Li Jiheng, secretary of the Inner Mongolia Party Committee, recently visited several veterans and retired cadres in Inner Mongolia to award them with commemorative medals and recognize their contribution during the revolutionary war.

Li Jiheng (second from the right) visits 93-year-old veteran Li Jingfan during the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Red Army’s Long March, in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous region. [Photo/nmgnews.cn]

To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Red Army’s Long March, Li Jiheng and Bu Xiaolin, president of Inner Mongolia autonomous region, conveyed greetings toward these veterans and retired cadres who participated in the revolutionary war and devoted their earnest efforts to the success of the revolution.

Li Jingfan, a 93-year-old veteran, enlisted in the war in September of 1936 during which the Red Army, which was composed of Chinese workers and peasants, was still doing the Long March to wrestle control of the country away from the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party) regime.

Li Jiheng awarded him a commemorative medal for the 80th anniversary of the end of the Chinese Red Army’s Long March, and also presented a subsidy to him. He also mentioned that the government as well as the people will remember all the contributions and sacrifices that veterans like him made during the war.

After the visiting, Li Jiheng pointed out that the spirit of the Long March has become a treasure of our generation, and motivated us to fight through difficulties to push forward. He urged the local government to be concerned about the living conditions of these veterans, and to make sure every preferential policy that could benefit them is in place and used.

Bu Xiaolin visited 89-year-old GuoYunlong at the Inner Mongolia Hospital, and expressed her concern about Guo’s health. During the visit, Guo recalled his war experiences and Bu commended his heroic deeds and exploits that could inspire people to strive for greatness with China’s modernization

Wu Lan, head of the Publicity Bureau of Inner Mongolia, came to Hulunbuir League to visit Wei Guomin, who was a Red Army soldier. Wang Zhonghe, secretary of CPC Baotou municipal committee, visited Zhao Long in Baotou. Many other officials paid a visit to local veterans and retired cadres.

The Long March, a 12,500-kilometer-long military expedition conducted by the Red Army and led by the Communist Party of China (CPC), was intended to free the country from control by the Kuomintang forces.

From 1934 to 1936, an 80,000-strong Red Army force took part in the epic trek, leaving their bases and marching through raging rivers, snowy mountains, and arid grasslands, which laid an important foundation for the Communist victory in the war.

Over three quarters of the soldiers died or were reported missing in the two-year span, marking it as a world-renowned sacrifice that has been forever engraved in the history of China's revolution and the Chinese nation.