ Ｈｅｌｄ

Ｏｕｒ　Ｓｔａｆｆ　Ｒｅｐｏｒｔｅｒ

On March 27, the Second Council Meeting of the China-Arab Friendship Association (CAFA) was held at the auditorium of the CPAFFC.

At the meeting, Feng Zuoku, vice president of the CPAFFC and executive vice president of the CAFA, made a report on the work of the CAFA first council. Participants of the meeting approved the work report and the name list of the executive members and ordinary members of the second council. Tomur Dawamat was reelected president of the CAFA, and Yang Fuchang, Li Chengren, Chen Guangyuan, Wang Yunze, Feng Zuoku, Wu Sike and Liu Zhiming were elected vice presidents, Jia Ling the secretary general. Then, participants were divided into three groups to have discussions on the political, economic and cultural topics. Many of them made valuable suggestions on future work of the CAFA.

A reception was held after the meeting. Tomur Dawamat, vice chairman of the 9th NPC Standing Committee and president of the CAFA, vice presidents and council members of the CAFA, as well as diplomatic envoys of Arab countries, totaling about 120 people, attended the reception. President Tomur Dawamat and Mhd Kheir Al-Wadi，dean of the diplomatic corps of Arab countries and Syrian ambassador to China, delivered speeches. Then, the launching ceremony of the book, Friendship Blooms on the Silk Road, edited by the CAFA was held.

In his speech, President Tomur Dawamat said, since the establishment of the CAFA in 2001, with the full support of ambassadors of Arab countries, it has done meaningful work to further understanding and friendship between the Chinese and Arab people and promoted political, economic, trade, investment and cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two sides. Especially in the last two years, the CAFA held a series of new and innovative activities including the First China-Arab Friendship Conference, the First Training Course for Leading Members of Arab Countries Friendship-with-China Organizations, and the Peace and China-Arab Friendship Tour. In October 2008, the Second China-Arab Friendship Conference will be held in Damascus, and it is believed that the conference will push forward the development of China-Arab friendly cooperative relations.

Ambassador Mhd Kheir Al-Wadi extended warm welcome to the expansion of the council and absorbing council members from all over China, which indicate leading members of the association attach great importance to spreading China-Arab friendship extensively to cover more Chinese people. He also gave suggestions on the work plan of the new council. For example, he suggested establishing the Friendship Award for outstanding literary and ideological works that contribute to the development of Sino-Arab friendship, and the award could be presented to the winners at the biannual China-Arab Friendship Conference.

At the launching ceremony of Friendship Blooms on the Silk Road, Ambassador Al-Wadi was very delighted and enthusiastic. He thanked President Tomur Dawamat and the CAFA, and hoped that the Arab version of the book would be published as soon as possible.