Chinese President praises Tibet development, hails democratic reform

Source: Xinhua | 03-28-2009 08:14

BEIJING, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao said here Friday that the "good situation" in today's Tibet was "hard-earned and should be highly cherished."

Chinese President Hu Jintao, also general secretary of the  Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and  chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits an  exhibition marking the 50th Anniversary of Democratic  Reform in Tibet, at the Cultural Palace of Nationalities  in Beijing, capital of China, on March 27, 2009. (Xinhua Photo)

Hu said during his visit to an exhibition marking the 50th Anniversary of Democratic Reform in Tibet, at the Cultural Palace of Nationalities in Beijing, that the reform 50 years ago was "the most extensive, profound and progressive social transformation in the history of Tibet."

All the nine members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee visited the exhibition, including top legislator Wu Bangguo, Premier Wen Jiabao, and top political advisor Jia Qinglin.

The exhibition, opened on Feb. 24, 2009, showcases archives, cultural relics, photos, videos, and restored landscapes that have recorded the great changes Tibet has gone through since 1959, when serfdom was abolished.

The exhibits show that Tibet has been a part of China since the Yuan Dynasty (1271 to 1368 A.D.). Also exhibited are scenes of surfs being exploited by their owners in the old times and how they were liberated 50 years ago.