Recently, the Confucius Institute at the University of Canterbury (CIUC), the New Zealand China Friendship Society (NZCFS) Christchurch Branch and the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology (CPIT) jointly held a prize-giving ceremony at the CPIT. The prizes being awarded included prizes for excellence in studying Chinese for 2012, prizes for outstanding results from the HSK exams and awards for winning entries in the calligraphy competition. The Chinese Consul-General to Christchurch Madame Tan Xiutian, the Chinese Education Counsellor Mr Li Yucai, the MP for Christchurch Central the Hon. Nicky Wagner and the president of the NZCFS Mr Eric Livingstone were present, along with around 130 students, family members and supporters.

New Zealand’s Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Mr John Key, sent a letter of congratulation to the prize winners. He wrote: “This year, we celebrated 40 years of diplomatic relations with China. One of the ways young New Zealanders, like those of you being celebrated tonight, can help strengthen these enduring ties between our two countries is by choosing to study Chinese at school.” He also said that learning new languages and learning about a different culture was a great way to set young people up for a bright future.

The Third New Zealand Chinese Calligraphy Competition was held by CIUC in conjunction with the International Language Exchanges and Pathways (ILEP) of New Zealand. This year’s competition was open to all primary, secondary and tertiary schools in New Zealand. Students from 25 different schools and tertiary institutions submitted entries and in total there were 286 entries. Every entry showed the commitment and hard work of the participants. After careful consideration, 12 entries received first prize, 17 second prize and 44 third prize. CIUC collated the winning entries into a book which was given to every participant and school. After the ceremony, students were seen leafing through the publication, and commenting that they would definitely continue to study Chinese.