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    October 09, 2011

China Marks Centennial End of Dynasty With New Call for Reunification

   VOA News
   China's President Hu Jintao (L), former President Jiang Zemin (C) and
   Premier Wen Jiabao (R) attend the commemoration of the 100th
   anniversary of the Xinhai Revolution at the Great Hall of the People in
   Beijing, October 9, 2011.
   Photo: Reuters
   China's President Hu Jintao (L), former President Jiang Zemin (C) and
   Premier Wen Jiabao (R) attend the commemoration of the 100th
   anniversary of the Xinhai Revolution at the Great Hall of the People in
   Beijing, October 9, 2011.

   China has marked the 100th anniversary of the revolution that ended two
   millennia of nearly unbroken imperial rule. Festivities in Beijing
   Sunday included calls for the reunification of Taiwan and the Chinese
   mainland, and a surprise public appearance by the ailing former Chinese
   President Jiang Zemin.
   Current President Hu Jintao, speaking to top Communist Party officials,
   said reunification through peaceful means meets the fundamental
   interests of the Chinese people. He also called on party leaders to
   strengthen Chinese opposition to Taiwanese independence.
   Hu also used his address to call on Beijing and Taipei to "cooperate in
   the peaceful resolution of bilateral relations," while increasing
   "economic competitiveness on both sides of the [Taiwan] straits."
   Former President Jiang attended the ceremonies months after widespread
   media speculation that he had died or was close to death.
   Jiang, 85, failed to appear in early July at a celebration marking the
   90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist party. His absence
   sparked intense media speculation in Hong Kong about his medical
   condition, with some reports saying he had died and other saying he was
   hospitalized in Beijing near death. China dismissed those reports as
   rumor.
   China's 1911 Xinhai revolution marked the overthrow of the Qing dynasty
   and abruptly ended 2000 years of almost uninterrupted dynastic rule.
   The Republic of China, led by Sun Yat-sen, was established weeks later.
   However, that government fled to Taiwan in 1949 following a civil war
   victory by Mao Zedong's communists over Chiang Kai-shek's nationalists.
   Beijing still describes Taiwan as a renegade province and has
   threatened to use force to reunify if Taipei declares independence.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.

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