Foreign Friends Highly Praise Great Achievements of the People’s Republic of China in 60 Years

The activities in celebration of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China were held in Beijing from September 30 to October 1. At the invitation of the CPAFFC， 102 foreign friends from 17 countries and regions watched the military parade at the Tian’anmen Square and joined the masses in the evening gala. Tomiichi Murayama， former Japanese prime minister， Gian Franco Terenzi， former captain regent of San Marino， and other 55 foreign guests attended the National Day reception， as some foreign guests visited the “Splendid 60 Years—Achievement Exhibition on the 60th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China”. They all expressed their gratitude and the honour they felt for receiving invitation to these celebrations， and highly praised the great achievements China has made in the past six decades and the hospitality of the Chinese people.

After watching the National Day parade and the evening gala， G. F. Terenzi， president of the San Marino-China Friendship Association， said with excitement that the celebrations were perfect and that they were well-organized and filled with an atmosphere of rejoicing and festivity. Peter Woods， secretary general of UCLG-ASPAC， noted， China used to be in the lead in its splendid history of 5，000 years. Today， China has once again returned to the world centrestage as a lead runner. These celebration activities reflected the confidence and competence of the Chinese leaders and the Chinese people in building a prosperous country and maintaining world peace and social justice.

S. L. Tikhvinsky， honorary president of the Russia-China Friendship Association (RCFA)， was present at the ceremony of the founding of the People’s Republic of China 60 years ago. Despite his advanced years and inconvenience in getting about， he insisted on going to Tian’anmen Square to observe the military parade. He said， he felt incomparably excited that at the age of 91 he was invited to come to China to attend its National Day celebration. He could see a strong， prosperous and progressive China in the military parade. Mikhail Titarenko， president of the RCFA， described what he saw and heard at the Tian’anmen Square as a “dreamily beautiful landscape”. He said， the military parade， civilian parade and the evening gala mirrored the changes taken place in China over the past decades， with the military parade demonstrating the growth of China’s defence power and its solemn determination to safeguard peace and its territorial sovereignty， the civilian parade vividly displaying the great achievements made in economic development and social life during the past 60 years， and the evening gala helping one truly realize that “the reform and opening up policy opens the heart and soul of the Chinese people”， bringing them an affluent material and cultural life. The RCFA delegation highly praised the outstanding achievements made by New China in six decades， and said they saw a country full of vitality and vigour. They believed China has found a suitable road of development for itself， and as long as it continues to go on this road， China will achieve the great goal of building itself into a prosperous， strong， democratic， culturally advanced and harmonious society in the near future.

Banri Kaieda， member of the House of Representatives of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ)， said， he felt especially honoured to have the opportunity to attend the celebration marking the 60th anniversary of New China， and the new Japanese administration attaches great importance to its relationship with China. He believed the Japan-China relations would further develop under DPJ’s rule. During an interview with CCTV， Yoko Morishita， president of the Matsuyama Ballet Company， said the Chinese people are very passionate. She hoped they would bring this passion to the world and let it be filled with happiness. Yasuhiro Kobayashi， president of the Min-on Concert Association and Takeshi Kosumi， managing director of the Japan Organization of Kansai Unity， spoke highly of the organization and management of the activities on the National Day. They said， the National Day celebrations were tightly administered， secure and orderly， proving that the Chinese government has excellent ability to organize， plan and control. Yoshihisa Akiyama， chairman of the Japan Organization of Kansai Unity， and Kim Young Aeh， president of the Korea-China Friendship Association of Culture and Economy， agreed that China’s growth and stability play an important role in world peace and stability， and that China’s development helps the development of Japan， and Asia， even the world. China’s progress and its eye-catching achievements are the pride of the Chinese people and the people of Asia as well.

Charles J. Colgan， president of US Virginia Senate， said， through the military parade， people of the world witnessed the ever growing strength of the Chinese economy， science and technology，defence and its national unity， and experienced the power of China and the hospitality of its people. Seth Hammett， speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives， said that it was the most splendid National Day celebration he had seen and that it was a magnificent feat and a miracle that within only 60 years China has turned from an impoverished and weak country into a prosperous and strong one today. Ron Richard， speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives， said， peace， harmony and scientific approach to development advocated by China are the common pursuits of all humanity， and the military parade on this National Day displayed a peace-loving emerging power. Ken Smith， member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly of Australia， said， at the 60th anniversary of the founding of New China he visited the country and watched such a large scale and magnificent celebration. This is worthy to remember for life. After visiting the achievement exhibition on the 60th anniversary of the PRC， Dr. Nelly Ng， president of the Canadian Fund for International Understanding through Culture， said， the abundant results of China’s development in the past 60 years， especially the truly upgraded living standards of its people， are impressive. She mentioned， the various high display technologies used in the exhibition are the best evidence of the advancement of China’s science and technology， the super extra large overhead ring screen and the temperature and humidity control room representing advanced world level. Eric Livingstone， national president of the New Zealand-China Friendship Society， said， today’s China， from the 2008 Olympics to the 2009 National Day celebration， presented the audience with grand colourful visual feasts. He believed the coming 2010 World Expo in Shanghai would bring many more surprises to the world. Phil Midland， adviser to the president of US Georgetown University， and Eric Hotung， chairman of Hotung Institute for International Relations， said， the floats contributed by China’s provinces， autonomous regions and municipalities showed their respective thinking on development and their local features. They expressed the pride that the Chinese people felt in their hearts， which was really impressive.

Foreign nationality Chinese: Tom Loy， president of Australia China Friendship Society， Tang Jun， senior vice president of the Walt Disney Company of the U.S.， Zhang Xueyuan， director general of the US China Economic Development Corporation Ltd.， among others， felt proud of China from the bottom of their hearts. They said， as Chinese descendants， they were very excited to see the tremendous changes of their homeland and that the Chinese people have eventually stood up in the world.

Friends from Canada and the Oceanian region heading for Tian’anmen Square to view the National Day parade