Support The Moscow Times!

Residents of Russia's Chita Outraged by Chinese Songs on City Day

Pixabay

Residents of the Siberian city of Chita have expressed their indignation over a City Day fireworks show that was accompanied by Chinese songs, the Baikal Daily news website reported Monday.

Some of the residents believed they heard anthem of Manchuria playing: “Chita City Day celebrations were closed with the Manchurian anthem!” local resident Stas Zakharov wrote on his Facebook page, adding that he was pleased with the fact that ?€?at least a half [of the festival visitors] disagreed with what was happening, to say the least.?€?

The city administration commented on the public displeasure, saying that a song called ?€?I love Manchuria?€? and another song about a talking dragon were played at the festival.

?€?There was no anthem of Manchuria — they do not even have it. They only have the [Chinese] national anthem,?€? the chairman of Chita’s culture committee Nikolai Volkov said.

He explained that the fireworks were given to the city as a gift from Chinese officials on Chita City Day.

?€?Why did we have such a huge firework show? It was a gift,?€? Volkov said. ?€?Gifts vary. Some people give you a picture as a gift, and they gave us fireworks,?€? he added.

?€?There is no money, but hang on in there. And we do ?€” with Chinese support,?€? a resident wrote on his social network page, Baikal Daily reported.

… we have a small favor to ask.

As you may have heard, The Moscow Times, an independent news source for over 30 years, has been unjustly branded as a "foreign agent" by the Russian government. This blatant attempt to silence our voice is a direct assault on the integrity of journalism and the values we hold dear.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. Our commitment to providing accurate and unbiased reporting on Russia remains unshaken. But we need your help to continue our critical mission.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just 2. It's quick to set up, and you can be confident that you're making a significant impact every month by supporting open, independent journalism. Thank you.

Continue

Read more