Anniversary held to commemorate Norman Bethune
The legacy of Doctor Norman Bethune is being invoked at a time of strained ties between Canada and China.
On the 80th anniversary of Bethune's passing, marked at a Canada and China Medical-Healthcare Innovation forum last weekend in Markham, Canada, both Chinese and Canadian medical professionals hailed Bethune as an internationalist who helped strengthen ties between the two countries over several decades with his selfless medical work in China.
"We want to (continue) to promote exchanges. The Canada-China relationship started with Norman Bethune. Although the current relationship is not desirable, the Bethune legacy goes to smooth relations, and I believe it will get better," said Wang Peizhong, organizer of the forum and a professor of epidemiology at the Memorial University of Newfoundland.
