Alex Rosaria's Speech on 2nd Anniversary

Bon nochi, 

你们好吗？        恭喜华商会两周年成立！        祝大家妇女节快乐！

I am very happy to be here. Jimmy and the rest of the Curaçao Chinese Business Association, thanks for the invite.

This is a celebration of the second anniversary of the Curaçao Chinese Business Association. I had the opportunity during these years to speak to the association on many occasions about a variety of issues. Whilst this is a business association, I will not talk about business tonight. As a matter of fact, the Minister of Economic Affairs just talked about this.

 I want to spend some time of the friendship between our   ries and the room for improvement regarding the relations between us.

 Yes, we are separated by vast oceans, huge differences in language and culture. These will not likely vanish any time soon. What has to change, or better said, improve is the attitudes we carry towards one another. I still remember how as a child someone who spoke incoherently was referred as ‘speaking Chinese’. Today a large group of Yu di Kòrsou is learning Mandarin Chinese. Today, more than a thousand locals have applied for and gotten a visa to visit China either for business or pleasure. Today, as my friend Sam in Dominguito told me, the All-Chinese basketball team of Curaçao for the first time is going to participate in the local league. In this case basketball is symbolic for the integration of the Chinese into the local sport scenery. Times have changed. Things have changed.

 Yet there is room for improvement. Too many people still refer to the Chinese as “Chino”. Not acceptable. The Chinese community is over represented when it comes to being violent crimes and atrakos. Not acceptable.

 I dream of a Curacao where all groups live in peace where irrespective of decent, whether you were born in China, India, Curaçao, whether you have a different language, religion or sexual preference can be a valuable member of this community.

And finally. We are very happy to welcome Chinese private sector to come to our island, invest their money, take risk and set up businesses. What we also want is to encourage Chinese companies operating on this land to give more jobs to local workers. Shortly, I am going to start a dialogue on this matter with the Curaçao Chinese Business Association.

Ladies and gentlemen, we go a long way in our relations. Yes there have been ups and downs. Yet I am convinced that Curaçao and China have a bright future together.