Party members hail 91st anniversary in E China

On Sunday, elderly Communist Party of China members met in the countryside of Jiangxi province, where CPC built up its early political power from 1931 to 1937, to celebrate the 91st anniversary of the Party's founding. Huang Zuolan, a 86-year old CPC member of 57 years' standing, received some gifts from local government of Ningdu county in Jiangxi province.

Huang, who served in the Korean War (1950-53), said he could still work on a farm and he attended a meeting with other CPC members in his village to discuss plans to develop the old revolutionary base.

Li Yanqiu, a 74-year old retired staff member from the People's Hospital of Ningdu county, held an exhibition of the CPC's history on Saturday, one day ahead of the Party's 91st anniversary.

Li has been collecting memorabilia of the CPC's history since 1965, when he started to work in the hospital, and his collection includes newspapers, Mao badges, posters and works of CPC's political leaders.

Students from local schools and civil servants visited Li's exhibition.

"It is my interest and I also want more people to understand more about the CPC," Li said.

Li said he often goes to recycling centers to search for lost collectibles and buys them back.

"As long as I can still move around, I will keep working on the collection," he added.

Li's daughter, who is also a CPC member, said she will step into her father's shoes and continue to build the collection and exhibition.

A statement from the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee released that the number of CPC members all over the country surpassed 82.6 million in 2011, up 2.9 percent year on year.