The Paper:

Nowadays, an increasing number of people are enjoying "red tourism." Could you tell us what the features of red tourism are? And what measures will be rolled out to boost its development to mark the 100th anniversary of the CPC's founding? Thank you.

Hu Heping:

During the CPC's century-long struggle, a large number of revolutionary sites and artifacts have been preserved. At present, there are 36,000 immovable revolutionary relics, and over 1 million pieces or sets of movable ones in the country. Among them, we are very familiar with the sites of the first CPC national congress and Zunyi Conference, Jinggangshan and Yan'an revolutionary sites, as well as Loushan Pass, site of the Battle of Lazikou and the iron-chain bridge along the route of Long March, plus the translation of "The Communist Manifesto" by Chen Wangdao, the first person to translate it into Chinese, the manuscript of "Lovely China" by Fang Zhimin and the Five-starred Red Flag rising at the founding ceremony of the People's Republic of China in 1949. The Party's splendid development is recorded in these relics, which have become spiritual treasures reminding us of the arduous struggles and glory days. 

In recent years, people have developed a stronger interest in learning about revolutionary history and enjoying revolutionary culture, while visiting revolutionary sites, memorials and museums has become increasingly popular, leading to the gradual development of red tourism. From 2004 to 2019, with the expansion of national red tourism resources, more and more valuable relics have been unveiled. Meanwhile, the number of annual red tourism trips has increased from 140 million to 1.41 billion. Many revolutionary sites have become places where middle-aged and older people recall the passions of the past and feel the changes of time, and where young people learn revolutionary stories and honor the heroes. Some destinations are increasingly popular, such as Yan'an, a sacred place of revolution, which includes such attractions as Yan'an Revolutionary Memorial Hall, Yangjialing Revolutionary Site, Zaoyuan Revolutionary Site and Baota Mountain, which are packed with visitors during holidays. Those visiting include several generations of families, and even many people from overseas. In 2019, there were over 73 million visits to Yan'an.    

Red tourism not only meets people's demands for travel and learning about revolutionary tradition, but also promotes the economic development of revolutionary bases. For instance, Pingshan county in Hebei province, featuring the revolutionary base Xibaipo, relies on red tourism to develop rural tourism, pick-your-own fruit orchards and gift shops, employing over 80,000 workers and boosting people's incomes.  

For the CPC's centenary celebration, we will further the development of red tourism, combining learning and education about CPC history, in order to provide more quality products and services. We will release "100 selected red tours" and launch various events to mark the centenary, such as a contest for tour guides on revolutionary history, organizing top storytellers to visit government departments, campuses, troop units and tell revolutionary stories. Many revolutionary tourist attractions and travel agencies have also launched various activities to attract tourists, allowing them to learn about revolutionary traditions. We will also organize revolutionary research and study tours, and hold a red tourism planning and creativity competition for college students to guide them to learn more about the struggles of their predecessors.  

In addition, we have recently been planning a national work meeting on revolutionary relics to roll out overall arrangements for enhancing the protection of relics, boosting the development of memorials and museums, as well as promoting red tourism based on revolutionary relics. This will help people better protect relics, carry forward the revolutionary spirit, and create better conditions for visitors on red tourism trips. Thank you.

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