CHINESE NATIONAL DAY


 

It is another year for the celebration of the National day of one of the world’s oldest civilizations and the fourth largest country in the world, the People’s Republic of China.

October 1 every year is an annual public holiday for the People’s Republic of China for it marks a day when the Chinese people celebrate the anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic, the fruit of a revolutionary struggle that saw an end to many decades of monarchy, marking the move towards enthronement of democracy. Exactly 73 years ago on October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong, the leader of the Red Army, declared the founding of the People’s Republic of China in Tian’anmen Square before a crowd of 300,000 people.

The decision to adopt October 1 as Chinese National Day was ratified by the First National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference on December 2, 1949. The chain of events that led to the declaration of the People’s Republic of China started with the Wuchang Uprising on October 10, 1911. This was followed by the abdication of Puyi, the last Chinese Emperor on February 12, 1912 which marked the official end of the Qing dynasty. Next was the Chinese Civil war, fought in 1927 and was followed, after several years, by the declaration of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949.

Chinese National Day is celebrated throughout mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau from October 1 till October 7. It is a day that honors the existence of two entities in China, traditional and modern china. The event, which is celebrated in grand style, features a variety of festivities, grand fireworks, cultural events, public space decoration with flags and flowers. Chinese National day is also known as the Golden week Holiday, the second largest holiday in China and marks the longest week for tourism when families make long journeys to visit relatives and reunite with their loved ones.   

Highlights of the celebration are national civil-military parade in Beijing held on a small scale every 5 years and on a large scale every 10 years. This is followed by a special flag raising ceremony at Tian’anmen Square which commences exactly at sunrise on the day of the celebration. There are also firework displays and light shows in the city and a closure of government offices.

The Chinese flag also known as the Five-star Red Flag is a Chinese red field with five golden stars charged at the canton. It is symbolic to the Chinese people for a number of reasons. The red background stands for the Chinese Communist Revolution. The five yellow stars represent the unity of Chinese people under the leadership of the Communist Party while the orientation of the stars shows that the unity of the Republic should revolve around a centre.

In all, Chinese National Day is a very unique and special one for it marks the end of the dynastic rule and the march towards democracy. It is an important milestone in the history of the Chinese people and one which they cherish and treasure with so much love and fondness.

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