More than 1,000 people gathered in Shenyang in Northeast China's Liaoning Province Sunday to commemorate the Chinese soldiers who died during the Korean War.

War veterans and the general public held various activities for the 50th anniversary of the "War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea," the People's Daily reported.

Representatives from various groups laid floral baskets at the foot of Shenyang's war monument and stood in silent tribute.

During a memorial organized by the government of Southwest China's Sichuan Province, Yong Weitai, a veteran who fought in the battle of Shangganling Mountain, one of the fiercest in the war, said: "When only 19, I lost a leg in the war. But I never regret it because it was for my homeland."

Responding to an invitation from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Sichuan Province has organized two groups of retired soldiers to visit their former headquarters, the battlefield and the martyrs' cemetery in the DPRK.

Nearly 50,000 people visited a five-day exhibition in Beijing and filled four large notebooks with messages of love for the homeland.

Hundreds of former soldiers recollected their experiences in the Korean War at the exhibition.

Beijing's cinemas began a run of 10 films on the war the day before yesterday.

Chi Haotian, Chinese Defense Minister, called on the young to build a prosperous country and a mighty national defense, following the examples set by the Chinese People's Voluntary Army.

The article headlined "Just War Surely Wins" by Hong Xuezhi, former member of the Standing Committee of the State Central Military Commission, covered nearly a whole page of the People's Daily.

He introduced the history of the Korean War and mourned for the 140,000 soldiers who died heroic deaths.

(China Daily 10/25/2000)