September 2, 2015 marks the 70th founding anniversary of Vietnam. On the evening of August 30, the Taichung City Government and the Taiwan Association of Overseas Vietnamese (台灣越僑協會) jointly held a concert to celebrate the birthday of Vietnam and express thanks to Vietnamese friends who have been making contribution to Taichung. Mayor Lin Chia-lung said that the city government would set up the "Asean Square" near the Taichung Railway Station and offer airline tickets for lucky draw. “I hope the to-be-built Southeast-Asian-style Asean Square will make you feel at home and the airline tickets will provide more opportunities for you and your kids to return home. I also hope that Vietnam will designate a day as "Taiwan Day" to promote the relations between Taiwan and Vietnam,” added Mayor Lin.

The celebration of 70th founding anniversary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was held at the 4th floor conference hall of Taiwan Boulevard Municipal Building. Wu Wenlong (武文龍), Chairman of Taiwan Association of Overseas Vietnamese Vietnam invited famous Vietnamese dance troupes andsingers to perform and arranged sweepstakes, to which Mayor Lin donated two round-trip air tickets from Taiwan to Vietnam for lucky draws. The atmosphere of the event venue was very lively.

Mayor Lin said, “I will talk to Taiwanese businessmen in Vietnam to regularly donate air tickets, so that our Vietnamese friends will have more opportunities to go back to their homes in Vietnam with their children during the holidays. This is one of the best ways to promote Taiwan-Vietnam relations.

“This is the first time that the city government held a concert to celebrate the National Day of Vietnam,” Mayor Lin continued. “I hope this city hall will become a must-visit place for our Vietnamese friends from now on. You are always welcomed here. So come here often. I also hope that Vietnam can host more Taiwan-related activities. For that purpose, I would like to suggest that your honorable Ambassador Chen Wei-hai (陳維海) set up the ‘Taiwan Day’ in Vietnam. I promise to bring my colleagues from the city government to visit Vietnam for cultural exchanges.

“I have recently visited Vietnam,” Mayor Lin also said. “After the anti-Chinese event in Vietnam last year, I am happy to see that the Vietnamese government has been strengthening cooperation between Taiwan and Vietnam and enhancing protection of Taiwanese investment in Vietnam. We all know that Taiwanese investment in Vietnam has been amounted to over $25 billion US dollars, and Taiwan's exports to Vietnam were nearly $10 billion US dollars last year, and imports from Vietnam were about $3 billion US dollars. Vietnam is a very important trade partner of Taiwan.

"Rainbow is beautiful because of the coexistence of multiple colors. Taichung is beautiful because of its multiculturalism," added Mayor Lin. “We have 50,000 Vietnamese friends living and working in Taichung. During my mayoral election campaign, I promised to set up the ‘Asean Square’ for them if I were to be elected mayor. For that purpose, I went to the Taichung Railway Station at noon today, because it is a meeting place for many Vietnamese friends. I am thinking to improve the environments of First Square and turn it into the Asean Square, where our Vietnamese friends shall feel at home. I also look forward to see more diverse and beautiful Vietnamese culture in Taiwan.”

Ambassador Chen Wei-hai of Representative Office of Vietnam on Economy & Culture in Taiwan also attended the event. He thanked Mayor Lin for hosting the concert and hoped that Vietnamese friends in Taiwan can make contribution to Taiwan.

Liu Mayde (劉美德), President of Taiwanese Federation in Vietnam (越南台商聯合總會), also came back from Vietnam to participate in this event. She said, “I am very pleased to be able to take part in this evening party. All the Taiwanese businessmen in Vietnam see Vietnam as their second home, and I believe many Vietnam friends see Taiwan as their second home, too. I hope the relations between Taiwan and Vietnam will get better and better.”