Saudi journalist proud to be present at opening session of 20th CPC National Congress

Photo shows Eman Alshammry, a columnist from The Peninsula newspaper, Saudi Arabia. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

"The National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is an important event in China which is held every five years. Today, I became a part of this historic event, recording it and covering it here in Beijing. I think I'm the only woman from Saudi Arabia who was present at the grand event at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing," wrote Eman Alshammry, a columnist from The Peninsula newspaper of Saudi Arabia, who attended the opening session of the 20th National Congress of the CPC on Oct. 16, 2022 in Beijing.

Alshammry said she has noticed that "change" was a buzzword in the report delivered to the 20th National Congress of the CPC by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, showing that these changes represent the achievements China has made, the changes in people's lives, and the commitments the CPC has made.

A picture taken by Eman Alshammry shows the face-changing technique in Sichuan Opera, a genre of opera culture in China. Eman Alshammry is very interested in traditional Chinese culture. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

"These changes are reflected through numbers and indexes. What's more, they can be seen through the improvement of people's wellbeing," she wrote.

"To be here in China is a valuable opportunity for me. My friends thought it was cool for me to come to China, as we know about the country but few of us have visited it," Alshammry told People's Daily Online. She came to China in the spring of 2022.

As a social affairs columnist, Alshammry has been given the Award of Media Excellence by the Ministry of Media of Saudi Arabia. After she came to China, Alshammry has the opportunity to present a vigorous and inclusive country to her readers through her unique perspective and writing.

Rural life in China through the mobile phone lens of Eman Alshammry. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

Alshammry also visited many famous energy enterprises in China and learned about their carbon reduction efforts and promotion of the use of renewable energy resources.  Later, she wrote an article explaining China's goal of carbon neutrality to readers in her country.

Alshammry pays a great deal of attention to poverty alleviation in China. Through interviews and lectures, she came to know about how China has managed to secure victory against poverty by developing industries and through relocation, education and training, over the past 10 years.

In an article she wrote titled "How China fights against poverty," Alshammry noted that the key to solving the problem lies in the country's adherence to a development-oriented path. Xi, who is also Chinese president, has said that poverty alleviation requires a change of attitude and discarding of the "poverty mentality," Alshammry wrote in her article.

Alshammry is interested in traditional Chinese culture. She shared a story with People's Daily Online about her encounter with Hanfu, the traditional clothing of the Han ethnic group in China, in a subway in Beijing, and asked about how she could buy a Hanfu costume.

A picture taken by Eman Alshammry shows the journalist documenting the camping craze in China. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

Knowing that Chinese Generation Z-ers show great interest in Hanfu, Alshammry said that Hanfu represents the aesthetics of China and that it is good practice to show the beauty of tradition in everyday life.

She will continue sharing her observations on China. "I will write more about China's achievements," she wrote. “This country is not at the mercy of fate; its fate is in its own hands."