Steve Georganas (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'm very proud to represent a very multicultural seat with lots of celebrations. This past week was an exceptional week in which we celebrated the incredible lunar new year. These celebrations took place all across Adelaide, marking the Year of the Snake for 2025—a symbol of wisdom, transformation and resilience. Celebrations started off last week at the South Australian Zhu-Lin Buddhist Association's temple. The SA Zhu-Lin Buddhist Association hosted a truly remarkable celebration, which thousands attended to see in the Year of the Snake at midnight. It featured fireworks, lion dances and other traditional activities. It was a magnificent event full of joy and full of celebration. Seeing the community celebrate the Year of the Snake and bring in the new year was a fantastic sight.

My heartfelt thanks go to Quoc Long Ha, the president of the association, and Mr Charles Tran, a senior committee member, for personally inviting me, as they do every year. I've been attending this very special event for nearly the last 20 years. I'd also like to thank Mrs Say Kapsis for her support and of course my very good friend Stephen Chueng, who's been on the committee on and off over the last 20 years and who's always a fixture at this particular event.

The Chinese new year was also celebrated at a dinner at the Adelaide Zoo, which was hosted by the Premier and the honourable Consul-General of China. The highlight of the event, which made it even more special, was the arrival of two giant pandas, Xing Qiu and Yi Lan, to the Adelaide Zoo; these majestic animals are now available for public viewing. They perfectly complemented the lunar new year festivities, adding harmony and cultural significance. A special thankyou to the Consul-General of China, Mr Li Dong, for making this possible for us and for his hard work, together with the Premier of South Australia and the federal minister for trade, Don Farrell, in getting exports back into China. He should be recognised for the enormous work he's done with the federal government and the state government of South Australia.

On top of that, on the weekend the SA chapter of the Vietnamese Community in Australia hosted the Tet Festival, with the theme 'Home away from home'. This year marks 50 years since South Australia welcomed Vietnamese boat people, a resilient community that has done so well. They've overcome adversity to enrich our nation. Their contributions not only benefit Vietnamese Australians but enrich the lives of all Australians.

This weekend we have the Chinatown Adelaide Lunar New Year Street Party in my electorate, and I'm looking forward to attending that in Chinatown in the federal seat of Adelaide; it promises to be another vibrant celebration. May the Year of the Snake bring health, happiness and prosperity. (Time expired)

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