Press Conference Regarding Key Projects and Activities Organized by Host City of Cultural Heritage Day of State Administration of Cultural Heritage Held in Beijing

In order to let the general public better know the latest key projects in the field of cultural heritage and activities arranged for this year’s Cultural Heritage Day, a press conference was held in Beijing on May 24 by State Administration of Cultural Heritage, Shandong Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage and Jining City Government.

Dong Baohua, deputy director of State Administration of Cultural Heritage, chaired the press conference and delivered a short address. He pointed out that the theme of this year’s Cultural Heritage Day was “Cultural Heritage and Better Life”, meaning that the preservation of cultural heritage is the common cause of the general public and cultural heritage is closed linked with people’s daily lives as it is the foundation for a better life. The undertaking of cultural heritage could play a more important role in enriching people’s spiritual and cultural life, building a well-off society in all aspects and enhancing the overall quality of the whole nation. Take museum as an example, since the launch of the free admission campaign of museum in 2008, which was a huge cultural project beneficial to the people, museums have been better integrated into the society. The public cultural service functions and social influence have been noticeably enhanced. It has become an ideal choice for people to visit museums for cultural entertainment and appreciation of highbrow art, which provides people with unique cultural experiences in the museum – palace of knowledge and art.

Li Yaoshen, spokesman of State Administration of Cultural Heritage and Head of the Department Regarding Formulation of Policy, Laws and Regulation, introduced the latest key projects in the field of cultural heritage. 2011 marks the beginning of the Twelfth Year Plan and State Administration of Cultural Heritage will carry out its work mainly in the following five aspects: first is establishment of the framework for “The Twelfth Year Plan for the Development of State Cultural Heritage and Museum Undertakings” and other special plans, providing the general guidelines for the strategic mission, development goals and key projects in the cultural heritage and museum field. Second is the completion of the third National Census of Cultural Relics so as to improve the preservation of cultural relics, key historical sites and world cultural heritage sites. Third is the enhancement of the performance in museum development and free admission policy and the administration of private collections of cultural relics. Fourth is the advancement in the science and technology related to the preservation of cultural relics, and education and training in museum community. Fifth is to enhance the formulation of laws and regulations regarding cultural relics, pushing forward the establishment of security system of cultural relics and supervision in law enforcement. Besides the above statement, a series of special activities will be organized by taking advantage of several important occasions during the period, such as the 90th anniversary of Chinese Communist Party, 60th anniversary of Tibet Peaceful Liberation and so on.

Liu Chengwen, Member of the Standing Committee of Communist Party in Jining City and Head of the City’s Propaganda Department, introduced the arranged activities in the host city for Cultural Heritage Day 2011. Organized by Shandong Provincial Department of Culture, Provincial Department of Cultural Relics and Jining City Government and supported by State Administration of Cultural Heritage and Shandong Provincial Government, this Cultural Heritage Day will be staged on June 11. On that day, the list of ten major archeological discoveries in 2010 will be unveiled and the third list of China’s famous historical and cultural streets will be unveiled, too. A special exhibition themed on “Strike Firmly: Exhibition on the National Crackdown against Robbery of Cultural Relics in the Wild” will be held. There will be other activities, such as the signing activity of thousands of people supporting preservation of cultural heritage, performances of intangible cultural heritage and the opening ceremony of Nanwang Water Control Point Historical Site Park. Meanwhile, with the advantages of being Home of Confucius and Mencius and a historical canal city, Jining will host a series of unique activities, such as Exhibition on the Results of Preservation of Cultural Heritage in Shandong province: Cultural Exhibition of the Canal Running through Jining, the launching campaign of World Bank Loan Project for the Cultural Heritage Site of Confucius and Mencius: the completion of the Fusheng Palace in the Yan Confucian Temple, Qufu, Jining, and so on.

During the press conference, Xie Xiuzhi, deputy director of Shandong Provincial Department of Culture, and head of the Provincial Administration of Cultural Relics introduced the achievements made in the preservation of cultural heritage in recent years in Shandong province. Many people attended this press conference, including the some relevant members from State Administration of Cultural Heritage, some members from Jining City Administration of Cultural Heritage, and journalists from over ten major new agencies, such as Xinhua New Agency, People’s Daily, China National Radio, China Central Television, Guangming Daily, and China Youth Daily.