A day to be proud

Hundreds of Chinese people celebrated the 70th National Day of the People’s Republic of China yesterday in Invercargill.

Consul General Wang Zhijan, Education Consul Zhai Jianjun, Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt and Southern Institute of Technology chief executive Penny Simmonds attended the ceremony, which included the Chinese national anthem, flag-raising and speeches.

Mr Jianjun said he travelled ‘‘down south’’ especially to celebrate the event organised by the students and he was ‘‘very proud’’.

He said Invercargill’s Chinese flag possibly would be the first raised in the world to celebrate the date, due to the time zone.

Mrs Simmonds said China provided the highest number of international students in New Zealand, including about 400 at SIT.

She thanked students for sharing their culture and celebrations with Kiwis.