On the occasion of the Sixth World Hakka Entrepreneurs Convention, a Story-sharingEventwas held in Meizhou on the evening of November 2.
Domestic and overseas businessmen attended event including Datuk Steve Chong Yoon On, President of the Federation of Hakka Associations of Malaysia, WangWenkang, President of Canada United Hakka Association, Xiong Wensheng, Chinese American Federation, Zhang Qinwei, Chairman of Guangdong Emirates Business Union, Andrew Kelvin Yu Wa-kit, Director at Yue Hwa Chinese Products Emporium Limited, Qiu Qingling, Taiwanese variety show director and filmmaker working cross-strait.
They shared, with fifty audience members,their stories about their hometowns, talked about their entrepreneurial journeys, and anticipated new opportunities for cultural exchange and economic and trade cooperation with Meizhou, Guangdong, and the rest of the world.
The Rapid Progress in the Hometown
"I am a descendant of the Qiu Clan of Jiaoling. This is my second time being here in my hometown of Meizhou. Last year, I came back totrace my heritage hereduring the Mid-Autumn Festival. It was when I compared the genealogy we kept in Taiwan to the one in Jiaoling thatI realized we had moved to Taiwan from oursixteenth generation," said Qiu Qingling, as he sharedhis lineage seeking story.
Qiu Qingling, who grew up in Pingtung, Taiwan, added, "I heard from my familyelders so many times that our ancestors were from Meizhou, Guangdong. I was so young back then and couldn't understand what it meant to find one's origin. But I know it has always been their wish to come back to Meizhou." Qiu also mentioned that his father was very grateful to him for fulfilling his wish totrace his heritage and travel to the places his ancestors originated from and that his father looked forward to having the opportunity to go back to Jiaoling to pay respect to their ancestors.
It was the third time Xiong Wensheng had participated in the World Hakka Entrepreneurs Convention. Xiong pointed out that he left Meizhou 37 years ago and left China to build a career 32 years ago. Every time he came back to his hometown , he feltthat it had gone through massive changes.
Inheritance: Passing on the Hakka Business Spirits from Generation to Generation
Steve Chong Yoon On shared hisstory at the session. He mentioned that he once saw a very interesting commercial. It was on a dark and stormy night,awoman ran out looking around in terror. There was a zombie that chasedher and triedto bite her neck, but it couldn't bite through. Then a caption appeared that said, "Hakka people are hard-necked."
"Although it is a whimsical video clip, it points out one thing; Hakka people are hard-necked in the eyes of outsiders. It is a Hakka description. It means that Hakka people do not bend down easily, and that they are resilient and tenacious in times of trouble," said Chong, "It is this unique hard neck spirit that has enabled the Hakka community to survive through different eras and environments and givenbirth to many business giants."
As a third-generation Hakka businessman, Andrew Kelvin Yu Wa-kit shared the stories of how his grandfather, Yu Lin-hing, migrated to Southeast Asia and started a business and how his father, Yu Kwok-chung, and his uncle, Yu Pang-chung, kept the business going. "The company name, Yue Hwa, literally means enriching China. It is our hope to enrich the country by trading Chinese products," said Yu, "The success of Yue Hwa Chinese Products speaks to the Hakka people's spirit of braveryand courage."
Introducing Meizhou Products to the World
Zhang Qinwei, who went to Dubai and started abusiness after his graduationfrom Jiaying University in 2001, is a first-generation, new overseas Chinese in the UAE. Zhang said, "There were just over 2,000 Chinese in Dubai back then. Now there are more than three hundredthousand." He stated that he participated in this year's World Hakka EntrepreneursConvention in the hope of bringing economic and trade information from the Middle East back to Guangdong toopen channels for the exchange of products, resources, and information between Guangdong and Dubai.
WangWenkang, who works in the restaurant industry, wishes to introduce Hakka cuisine to the world. He said, "The quality of Chinese products is getting better and better, and our global market is also getting bigger. For Hakka cuisine to go global, it also requires constant quality improvements. It should be well packaged and take ahigh-end position."
When Qiu Qingling was back in his hometown last year, he learned for the first time that he was adescendant of Qiu Fengjia, Taiwanese Hakka−Chinese patriot and author. As a filmmaker, he came up with the idea toput Qiu Fengjia's story on the big screen. "Just so you know, we will make a movie based on Qiu Fengjia's story next year. We hope to realize cross-strait cultural exchanges in thisway."
As for the questions raised by the audience on how to improve investment attraction for Meizhou, Yu Wa-kit's suggestion was to make use of the support and connections of Meizhou's fellow townsmen and promote investment with fellow townsmen, businesses, and nostalgia. "When I return to Hong Kong after this convention, my goal is to promote Meizhou to more people and invite more Hong Kong enterprises to visit and invest in Meizhou."
Author: Wang Yongxing, Tang Linzhen
English version: Eastbrook
Video: Deng Yingheng
Editor: Wing, Steven, Monica
