China showcases strength, vitality on 60th founding anniversary

BEIJING, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- China staged a grand celebration in Tian'anmen Square at the heart of Beijing Thursday, showcasing the strength and vitality of Chinese-style socialism over the past 60 years.

President Hu Jintao addresses the celebrations for  the 60th anniversary of the founding of the  People's Republic of China, on the Tian'anmen  Rostrum in central Beijing, capital of China, Oct.  1, 2009. (Xinhua/Fan Rujun)

President Hu Jintao and other Chinese leaders viewed the two-hour pageant, which involved nearly 200,000 servicemen and women and civilians, from atop the Tian'anmen Rostrum, where Chairman Mao Zedong proclaimed the birth of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949.

A total of 60-gun salutes accompanied by the national anthem played by a 1,300-member military band and a solemn national flag-raising ceremony ushered in the beginning of the festivities.

Wearing a Mao suit, Hu stood in an open-top black Red Flag limousine to review the military formations, which assembled along Chang'an Avenue, part of which has been widened and reinforced for the weight of heavy military equipment to be displayed in the National Day parade.

"We must unswervingly follow the road of socialism with Chinese characteristics...and the reform and opening-up policy," Hu said in a speech atop the Tian'anmen Rostrum after reviewing the troops.