- Title: Beijing residents "thrilled" by 70th anniversary parade
- Date: 1st October 2019
- Summary: BEIJING, CHINA (OCTOBER 1, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF TANKS BEING DRIVEN DOWN BEIJING STREET AND PEOPLE WATCHING AND TAKING VIDEOS OR PHOTOS ON PHONES (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) RETIREE, 70, YAN BAOTIAN, SAYING: "I feel very excited! From Chairman Mao's leadership, from when the "new" China was built till now is 70 years. From a country that was extremely poor and lagged behind other (countries) to the flourishing state that we see our motherland is now. China, you could say has joined the world's elite. Its military and economy are both now among the world's elite. As someone who is the same age as the People's Republic, I feel full of gratitude and pride." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE USING PHONES TO RECORD OR TAKE PHOTOS OF TANKS DRIVING BY CHILDREN SITTING AND HOLDING CHINESE NATIONAL FLAGS AS THEY LOOK ON (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) STUDENT, 12, ZHANG HUAIQIU, SAYING: "I feel so thrilled. I got a taste of China's military might. It really broadened my horizons." VARIOUS OF TANKS BEING DRIVEN ON STREET AND PEOPLE WATCHING PEOPLE LOOKING ON TANK BEING DRIVEN, PEOPLE WATCHING MEMBER OF PEOPLE'S ARMED POLICE LOOKING ON POLICEMAN STANDING, TANK DRIVING BY (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) 37, CHEN YANG, SAYING: "You have seen as well, there are huge crowds of people out. Everyone is very excited. Everyone hopes to see our great motherland becoming more and more powerful. Only if our motherland is powerful enough can we feel more stable and secure, lead a life with less worry and feel even happier." VARIOUS OF MILITARY VEHICLES BEING DRIVEN ON STREET VARIOUS OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS LUO LAN AND LU FEI (VISITING FROM TIANJIN ESPECIALLY FOR THE PARADE) WATCHING VIDEOS OF MILITARY PARADE ON PHONE AND HOLDING CHINESE NATIONAL FLAGS (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) UNIVERSITY STUDENT, 19, LUO LAN, SAYING: "It is so thrilling, majestic and had such great momentum. And I feel so proud of my country. So so proud!" VARIOUS OF MILITARY VEHICLES BEING DRIVEN ON ROAD VARIOUS OF 63-YEAR-OLD UNIVERSITY LIBRARY WORKER LIU SHUXIAN WATCHING LIVE BROADCAST OF MILITARY PARADE ON PHONE AT HOME (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) UNIVERSITY LIBRARY WORKER AND BEIJING RESIDENT, 63, LIU SHUXIAN, WHEN ASKED WHAT UPSETS HIM MOST ABOUT HOW CHINA HAS CHANGED OVER THE COURSE OF HIS LIFETIME, SAYING: "I think that Chinese people, having perhaps been under the feudal rule of emperors for over 2,000 years, are like, 'whatever you decide, I will follow,'. Although this point in some ways has its pros, for example at work, 'whatever the leader or boss (at your work) says you follow' which makes the leader or boss happy. But I think this is a little irresponsible. There are times when you should have different views on things (but we don't). We should hear these different views." PEOPLE WALKING, CHILD CARRYING NATIONAL FLAG CHINESE NATIONAL FLAG
- Embargoed: 15th October 2019 09:37
- Keywords: China 70th anniversary tanks military vehicles parade people vox pops Beijing
- Location: BEIJING, CHINA
- City: BEIJING, CHINA
- Country: China
- Topics: Defence,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA001AZ9KAPZ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: As China's National Day military parade wound up on Tuesday (October 1), thousands of people gushing with pride lined the streets of Beijing to watch the display of country's military might.
The parade, which included roughly 15,000 troops and a display of some of China's newest military hardware, was a celebration of the 70th anniversary of the founding of Communist China.
In Beijing - where images of events like the Tiananmen square crackdown are heavily censored and China's wartime victories are glorified in daytime TV serials - among those who spoke to Reuters, praise for the military show was unanimous.
Organisers last month said 30,000 Beijing residents were selected to view the parade itself, which caused central Beijing to come to a standstill on Tuesday, but citizens of all ages - many carrying flags - began lining city streets hours in advance.
This year's parade holds extra significance for President Xi Jinping, as the country looks to bolster patriotism at home in the face of mounting domestic and foreign challenges.
Preparations for the anniversary parade have been heavily publicised over the past month, while authorities have stepped up blanket censorship of negative coverage of riots in Hong Kong, which have been an ongoing challenge to Beijing for almost four months.
While perceptions of China have weakened in western countries over the past 18 months amid the ongoing China-U.S. trade war, the Communist Party and Xi remain widely popular in China.
(Production: Martin Pollard) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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