八一勋章(bāyī xūnzhāng):Order of August 1

Approved by the Central Military Commission, China has established its highest military honor, the Order of August 1, the first recipients of which will be selected this year.

According to the Central Military Commission, bestowing the Order of August 1 on those who have made outstanding contributions to safeguarding the country's sovereignty, security and development interests, and advancing the modernization of national defense and the armed forces will be one of the activities to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army.

This year, about 10 people are to receive the award from a list of 17 candidates nominated by the PLA, the armed police force and public security force. The names of the nominees were made public to solicit comments from both the military rank and file and the general public.

Several scientists and engineers that have made great contributions to China's military are on the list, along with Chinese astronaut Jing Haipeng, commander of the Shenzhou XI spacecraft.