A large crowd has gathered outside the Cordis Hotel in central Auckland to support and protest Chinese premier Li Qiang’s visit to New Zealand.
More than 100 people were assembled on the footpath amid tense scenes outside the hotel on both sides of the road shortly after 4pm on Friday.
Junying Li said she had been waiting outside the hotel since 7am, happy to brave the heavy showers that hit the city throughout the morning.
Li hoped the premier’s visit would help New Zealand and China enhance their bilateral relationship.
Supporters of Chinese premier Li Qiang stand alongside protestors outside the Cordis Hotel in Auckland on Friday.
Photo: RNZ / YITING LIN
Judy Liu attended the rally protesting Beijing’s treatment of the Falun Gong spiritual group.
Liu said her group wanted to raise awareness of the Chinese government’s violation of human rights.
Earlier in the day, the Chinese premier had expressed interest in further co-operation with New Zealand on food research.
Li visited the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research in Auckland on the second day of his visit.
The institute’s chief executive, Mark Piper, praised the long-term working relationship between the two countries in agriculture and food.
Chinese premier Li Qiang visits the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research in Auckland on Friday.
Photo: RNZ / YITING LIN
Li said many products from New Zealand, including kiwifruit and Rockit apples, were popular with Chinese people.
He said he would encourage Chinese scientific institutes to co-operate further with their New Zealand counterparts.
Dozens of Chinese people had stood outside the institute in heavy rain to welcome Li upon his arrival.
Premier Li is the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit New Zealand in seven years.
The trip coincides with the 10-year anniversary of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries.
Li received an official welcome on Thursday before a formal meeting at Government House in Wellington, where a range of topics were discussed, including bilateral trade and human rights.
The visit also comes against a backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions.
A crowd gathers outside the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research in Auckland to welcome Chinese premier Li Qiang on Friday.
Photo: RNZ / YITING LIN
