Mass wedding in Beijing to include couples from SARs

A mass wedding ceremony will see 5,000 couples, including newlyweds from Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan, participating in Beijing on Sept. 22. Organized by the All-China Women’s Federation and five other organizations, the event encourages simplified weddings and discourages outdated practices like extravagant betrothal gifts. The ceremony will feature simultaneous celebrations nationwide via video. According to the Ministry of Civil Affairs, China recorded 7.68 million marriage registrations in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 12.4%, following recent reforms that simplify the registration process.