Speaking to hundreds of officials and citizens yesterday, President Hu Jintao hailed Deng Xiaoping as the architect of China's economic reforms on the 100-year anniversary of the late supreme leader's birth.
Deng, who died in 1997, is also known as the crusher of the 1989 pro-democracy movement at Tiananmen Square. Hu referred to the event in his speech.
"Facing the political upheavals at home and abroad in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Deng ... firmly supported the party and government," Hu said. This helped the party and nation "to stand the severe tests and uphold the correct course of socialism with Chinese characteristics."
Deng developed the "one country, two systems" model that China purports to apply to Taiwan and Hong Kong. In his speech, Hu vowed that Beijing will stick to that principle.
"Great progress has been made in the reunification of the motherland, over which Deng had showed great concern, as Hong Kong and Macao have returned to the motherland ... and we are working for the final settlement of the Taiwan issue," Hu said.
China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened war if the nation takes formal steps toward independence.
Hu urged the Chinese people to "firmly safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity" by opposing Taiwan independence.
"We are ready to strive for the prospects of peaceful reunification with our utmost sincerity and utmost efforts, but we are also fully determined and capable of smashing any scheme to separate Taiwan from China," he said.Hu praised Deng as a man who always made the people's interests a priority.
"In his whole life comrade Deng Xiaoping kept his words: to spare no efforts to do things that are good to the people," said Hu, whose hourlong tribute at the Great Hall of the People was punctuated by applause.
A giant portrait of a smiling Deng hung from the center of the stage, flanked on each side by four Chinese flags.
"The creative ideas of late leader Deng Xiaoping and the policies he put forward have provided a strong theoretical guidance to the continuous development of the cause of the Party and people," said Hu, who was picked by Deng to succeed former President Jiang Zemin.
Born in Guangan, a poverty-striken area in Sichuan, Deng launched China's economic reforms in 1978, establishing special economic zones and courting the foreign investment that led to a two-decade-long economic boom.
The leap toward capitalism would transform China into a global economic power as the world began to realize the potential of a market packed with 1.3 billion people.
Hu's speech was broadcast live on state television, and stories and photos about Deng filled state-run newspapers.
In a front page editorial, the Communist Party's People's Daily newspaper named him "the son of the Chinese people."
"The most important historical contribution by comrade Deng Xiaoping is his great decision for reform and opening up and his creation of a road to socialist modernization," the editorial said. "He will live in the Chinese people's hearts forever."
Seven people sustained mostly minor injuries in an airplane fire in South Korea, authorities said yesterday, with local media suggesting the blaze might have been caused by a portable battery stored in the overhead bin. The Air Busan plane, an Airbus A321, was set to fly to Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in southeastern Busan, but caught fire in the rear section on Tuesday night, the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. A total of 169 passengers and seven flight attendants and staff were evacuated down inflatable slides, it said. Authorities initially reported three injuries, but revised the number
‘BALD-FACED LIE’: The woman is accused of administering non-prescribed drugs to the one-year-old and filmed the toddler’s distress to solicit donations online A social media influencer accused of filming the torture of her baby to gain money allegedly manufactured symptoms causing the toddler to have brain surgery, a magistrate has heard. The 34-year-old Queensland woman is charged with torturing an infant and posting videos of the little girl online to build a social media following and solicit donations. A decision on her bail application in a Brisbane court was yesterday postponed after the magistrate opted to take more time before making a decision in an effort “not to be overwhelmed” by the nature of allegations “so offensive to right-thinking people.” The Sunshine Coast woman —
BORDER SERVICES: With the US-funded International Rescue Committee telling clinics to shut by tomorrow, Burmese refugees face sudden discharge from Thai hospitals Healthcare centers serving tens of thousands of refugees on the Thai-Myanmar border have been ordered shut after US President Donald Trump froze most foreign aid last week, forcing Thai officials to transport the sickest patients to other facilities. The International Rescue Committee (IRC), which funds the clinics with US support, told the facilities to shut by tomorrow, a local official and two camp committee members said. The IRC did not respond to a request for comment. Trump last week paused development assistance from the US Agency for International Development for 90 days to assess compatibility with his “America First” policy. The freeze has thrown
PINEAPPLE DEBATE: While the owners of the pizzeria dislike pineapple on pizza, a survey last year showed that over 50% of Britons either love or like the topping A trendy pizzeria in the English city of Norwich has declared war on pineapples, charging an eye-watering ￡100 (US$124) for a Hawaiian in a bid to put customers off the disputed topping. Lupa Pizza recently added pizza topped with ham and pineapple to its account on a food delivery app, writing in the description: “Yeah, for ￡100 you can have it. Order the champagne too! Go on, you monster!” “[We] vehemently dislike pineapple on pizza,” Lupa co-owner Francis Wolf said. “We feel like it doesn’t suit pizza at all,” he said. The other co-owner, head chef Quin Jianoran, said they kept tinned pineapple
RSS