People celebrate the Spring Festival with dragon dancing in Manhattan’s Chinatown on February 12, 2023. /CFP
The lion dance is performed during celebrations to mark the Spring Festival in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on February 4, 2023. /CFP
The Sydney Opera House is illuminated red as part of the Spring Festival celebrations in Sydney, Australia, on January 23, 2023. /CFP
A photo taken on February 3, 2023, shows a dragon dance performed at the half-time break of a Premier League match at Stamford Bridge, London. /CFP
People celebrate the Spring Festival with dragon dancing in Manhattan’s Chinatown on February 12, 2023. /CFPNext
Spring Festival has been officially listed as a UN Floating Holiday in the UN Calendar of Conferences and Meetings starting in 2024, as announced by the Chinese Mission to the United Nations in a statement on Friday.
China’s deputy permanent representative to the United Nations Dai Bing said the recognition shows the wide influence and impact of Chinese civilization, reflecting the UN’s advocacy for diverse and inclusive cultural values.
The UN resolution has received a warm welcome and enthusiastic support from UN member states and the UN Secretariat staff. The floating holiday will be a paid day off for UN employees to decide when to take.
Spring Festival, as a traditional festival in China, is not only a day for family reunion and bidding farewell to the old year, but also embodies the ideas of peace, harmony, and unity in Chinese civilization, Chinese envoy Dai Bing noted.
It has been designated in many countries and regions as a statutory holiday, with approximately one-fifth of the global population celebrating the Spring Festival in various forms.
The UN Secretary General would deliver a congratulatory message every year ahead of Spring Festival, to extend holiday greetings and blessings to the people of China and the countries that celebrate the holiday.
