SCIO press conference on strengthening heritage conservation to carry forward Chinese civilization
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E-mail China.org.cn, August 11, 2023
Speakers:
Mr. Li Qun, vice minister of culture and tourism and administrator of the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA)
Mr. Jin Ruiguo, spokesperson of the NCHA and director general of the Department of Policies and Regulations of the NCHA
Mr. Deng Chao, director general of the Department of Cultural Relics and Historic Sites of the NCHA
Mr. Yan Yalin, director general of the Department of Archaeology of the NCHA
Mr. Liu Yang, director general of the Department of Museums and Social Relics of the NCHA
Mr. Wen Dayan, director general of the Department of Communication and Cooperation of the NCHA
Chairperson:
Ms. Xing Huina, deputy director general of the Press Bureau of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) and spokesperson of the SCIO
Date:
July 28, 2023
Xing Huina:
Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO). Today, we are holding the 22nd press conference in the series "Embarking on the New Journey — A Government Perspective." We have invited Mr. Li Qun, vice minister of culture and tourism and administrator of the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA), to brief you on strengthening heritage conservation to carry forward Chinese civilization. He will also be available to answer your questions.
Also joining us today are Mr. Jin Ruiguo, spokesperson of the NCHA and director general of the Department of Policies and Regulations of the NCHA; Mr. Deng Chao, director general of the Department of Cultural Relics and Historic Sites of the NCHA; Mr. Yan Yalin, director general of the Department of Archaeology of the NCHA; Mr. Liu Yang, director general of the Department of Museums and Social Relics of the NCHA; and Mr. Wen Dayan, director general of the Department of Communication and Cooperation of the NCHA.
Now, I'll give the floor to Mr. Li Qun for a brief introduction.
Li Qun:
Thank you, chairperson. Hello, friends from the media! First, on behalf of the NCHA, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all our media friends for your continued care, support and help for China's cultural heritage development. Today, my colleagues and I will share with you what we have done in strengthening heritage conservation to carry forward Chinese civilization.
Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has attached unprecedented importance to cultural heritage work. General Secretary Xi Jinping has given more than 160 important instructions, and presided over three group study sessions of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee which focused on the latest archaeological discoveries in China and their significance; further advancing the project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization; and putting resources related to the Party's heritage to great use and sustaining the Party's revolutionary legacy. Since the beginning of this year, the general secretary has participated in a meeting on cultural inheritance and development, and delivered an important speech; visited the Sanxingdui Museum, the Pingjiang Historic and Cultural Block, and the Yuncheng Museum; and sent congratulatory letters to the General Assembly of the Alliance for Cultural Heritage in Asia, the first Forum on Building up China's Cultural Strength, the third Dialogue on Exchanges and Mutual Learning among Civilizations and the first World Conference of Sinologists.
The NCHA prioritizes the study, promotion, and implementation of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important expositions and instructions on cultural heritage work, alongside the guiding principles of the 20th CPC National Congress. We have made solid efforts to promote the high-quality development of China's cultural heritage cause, mainly focusing on the following six aspects:
First, the NCHA has strengthened the protection of cultural relics and heritage. We have always safeguarded precious cultural heritage as we cherish our own lives. We advanced the revision of the Law on the Protection of Cultural Relics, and have made great progress in various aspects, such as cultural relic protection, the utilization of the value of cultural relics, retrieval and return of lost cultural relics, and combating cultural relic-related crimes. The NCHA has established the first batch of demonstration zones for the protection and utilization of revolutionary cultural relics, joined hands with relevant departments to introduce the three-year action plan for protecting covered bridges, and promoted the protection and utilization of historic sites like the Mogao Grottoes, the Wooden Pagoda in Yingxian County, and the Dazu Rock Carvings. The NCHA has been actively promoting and preparing for the fourth national census of cultural relics and the development of China's national tourism routes themed on cultural heritage. The NCHA and other relevant departments have jointly issued the construction and protection plan for the Yellow River National Culture Park, significantly strengthening the protection and management of over 300,000 immovable cultural relics in nine provincial regions along the Yellow River. This has further improved the level of protection and inheritance of cultural relics and heritage along the Yellow River. The NCHA has maintained a strong stance on cracking down on cultural relic-related crimes. Since launching another round of special operations to prevent and crack down on cultural relic-related crimes in October last year, we have solved more than 700 cases, arrested over 1,700 criminal suspects, and recovered over 110,000 cultural relics. The NCHA has conducted special inspections and rectification actions to address major risks and hidden hazards in the cultural relic sector, and prevented over 16,000 fire risks and potential accidents.
Second, the NCHA has deepened archaeological research on cultural relics. We strive to achieve a comprehensive framework, broad perspectives, and significant development for Chinese archaeology in the new era. The NCHA has continued to advance the project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization, and 18 major initiatives under the Archaeology China program, including the study on Xia dynasty (2070 -1600 B.C.) culture. We've also launched 268 proactive archaeological projects and held a special exhibition on the origins and early development of Chinese civilization, continually promoting in-depth research into the history of Chinese civilization. The successful overall salvage of the Yangtze River Estuary No. 2 Ancient Vessel and the relocation of the ship into the dock in its entirety adopts the world's most advanced technology which uses arc beams for non-contact migration of cultural relics. This showcased China's innovative capabilities in cultural heritage protection science and technology. China has made significant breakthroughs in deep-sea archaeology. We discovered large ancient sunken ships in waters of the South China Sea and established a permanent underwater surveying base point in the southwest corner of the shipwreck site, marking a new stage in underwater archaeology. The fourth batch of national archaeological site parks has been announced, bringing the total number of such parks in China to 55. We've implemented the important system of "archaeological research before transfer of land for major urban construction" in 23 provincial regions. Archaeological work has been carried out in advance and steadily during the development of initiatives such as Beijing's sub-center, the Xiong'an New Area and new urbanization projects. The archaeological efforts at the Luxian ancient city site and the Shuomen ancient port ruins site have become new models for cultural heritage protection in urban and rural construction.
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