Broadcasting Time: 2006-10-04

Hello, and welcome to this edition of China Horizons, which falls into the week of our National Day Holiday. I'm Wang Lu. On October 1st fifty-seven years ago, the country solemnly announced the founding of the People's Republic of China. And seventy years ago the same month, the historical Long March successfully ended. In this edition of China Horizons, we dedicate our time to remember those who sacrificed their lives for the establishment of New China. We also commemorate the momentous revolutionary strategy of the Long March. First, we will follow our reporter to retrace the Long March with a special group of footstep-followers—the children of those who went on the legendary journey. Then we will follow the tune of the Suite of the Long March and recapture the spiritual tempo brought by the historical event. Finally, on our traveling road, we will pay a visit to Chengguan in southwestern China's Guizhou province, which was an important site for the success of the Long March. For all this and more, stay tuned to China Horizons.

Late in 1934, China's Red Army launched a massive feat, the momentous Long March, which ended in October 1936. This year in honor of the 70th anniversary of the successful conclusion of the march, commemorative activities are being held all over China to observe this turning point in China's revolution. Organizations and individuals from different backgrounds have initiated their own treks along the route of the historical March. On today's program, our reporter Wang Jing takes us to retrace the Long March with a special group of footstep-followers—the children of those who went on the legendary journey.

In October 1936, Yan'an, in Sha'anxi Province in northwest China, witnessed the final victory of the Red Army's Long March, and welcomed the arrival of those that later became the state's founders.
While on August 25th, 2006, 70 years later, Yan'an witnessed yet another successful trek, welcoming another group of special guests: 51 descendents of the state's founders, including Premier Zhou Enlai's niece, Zhou Bingde, the son-in-law of Marshal Zhu De, Liu Zheng, and Marshal Peng Dehuai's niece, Peng Gang.
Most members of this special group are already seniors, ranging from their early 50s to late 70s. Setting off from Ninhua in southeast China's Fujian Province, the team started their journey on July 19th, heading towards Yan'an in Sha'anxi Province. Along their 37-day trek, the team went through 11 provinces and over 8000 km before successfully arriving at their destination on August 25th.
At the foot of Baota Hill in Yan'an, team members celebrated their success of another dream fulfilled, completing another round of the Long March. Looking back on their journey, they were happy to be able to obtain a better understanding, personally, of their forefathers. The excitement went beyond what Zuo Taibei could physically bear. She is the daughter of Zuo Quan, former Deputy Chief of Staff of the Eight Route Army.

"My father died in the anti-Japanese war in 1942. I got to know about him only from books. But through this journey, I feel I've gotten closer to him. When plodding through the grassy swamp, my father risked his own life to taste different types of weeds to see which were edible. He tried more than 60 kinds of weeds and found that 30 of them could serve as food. These were exactly the wild weeds and scarce, coarse grain that supported the Red Army to the success of their arduous journey. They achieved an epic triumph after conquering unimaginable difficulties and left numerous moving stories along the road. I just couldn't help controlling my emotions."
As soon as the suggestion to retrace the footpath of the Red Army was proposed, feedback from families of the state’s founders has always been positive. The number of applicants amounted to over 200. The son of Marshal Luo Ronghuan, also the chief organizer of the modern Long March, Luo Dongjin has this to say:

"They are all enthusiastic about this activity. However, taking into account the hardship of this journey, we had to screen out some people, who suffer from unstable health conditions, and keep the group small. It's a pity for us as well as for those who could not make this trip."
Eventually 51 of the applicants, those mainly from the families of former marshals and senior generals, got the chance to embark on the adventure.

All along the route, the group's members were all deeply touched by the massive courage, strong will-power, and firm resolve of their forefathers to overcome unimaginable difficulties one after another.
Arriving at the memorial sites where the dauntless Red Army soldiers once fought and shed blood, none of them could hold back their tears.
Xiang Jiang River is one of the places the group pays tributes to, where the earth-shattering battle, Battle over Xiangjiang River, took place. More than 50 thousand soldiers lost their lives in the battle that accounts for the worst loss along the road of the Long March.
As the group began to approach Xiangjiang River, vivid pictures of the cruel battle entered most of their minds. Peng Gang, niece of Marshal Peng DeHuai, talks with emotion.