PLA Daily 2003-06-23

　　People in Beijing held a meeting to express their appreciation of and bid farewell to the servicemen and women of the Chinese People's Liberation Army and the Armed Police Force who have made contributions to final victory in the fight against serious acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) yesterday morning. Liu Qi, Member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and Secretary of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the CPC, and Liao Xilong, member of the Central Military Commission and director of the PLA General Logistics Department attended the meeting and gave a speech.

　　Yuan Shoufang, deputy director of the PLA General Political Department, read out the circular citation order signed by Jiang Zemin, chairman of the Central Military Commission, to commend all officers and men who worked hard at the Xiaotangshan Hospital.

　　In his speech, Liu Qi said, it was at the most critical moment that the Central Committee of the CPC, the State Council and the Central Military Commission made the decision to build the Xiaotangshan hospital in the shortest possible time to accept and treat SARS patients. In this hard battle that lasted for more than 50 days, all the medical staff of the Xiaotangshan Hospital successfully fulfilled their missions, and made great achievements in protecting people's health and safety. They have lived up to people's expectation and created a miracle at the Xiaotangshan hospital. Liu Qi continued to say that, on behalf of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the CPC, the Municipal Government and over 13 million people in the capital city, he extended hearty thanks to the officers and men of the PLA and the Armed Police Force who had supported and helped Beijing to achieve the final victory in the fight against SARS.

　　Liao Xilong said at the meeting that, in the past few months, the army and people throughout the country launched a large-scale battle against SARS, in light of the decision and disposition of the CPC Central Committee, the State Council and the Central Military Commission, the Xiaotangshan Hospital turned out to be a critical battlefield in this soul-stirring battle against SARS. Officers and men in the hospital firmly followed the leadership of the Party and worked in accordance with requirements of the Central Military Committee. They put the interest of the people above everything else. They have truly lived up to the entrustment of the whole army and expectations of the people in the capital. With their scientific approach and hard efforts, they realized high recovery rate, low mortality rate and zero infection rates of patients. Their excellent achievements have proved once again that our army is an army with firm political orientation，indomitable style, and proficient technical skill.

　　The meeting also declared the decision of the Beijing Joint Working Group for SARS Prevention and Control to commend the advanced units and individuals at the Xiaotangshan Hospital. 19 units were honored the " outstanding collective units" and 453 medical workers were awarded the title of " outstanding individuals in the capital's SARS prevention and control". Beijing Municipal Committee of the CPC and the Municipal Government also presented a memorial plaque to the Xiaotangshan Hospital.

　　By Du Xianzhou and Zhao Bo

　　（June 23, PLA Daily）