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Rally Held to Mark Tibet's Peaceful Liberation
More than 20,000 people gathered at a grand rally in front of the ancient Potala Palace Thursday to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the peaceful liberation of tibet.
Chinese Vice President Hu Jintao, currently heading a central government delegation participating in a series of celebrating activities here, presented a gold-plated plaque bearing an inscription by President Jiang Zemin to Tibet and delivered a keynote speech on the occasion.
The capital city of Lhasa Thursday is in gala decorations with colorful flags and flowers and people in beautiful ethnic costumes thronged the Polala Square holding bunches of flowers and "hada", a local ceremonial silk scarf regarded as a token of respect.
At 10:00 am, Raidi, chairman of the Standing Committee of the Tibet Autonomous Regional People's Congress, announced the opening of the rally and Wang Zhongyu, deputy head of the central government delegation, read the congratulating message sent to Tibet by the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the State Council, the National Committee of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and the Central Military Commission.
Amidst applause, Hu Jintao began his speech, in which he extended warm congratulations and cordial greetings to Tibetan people of all walks of life on this special occasion.
He lauded the peaceful liberation of Tibet a major event in modern Chinese history and an epoch-making turning point in the course of development of the region. Over the past 50 years, Tibet has undergone unrivaled changes and worked unprecedented miracles on earth under the correct guidance of the three generations of central collective leadership of the Party with Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin at the core respectively during different historical periods of Tibet's development, he said.
The past 50 years has brought to light a great truth: It is only under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, only in the embrace of the big family of the motherland and only by firmly taking the socialist road with Chinese characteristics that Tibet can enjoy today's prosperity and progress and an even better tomorrow, Hu said.
He pointed out that Tibet's development, stability and security have a direct bearing on the fundamental interests of people of all ethnic groups in Tibet as well as ethnic solidarity, national unity and state security. It is the common aspiration and mission of people of all ethnic groups in China, the Tibetan people included, to build on the prosperity and progress and maintain stability and solidarity in Tibet.
The Central Government ardently hopes that the vast number of cadres and people of Tibet will earnestly study and implement the essential points of President Jiang Zemin's speech on July 1 and the spirit of the fourth working conference on Tibet, and seize the opportunities to move the Tibetan economy from step-by-step development to leapfrog development and Tibetan society from relative stability to lasting peace and stability.
Guo Jinlong, secretary of the Tibet Autonomous Regional Committee of CPC, also pointed out in a following speech that without the leadership of the Communist Party of China, there would not have been today's Tibet. Tibetan people of all ethnic groups would unite together and further push forward the economic and social development in the region, he said.
As the final grand parade began, the Potala Square soon broke into a sea of joy: drums and musical instruments were played, slogans were chanted and people from all walks of life -- workers, farmers, herdsmen, lamas, intellectuals, cadres and students -- expressed their utmost happiness through singing and dancing.
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