Inner Mongolia's anniversary feted

On special plaque, Xi says, 'Fulfill a great China Dream together'

With best wishes from across the country, a delegation led by Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, arrived in Hohhot, capital of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Monday.

The 63-person delegation, mainly composed of officials from departments of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the central government, is to convey congratulations for the 70th anniversary of the autonomous region's establishment.

"Construct a bright and beautiful Inner Mongolia, and fulfill a great China Dream together," President Xi Jinping wrote on a plaque inscribed in Mandarin and Mongolian. It will be hung in the central hall of the Inner Mongolia Museum.

"The words bear the great expectation from the Central Committee of the CPC for Inner Mongolia to have an even brighter tomorrow," Vice-Premier Liu Yandong, deputy head of the delegation, said at a ceremony at the museum dedicating the plaque.

"It speaks highly of the region's rich history and great achievements," she said. "People here have presented an unprecedentedly grand picture in the past 70 years. ... Inner Mongolia has a great potential and a glorious mission."

Liu said she expects the autonomous region to play an important role in the country's overall development blueprint and connect with the rest of world via the Belt and Road Initiative.

She said interdependence and joint efforts among different ethnic groups build a foundation toward achieving the China Dream.

The plaque is among myriad gifts brought by the delegation.

Zhang Ping, deputy head of the standing committee of National People's Congress, said the other gifts range from artworks and books to multimedia teaching instruments and toys for schools and kindergartens as well as household appliances for social welfare institutions. About 300,000 sets of devices to make milk tea will be given to families in pasture areas.

Delegation members visited an ongoing exhibition reviewing decades of development in Inner Mongolia. They also met representatives from military units and armed polices stationed in the region. An evening gala was held on Monday night for the anniversary. The main celebration meeting planned for Tuesday afternoon.

The Inner Mongolia autonomous region was founded in 1947 as the first of China's five province-level autonomous regions.

"The founding of the autonomous region created a new history for Inner Mongolia and new ways to handle ethnic issues with Chinese characteristics," Bataar, director of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission, explained.

wangkaihao@chinadaily.com.cn