China's Communist Party is celebrating its ninetieth anniversary

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2011-7-1

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

China's Communist Party is celebrating its ninetieth anniversary. A small group of intellectuals established the party in July of nineteen twenty-one in Shanghai. In nineteen forty-nine, after a long civil war, the Communist Party defeated the Nationalists and took power under Mao Zedong.

On Friday, events celebrating the party's anniversary took place in schools, offices and shopping centers across the nation.

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President Hu Jintao gave a speech to thousands of party officials at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

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President Hu said the Communist Party, to continue its rule, must adapt to a changing nation and a changing world.

He said that without continued fast economic development and social order, the gains of the past twenty years will be lost.

President Hu urged the party to fight corruption and create what he described as a clean government. He warned that acts of corruption by party members who hold political office could cause the public to lose trust.

In his speech, the president said that in the past, the Communist Party has made mistakes and suffered setbacks. He said the party learned from its mistakes and today is leading the Chinese to a victorious future. He said that after ninety years, it is clear that only the Communist Party can properly govern China.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. For more news, go to testbig.com. I'm Steve Ember.

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Contributing: Peter Simpson


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