Central government officials in Tibet for 50th anniversary

World Today

Top Chinese political advisor Yu Zhengsheng, along with a central government delegation, will attend a ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of the founding of Tibet Autonomous Region.

Yu, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and 64 other delegates arrived in Tibet’s capital Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region on Sunday, Sept. 6, to attend a grand celebration ceremony in front of the symbolic Potala Palace soon to be held in Lhasa.

They will also bring presents to the Tibetan people, a government statement said earlier without going into detail. In 2005, central authorities sent a solar cooker to every farmer and herdsman household when celebrating the autonomous region’s 40th birthday.

On his arrival in Lhasa, Yu thanked Tibetan officials for their great efforts in Tibet’s reform and development and in improving the people’s living standards.

The Tibet Autonomous Region was founded on Sept. 1, 1965, after the establishment of the regional People’s Congress, which is the local legislature.

On Sunday, the Chinese central government issued a white paper on Tibet, saying that the region has established a new socialist system and achieved historic progresses in its economic and social development since regional ethnic autonomy came into practice in 1965.

Last month, President Xi Jinping vowed a focus on long-term, comprehensive stability and an unswerving anti-separatism battle in Tibet at a key work meeting.