The Monument for the Revolutionary Martyrs in Jinggangshan. The characters on the monument were inscribed by former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in 1983. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com] |
Although more than 80 years have passed since the Communist revolution in China, nearly every Chinese citizen who visits Jinggangshan Mountain today still has a huge amount of respect for those who pioneered the fight and spent their hardest days there.
In the minds of the Chinese people, Jinggangshan is not only the birth place of China's revolution in the first half of last century, but also stands for a spirit that has inspired generations of nationals.
Mao Binghua is an 80-year-old living in Ciping, a small town at the foot of the Jinggangshan Mountain, where late Chinese leader Mao Zedong established the first revolutionary base area in 1927. The 80 year old man has dedicated himself to publicizing the spirit of Jinggangshan since he retired some decades ago as director of the Jinggangshan Revolution Museum, now a patriotism education base.
Mao said the essence of the Jinggangshan spirit can be summed up as "confidence in success and persistence in belief."
"The persistence of the Communist Party of China (CPC) during the hard revolution period is still a mindset stimulus for many people in their current work," he said. "The spirit indicates that no one should waver in his ideals and beliefs."
Mao Binghua usually gives more than 200 lectures in one year, and his audiences consisted of mainly college students, local government officials and the soldiers of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). His longest trip was in 1997 when he gave a speech to PLA troops stationed in Hong Kong, which developed from the former Red Army troops at the Jinggangshan Mountain.
Mao Binghua believes that the Jinggangshan spirit can also be effective in boosting morale as part of the current efforts to tackle the financial crisis. He said building strong confidence for the country's capability to overcome difficulties should come above all other economic stimulus measures.