Ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival, a traditional Chinese holiday that symbolizes family reunions and falls on Tuesday this year, more than 200 people from both sides of the Taiwan Strait gathered in Fuzhou, capital of East China's Fujian province, to call for peaceful development.

Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, stressed upholding the one-China principle and the 1992 Consensus as well as resolutely opposing "Taiwan independence" while meeting with Taiwan guests attending the event on Thursday.

"It is a tradition for Chinese people to reunite with the whole family and celebrate the festival," Song said, adding that the Chinese mainland will actively boost the cross-Strait flow of personnel as well as exchanges and cooperation in various areas, and continue deepening integrated development across the Strait.

Hsia Li-yan, vice-chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang, said, "People from both the mainland and Taiwan are all Chinese and close as family."

The activity featured snacks, cultural performances and exhibitions by Taiwan firms. Guests from both sides, as well as children dressed in hanfu attire, joined hands to light lanterns, hoping together for a better future across the Strait.

The event was co-hosted by Fuzhou and Matsu — an island off the coast of Fujian and administered by Taiwan, which has become a frontier for interactions between Taiwan and the mainland. In April, the mainland announced the resumption of permitting Fujian residents to travel to Matsu, after suspension for several years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Weng Ying-min, executive vice-chairman of the Fuzhou Taiwan-funded Enterprises Association, said, "Local residents have a deep longing for mainland residents to visit Matsu and Kinmen for tourism, which would greatly benefit the local economies."

Chen Yi-ting, a member of the All-China Federation of Taiwan Compatriots, said: "It was particularly meaningful because compatriots from both sides gathered to celebrate the festival of reunion. Such moments are especially precious. In Taiwan, we also like to find a place to enjoy the fun of barbecuing together."

Wang Chenye and Wen Linxiangcontributed to this story.